Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) leader Anbumani Ramadoss on 13 October 2026 accused the Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority of acting in the interest of private developers by drastically reducing the protected zone of influence around the Pallikaranai marsh in Chennai, while continuing to delay the statutory notification of wetland boundaries despite a Supreme Court directive issued nearly a year ago.

The Zone Reduction at the Heart of the Dispute

The authority reportedly informed the Madras High Court that the marsh's zone of influence would be slashed from 8,397 acres to just 316 acres, following inter-departmental consultations held on 30 September 2026. The disclosure came during High Court proceedings on petitions filed by private construction companies challenging a National Green Tribunal (NGT) order dated 24 September 2025, which had banned construction within one kilometre of the marsh. According to Anbumani, the developers openly welcomed the authority's decision — a detail he cited as evidence of whose interests were being served.

Supreme Court Directive Left Unimplemented

Anbumani questioned the authority's selective urgency: it had moved swiftly to reduce the protective zone, yet had failed to comply with the Supreme Court's direction of 11 December 2024 to demarcate and notify wetland boundaries. He noted that the authority itself told the High Court on 3 December 2024 that satellite-based mapping of Pallikaranai was 99 per cent complete and requested additional time to submit its report. More than ten months later, the notification reportedly remains pending. 'Is the authority working for the government and the people, or for private construction companies?' he asked.

A Wetland in Sharp Decline

Anbumani recalled that Pallikaranai once spread across 15,000 acres between the Adyar river and the Buckingham Canal, stretching from Guindy to Siruseri. It has now shrunk to an estimated 1,725 acres, he claimed, attributing the loss to encroachments over the years. The authority was established in 2016, and wetland conservation rules were introduced in 2017, yet Anbumani alleged that little meaningful progress had been made in securing statutory protection in the nearly decade since.

PMK's Demands and the Satellite Data Argument

Citing the 2021 ISRO Wetland Atlas, Anbumani argued that Tamil Nadu's 26,883 wetlands exceeding 2.25 hectares could be identified and demarcated using available satellite data — making further delays difficult to justify. The PMK leader said his party favoured a science-based determination of zones of influence and full surveying and notification of wetland boundaries. He added that construction within such zones should be regulated rather than subject to a blanket ban — a nuanced position that separates the PMK's stand from an outright no-build stance.

Calls to Demolish Controversial Structures

Anbumani also demanded that the construction of a six-foot-high protective wall along three kilometres of Pallikaranai and a two-kilometre walkway be abandoned, and that structures already erected under these projects be demolished. He urged the TVK government to end delays that had persisted through the previous Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) administration and ensure the authority fulfilled its mandate. This is the latest in a series of political interventions over Pallikaranai, which has been at the centre of Chennai's urban ecology debate for over two decades.