Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Wednesday, 2 September unveiled a sweeping package of urban infrastructure investments in the state Assembly, headlined by a ₹4,800 crore seawater desalination plant at Minjur and spanning drinking water, sewerage, roads, green spaces, and digital transport reforms. Vijay also announced the withdrawal of cases registered against farmers and teachers who participated in peaceful protests between May 2021 and April 2026.

The Desalination Plant and Water Supply Overhaul

The centrepiece of the announcement is a 400-million-litres-per-day seawater desalination plant to be built at Minjur, at an estimated cost of ₹4,800 crore. The facility is designed to meet the drinking water needs of north Chennai, Avadi, Ponneri, and Minjur. A separate ₹500 crore scheme will provide round-the-clock piped water supply to every household within Avadi Corporation.

An additional ₹1,000 crore has been earmarked to upgrade water infrastructure across Madurai and Cuddalore corporations, nine municipalities, and 20 town panchayats. The state will also spend ₹300 crore in the first phase to renovate 33 ageing combined water-supply schemes, and ₹410 crore to expand the capacity of Chennai's Kilpauk water treatment plant.

Sewerage Modernisation Across Cities

The first phase of overhauling Madurai's 40-year-old underground sewerage network will be taken up this year at a cost of ₹2,400 crore. New underground drainage projects worth ₹960 crore will be implemented in uncovered and newly added areas of Nagercoil Corporation and in the municipalities of Kundrathur and Nandivaram-Guduvancheri. Water and sewerage networks in Perambur, Kolathur, Villivakkam, and Egmore will be improved at a further ₹236 crore.

Notably, the Madurai sewerage overhaul alone represents one of the largest single-city drainage investments in Tamil Nadu's recent history, reflecting the scale of deferred maintenance in the state's older urban centres.

Roads, Green Spaces, and Waste-to-Energy

Road construction and repairs across urban local bodies — including Chennai — will receive ₹1,850 crore, while an additional ₹275 crore will fund safer access around schools, upgraded junctions, and allied works in other corporations. Waste-to-energy plants generating 9 megawatts in Tirunelveli and 10 megawatts in Salem will be established at a combined cost of ₹547 crore.

On green infrastructure, the government will plant and maintain one crore saplings, establish major parks in Tiruchi, Tiruppur, and Pudukkottai, and create 250 parks statewide at a total cost of ₹305 crore. Heritage and tourism initiatives include upgrading Chidambaram's four car streets, a heritage walk from Fort St David to Silver Beach in Cuddalore, and beautification of Kanyakumari's coastline.

Digital Transport Reforms and Case Withdrawals

From 15 September, candidates who pass their driving tests will receive digital licences on the same day, and vehicle owners will be able to download digital registration certificates — a move aimed at reducing paperwork and improving turnaround at transport offices.

Vijay also confirmed that cases registered between May 2021 and April 2026 against farmers and teachers involved in peaceful protests will be withdrawn. This includes cases linked to the Tiruvannamalai SIPCOT agitation and the Parandur airport protests — two of the more politically sensitive land-acquisition disputes in the state in recent years.

Context and What Comes Next

The announcements were made as the Assembly was debating demands for grants for dairy development, fisheries, and animal husbandry — an unusual legislative setting for a broad urban infrastructure package, underscoring the political weight the government is placing on these commitments. This comes amid growing pressure on Tamil Nadu's urban bodies to address chronic water shortages and crumbling civic infrastructure, particularly in secondary cities. The scale of the combined outlay — running well above ₹13,000 crore across all projects — will now face scrutiny on timelines and execution, with the first test being the Madurai sewerage phase and the Minjur desalination plant's tendering process.