Construction activities around Pallikaranai marshland can be regulated, not banned: TNSWA tells Madras High Court
The Tamil Nadu State Wetlands Authority informed the Madras High Court that construction around the Pallikaranai marshland can be regulated rather than banned. A new proposal suggests a variable-width 'zone of influence' based on scientific studies rather than a uniform 1 km ban.
Why it matters
This shift in policy balances environmental conservation with the property rights of thousands of landowners in Chennai.
In what could give hope to thousands of property owners around the 1,247.54-hectare Pallikaranai marshland in Chennai, the Tamil Nadu State Wetlands Authority (TNSWA) on Thursday (August 20, 2026) told the Madras High Court that construction of buildings can be regulated and need not be necessarily banned in the ‘zone of influence’ (ZoI) encircling the wetland.
First Division Bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan was also told that the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) had come up with a plan for delineation of an interim ZoI until the final ZoI could be determined after conducting thorough scientific studies regarding site specific hydrological and land use characteristics.
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