PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss said on Tuesday (October 20, 2026) that the Tamil Nadu government should look at building the new Secretariat complex outside Chennai as proposed by his party and abandon the plans to build it within city limits.

In a statement, he expressed shock over reports that the State government was now considering building the new Secretariat on land occupied by Pallavan Illam on Anna Salai as opposed to an earlier proposal to construct it in Pattinapakkam. “The Tamil Nadu government must clarify whether the media reports about constructing the Secretariat at Pallavan Illam are true. If there are numerous reasons and justifications for not constructing the new Secretariat in Pattinapakkam, there are a hundred times more compelling reasons for not building it at Pallavan Illam,” he said.

According to Dr. Anbumani, the traffic congestion would be impossible to resolve.

“If Chennai’s most congested traffic locations were ranked, the area around Pallavan Illam would figure among the top three. Anna Salai, one of Chennai’s principal roads, is already struggling with severe traffic congestion. If the new Secretariat is established at Pallavan Illam, controlling traffic congestion on Anna Salai would become virtually impossible,” he asserted.

According to Dr. Anbumani, the entire site at Pallavan Illam measures only 13.22 acres, while the area of the site in Pattinapakkam around 26.36 acres.

“During the DMK government led by former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, 39.54 acres were earmarked in 2007 for constructing a new Secretariat on Omandurar Government Estate. The land occupied by the buildings originally constructed to house the Secretariat and Legislative Assembly Secretariat, which now accommodate the Omandurar Multi Super Speciality Hospital and medical colleges, measure 19.48 acres,” he said.