The Kerala government had provided an in-principle approval for the airport during the Left Democratic Front rule in 2009,[2] with the condition that the promoters procure sufficient land on their own.
The Central Government gave the green signal for the proposed airport in October 2012 and the project was estimated to be completed within 18 months.
[3] An executive summary of the project including the anticipated environmental impact was prepared by Chennai-based Enviro Care India Pvt.
[4] The Legislative Assembly Committee on Environmental Affairs chaired by C P Mohammed MLA found the Airport Project "highly detrimental to the environment"[5] The project met with opposition right from its initial stages from leaders of various streams of society including poet-cum-environmentalist Sugathakumari and politician V. M. Sudheeran, Hindu Ikya Vedi's Secretary Kummanam Rajasekharan.
[7][8] The Kerala State Biodiversity Board submitted a report to the government in March 2013, expressing its reservations over "the land use changes and ecological imbalance that the project will entail.