Neduvasal: Protesters at Neduvasal, the epicentre of the agitation against the proposed hydrocarbon extraction project in Pudukkottai district, have decided to continue their 15-day long protest till the Union Government drops the ‘dangerous’ project. Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisami’s assurance that the Tamil Nadu Government will never implement any project that is detrimental to the people failed to cut ice with the people who demanded an assertion from the Union Government that the project will be dropped.
The five-member delegation that met Mr Palanisami on Wednesday in Chennai held back-to-back talks with the protesting youngsters and villages through the day but in vain. After contradicting reports through the day, the villagers finally announced a little after 7 pm that the protests would not be called off till the Centre intervenes and gives an assurance. “We will not go back to our houses till the time the Union Government makes an announcement that the hydrocarbon extraction project in Neduvasal has been dropped. We request the Centre to respect our sentiments and drop the project,” Ramanathan, one of the organisers of the protest, said.
While the representatives of the villagers who met Mr Palanisami was keen that the protests should be withdrawn, the villagers and youngsters opposed their decision. A protester, Manoj Kumar, said since it was the Union Government that announced the project, the villagers want an assurance of dropping the project from competent authorities at the Centre. “We are all united. The unanimous opinion here is to continue protests against the hydrocarbon project. Though we respect Tamil Nadu Government for supporting our stand, we want the Union Government to come out with a categorical statement that the project has been withdrawn or dropped,” Mr Kumar said. On the 15th day of the protest, many youngsters from neighbouring villages and other districts converged at Neduvasal to join the peaceful protests.“It is a peaceful protests and I came here to express my support for the protesting farmers,” Rajkumar, who hails from a neighbouring village, said.
Capacity of sites in Tamil Nadu
The two contract areas, Karaikal (10.4 sq km) located in Puducherry and Neduvasal (10.0 sq km) located in Tamil Nadu awarded under Discovered Small Fields bidding round have an in-place volume of 4,30,000 metric tonnes of oil and oil equivalent gas
Area of holes: 120 m x 120m
Number: 3 to 4
Known environmental effects of oil wells in other regions
In Assam, leaks from abandoned oil wells have reportedly been contaminating groundwater and the soil
The benefits of the project
The two small fields in the Neduvasal village in Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu and Karaikal in Puducherry areexpected to generate a gross revenue of Rs 300 crore and a royalty of Rs 40 crore.
The project is expected to generate employment for 500 persons.
What triggered Neduvasal protests?
The Central government has cleared the proposals for setting up small oil fields in the Neduvasal village in Pudukottai district and Karaikal in Puducherry on
February 15.
The farmers in Neduvasal village started their protest against the
project, fearing the gas field would pollute the area’s groundwater and damage farmlands.
The protest has gathered steam after students and political parties extended their support to it.
