Nagapattinam: Delta farmers flay new nod for hydrocarbon projects
Human chain demonstrations to be held on June 12.
Nagapattinam: Cauvery delta farmers under the auspices of the ‘Tamil Nadu Vivasaya Sanga Koottu Iyakkam’ strongly condemned the Union Environment Ministry for according fresh sanction to Vedanta and ONGC to undertake surveys for extracting hydrocarbons in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
The Iyakkam’s state president, ‘Cauvery’ Dhanapalan, briefing newsmen on the resolutions adopted at their executive meeting held at Nagapattinam on Sunday, said that a resolution to that effect was adopted at the meeting.
He said it was decided to hold human chain demonstrations on June 12 at various places in Villupuram, Puducherry Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Pudukkottai, and Ramanathapuram districts to condemn the Union Government’s nod for extracting hydrocarbons and to press for declaring entire Cauvery delta area as protected agriculture zone.
He said the meeting appealed to the Tamil Nadu Government to take immediate steps for releasing water from Mettur reservoir for Kuruvai paddy cultivation, to pressure the Centre for the appointment of a full-time chairman for the Cauvery Management Board, and to get the election commission’s permission to commence the pending “Kudimaramathu” works across the state.
Mr. Dhanapalan said the meeting felt that the proposed Cauvery-Godavari rivers linking project will affect the Cauvery delta farmers severely and wanted the proposed project to be examined for its viability and techno-economic feasibility by a technical expert committee.
Subramanian, president of the ‘Tamilaga Vivasayeegal Padhukappu Nala Sangam’ said that for last five years, the Modi-led government has been betraying Tamil Nadu and its people in all ways and the present AIADMK Government functioning was functioning as a “slave” to the former.