Local residents and environmental activists agitating against the proposed dedicated fuel storage terminal near Payyannur have decided to intensify the stir in protest against the State government’s alleged move to acquire land for the project.
The proposed common user facility (CUF) for the storage and discharge of petroleum oil and lubricant (POL) at Kandankali, near Payyannur, has drawn protests from the local residents and environmental activists, as the project is feared to cause environmental and safety problems.
Paddy fields
The CUF, proposed by the oil companies, is planned to be built on a total 129-acre land at Kandankali, an area close to the Payyannur railway station.
The identified land located on the bank of the Perumba river included paddy fields and mangrove areas, the agitators said.
“A people’s convention will be held on July 1 to decide on the future course of our agitation against the storage facility,” said Athayi Balan, joint convener of the Nelvayal Thanneerthada Samrakshana Samithi (NTSS).
The NTSS is spearheading the agitation against the fuel storage terminal project.
An action committee would be constituted then, comprising representatives from 15 panchayats in Kannur and Kasaragod districts, he added.
Public hearing
The agitators said the unanimous opposition of residents to the proposed project had been aired at a public hearing held in January in the presence of District Collector Mir Mohammed Ali.
Alleging a move on the part of the government to acquire the land for the project, they warned that the agitation would be intensified and continued till the project was abandoned.
Vested interests
“The State government is planning to take over the land to protect the vested interests of the fuel companies and it is an affront to the people,” said samithi president T.P. Padmanabhan, while inaugurating a march of the agitating residents at Payyannur on Monday.
Lawful opposition
Mr. Padmanabhan said that the people of the area would strongly oppose the project through lawful measures and democratic agitation.