Apprehending threat to their livelihood, a group of traditional fishermen from Morepannai, a coastal fishing hamlet near Uppur, have opposed the laying of pipelines to draw seawater for the upcoming Uppur thermal power plant.
Arriving at the Collectorate here on Monday, they urged the district administration to protect their livelihood.
Led by Durai Balan, the fishermen representatives from Grama Nirvaga Committee urged Collector K. Veera Raghava Rao to stop the laying of pipelines in the village, cutting across the mangrove forest, to draw seawater and protect their livelihood,
Stating that they had been eking out a living by fishing in traditional craft and sailing into the wind, they said the pipelines being laid near Morepannai fishing jetty up to 5 km into the sea for seawater intake and 7 km for seawater outfall for the Uppur thermal power plant would hit their livelihood.
About 5,000 people lived in the village and their economy solely depended on fishing, the fishermen pointed out.
The pipelines also ran through the mangrove forest. They alleged that both Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation, the executive agency of the power plant, and the private contract company, which laid the pipelines, took the villagers for granted.
The agencies kept them in the dark, especially on laying of the pipelines to draw seawater, and failed to seek their views before implementing the project, the fishermen representatives alleged.