Within a few hours after Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami assured that his government would not allow the Kanniyakumari International Transhipment Terminal Project, the fishermen and the farmers of the district have categorically declared that their agitation against this project would continue until the State and the Central Governments formally scrapped it.
A resolution to this effect was passed in a mammoth meeting and subsequently a demonstration was held in the coastal hamlet of Keezha Manakkudi near Kanniyakumari on Saturday evening. Over 15,000 people from various parts of the district participated in this meeting and the protest was led by retired civil servant M.G. Devasahayam.
“We reject the Chief Minister’s announcement which has been made on the eve of elections to hoodwink the people agitating against this project. Our protest will continue with much vigour until the governments come out with formal announcement on permanently scrapping the Kanniyakumari International Transhipment Terminal Project,” said the resolution.
While farmers reached Keezha Manakkudi via road, the fishermen from almost all coastal hamlets of the district took the sea route to arrive at the protest venue in hundreds of boats with black flags as they feared that they would be stopped in their villages itself.
Bishop of Kottar RC Diocese Most Rev. Nazarene Soosai, ‘Ayya Vazhi’ Balaprajapathi, environmental activist G. Sundararajan of ‘Poovulagin Nanbargal’, coordinator of the Anti- Kanniyakumari International Transhipment Terminal Project R.S. Parthasarathi and others participated in today’s protest and the meeting as well.
When the Union Government decided to create container transshipment terminal at Enayam near Colachel under ‘Sagarmala Scheme’, the fishermen opposed it and organised a series of intense agitations against it that forced the Centre to give-up the proposal. The fishermen said the project would wipe-out fishing operations in the entire district due to pollution caused by the proposed port and other consequences.
Subsequently, the Centre shifted the project to a place close to Kanniyakumari only to get similar opposition from the fishermen and the farmers. And, the intense opposition reflected in the Lok Sahba polls in 2019 in which BJP’s Pon. Radhakrishnan, who had declared that he would ensure the execution of the project at any cost, lost by a whopping margin of over 2.50 lakh votes to Congress candidate H. Vasanthakumar.
Even as the people expected that the negative election result would seal the fate of the project, the ‘Expression of Interest’ advertisement given recently by the VOC Port, Thoothukudi, the project proponent, inviting private firms to join hands with the government in executing the Kanniyakumari International Transhipment Terminal Project instantly revived the protest.
Sensing the people’s anger, Mr. Palaniswami while campaigning in the district on Saturday, announced that he would not allow the project. However, the farmers and the fishermen have declared that their agitation would continue until the project was shelved permanently.