THOOTHUKUDI
Two groups of fishermen from Terespuram here, who are involved in catching crabs, submitted petitions during the weekly grievance day meet at the Collectorate here on Monday seeking early reopening of Sterlite Copper unit that remains closed since May 2018 after police firing claimed 13 lives during anti-Sterlite agitation.
Fisherwomen have been submitting petitions with similar appeal for the past few months.
Led by its president Soosai Michael, members of Terespuram Sindhayathrai Crab Net Fishermen Welfare Association submitted a petition in support of the reopening of the copper smelter plant. They said they, who were catching crabs with specially designed nets and making a living with trivial income, were getting welfare schemes for the past several years from Sterlite Copper when it was functioning. The welfare schemes implemented for the betterment of the fishermen were stopped immediately after the plant was closed in May 2018.
“If Sterlite Copper is allowed to function again, the factory management will resume disbursing welfare schemes for the benefit of the fishermen, whose children will get employment in the plant. Hence, the Tamil Nadu government should allow the reopening of the factory at the earliest,” they said.
Another petition with similar prayer was submitted by the members of Crab Net Fishers’ Welfare Association and residents of Therkku Veerapandiapuram and Silverpuram.
Encroachments
A group of villagers from Kamalapuram near Vilathikulam, led by its village panchayat president P. Murugeswari, submitted a petition seeking removal of encroachments in the village. The villagers said an 18-foot-wide south-north road passing through the village had been illegally occupied by a few individuals, which had made the movement of four-wheelers through the village difficult.
Hence, a proper survey should be conducted to remove all illegal structures made along the road, they said.
‘Poses a threat’
Villagers from Nagalapuram and Goundanpatti submitted a petition against installation of high tension power transmission tower at Nagalapuram bazaar. They said the power transmission tower installed to evacuate the power generated by the 33,000 KV solar power station at Kumarasithanpatti–Madharajapuram was posing a serious threat to the safety of the villagers as any problem in the tower would lead to a catastrophe.
Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam’s R. Kasilingam submitted a petition seeking repair of the badly damaged road in Tooveypuram 10th Street.