Vizhinjam stir for posterity: Church official

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:  The protesters led by the Latin Church organised art and cultural meet on Wednesday to seek support for their ongoing agitation against the Vizhinjam port project. Scientists, environmental activists, social workers and artists attended the meeting. Similar meets were held in all district headquarters in the state. Thiruvananthapuram Latin Archdiocese Vicar General Eugine H Pereira said the protest was not just for coastal people, but for the future generation.

“The protest is to protect our sea, forest and hills. The future generation will suffer if they fail to protect them,” said the vicar, who is also the general convener of the protests. “The cyclones will occur due to man-made activities that affect the nature of the sea.

If we destroy the ecosystem of the sea, it will affect the availability of fish,” he added. He spoke about the environmental and financial losses due to the project. Referring to the victory of Daya Bai, a social activist protesting for the rights of the endosulfan victims of Kasaragod, Pereira said time has come for various artists, scientists and the general public to join forces against the wrong policies in the name of development. Kerala State Disaster Management Authority former member K G Thara, social commentator Joseph C Mathew and National Fishworkers Forum founder secretary A J Vijayan spoke.

AGITATORS FORM 7-MEMBER PANEL
The protesters have formed a seven-member committee to study the impact of the port around the coast. The team will be chaired by K V Thomas, former scientist and group head at National Centre for Earth Science Studies. The team will study the coastal erosion in the area, the impact of port construction on the life and livelihood of people on the coast and arrive at a suitable compensation. The government appointed a four-member team led by M D Kudale, former additional director of Central Water and Power Research Station on October 6. The fisheries department is yet to announce the terms and reference for the committee.