Farmers in the villages hoisted black flags protesting against the move of the government to acquire fertile lands for the execution of the Salem – Chennai green corridor eight-lane expressway on Tuesday.
The call for the agitation was given by the Confederation Opposed to the Green Corridor Project, which included left parties. The farmers hoisted the flags in their houses at Achankuttapatti; Keeripatti; Kuppanur; Kullapatti; Ramalingapuram; through which the proposed eight-lane is expected to pass through. The farmers also displayed black flags in their fields and farms to express their opposition.
Policemen were deployed in all the villages in connection with the agitation.
The special teams of revenue officials had already completed the work of survey of lands and other properties to a stretch of 35 km in 20 villages in three taluks of Salem main, Salem South and Vazhappadi.
Meanwhile, the cadre of the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) staged demonstration in front of the Collectorate on Tuesday condemning the acquisition of lands and farms for the project.
They raised slogans against the move of destroying the fields and demanded the government to drop the whole proposal.
A.R.Elangovan, secretary of the Salem rural district unit of the party, who led the agitation, criticised the claim of Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisami that farmers have volunteered to handover their lands for the project on their own. He said that no farmer was prepared to part way with their lands and other properties.
The government should come forward to hold discussion with the farmers on the acquisition process, instead of intimidating them using the police force. As three national highways already exist in the Salem – Chennai section, there was no need for the expressway, he said.
