The Thiruvaranmula Paithruka Grama Karma Samiti (TPGKS) has called upon Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to hold a voting and open debate on the controversial private airport project at Aranmula.
In a statement here on Friday, Kummanam Rajasekharan, TPGKS patron, said the Chief Minister’s statement that the government had given clearance for the project because the people and their representatives were favouring the project was farcical and irrational.
The Legislative Committee on Environment had strongly opposed the project as all the nine members of the committee were convinced of its ill-effects and the people’s attitude towards it.
The Chief Minister’s stand that the local MLA’s positive stand towards the controversial project was more reliable than that of the Assembly panel was nothing short of suspecting the credibility of the nine MLAs attached to it, he said.
The Assembly committee led by Congress MLA C.P. Mohammed had come to the conclusion that the project would bring about disastrous environmental impact in the region after obtaining statements from various sources, including the local MLA.
The villagers of Aranmula, Kidangannur and Mallappuzhaserry appeared before the committee expressing their strong protest against the project, Mr. Rajasekharan pointed out.
Mr. Chandy should clarify as to what made him to say that the people of Aranmula were in favour of the airport project when the Assembly committee had properly recorded the strong popular protest against the project in its report, he said.
