Maharashtra Home Minister R.R. Patil said on Monday that the situation was tense in Jaitapur after Minister of State for Environment Jairam Ramesh's statement that there was no going back on the proposed nuclear project.
One person was killed in police firing and several were injured as the protest against the nuclear power plant turned violent.
Subhash Desai of the Shiv Sena told the Maharashtra Assembly that the incident was shocking and exposed the high handedness of the police.
Protesters alleged that the police lathicharged women and children. “When the fishing communities from nearly 10 villages protested at the Nate-Jaitapur bridge, the police lathicharged the women and children and some were injured. There is a lot of anger among people there,” Vaishali Patil, an activist and member of the Konkan Bachao Samiti, told The Hindu . She said four persons were injured in police firing. “I cannot get in touch with the people there. The situation is volatile.”
Meanwhile, anti-nuclear power activists are launching a Tarapur to Jaitapur Yatra from April 23 to highlight the drawbacks of nuclear energy. Vandana Shiva, Anil Sadgopal, Banwarilal Sharma, Admiral (retired) L. Ramdas and Satinath Sarangi, journalist Praful Bidwai and several others will take part in the protest which will end in Jaitapur on April 25.
