Welcoming the interim stay on the GAIL pipeline project by the Supreme Court, P. Shanmugham, general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam, the farmers’ wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), told The Hindu that it would still amount to only an “interim relief’’ to the affected farmers in seven districts of the western region in Tamil Nadu.
He pointed out that after a series of agitations by various farmers’ associations on the grounds that their livelihood was being affected, the State government heard the grievances of farmers and ordered a halt to the laying of pipelines.
Mr. Shanmugam said the Centre should instruct GAIL to lay the lines along national highways, instead of cutting through farm lands.
S.A. Chinnasamy, president of Tamizhaga Vivasayigal Sangam, welcomed the interim stay and urged the State government to pursue the case further to get a permanent solution for the farmers. Kongunadu Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary G.K. Nagaraj said the pipelines could be laid along highways, as was done in Karnataka and Kerala. He wanted clearance for the present route of the pipeline cancelled.
Kongunadu Makkal Desiya Katchi general secretary E.R. Easwaran said GAIL should rework its project.
