Fishermen took out a motorcycle rally to show their protest against the Enayam International Container Transhipment Terminal (EICTT) from the coastal village Nithravilai to Neerodi in Kanniyakumari district on Sunday.
The rally was organised by People’s Movement Against Enayam International Container Transhipment Terminal. Killiyoor Congress MLA S. Rajesh Kumar flagged off the rally at Nithravilai. Addressing the protesters, he said the Congress would never allow the project to come up, as it would affect the livelihood of over 1 lakh people, including fishermen and those living in interior coastal villages.
The proposed creation of nine-km breakwaters for establishing the port would affect the coastal villages which were already hit hard by sea erosion. The road between Vallavilai and Eraviputhenthurai had eroded and if the project was implemented, it will worsen the situation in the coastal habitations, Mr. Rajesh Kumar said.
If the project was implemented, fishermen and farmers in the interior villages in the coastal areas between Enayam and Colachel would be the worst hit. Thousands of villagers would be forced to migrate from their habitations, the MLA said.
Padmanabhapuram MLA T. Mano Thangaraj presided over the rally. Parish Priest of Erayumanthurai Fr. Antro, Parish Priest of Poothurai Malbin, J. Jasiah, Coordinator of the forum and its Joint Coordinator S. Stanley Casmic Sundar participated.
The rally passed through a seven-km stretch of coastal villages via Kannagam and reached Neerodi. Over 500 fishermen and people living in coastal villages participated in the rally.
Signature campaign
The day also saw Kanniyakumari district unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party launching a signature campaign in support of the Enayam terminal.
The campaign was inaugurated by BJP State vice-president M.R. Gandhi in the presence of district president S. Muthukrishnan in Nagercoil.
Pamphlets distributed
The cadres distributed pamphlets explaining the advantages of the Rs. 28,000-crore project.
The speakers alleged that attempts were being made to divert the attention of the district fishermen by stating that the project would affect their livelihood.
Apart from attracting new investments in various departments, the port would trigger development of the fisheries sector in the region, they said.
The campaign was held simultaneously in various places across the district.
