The anti-Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) agitation has been suspended for a day on Monday “to enable people to exercise their franchise in the local body elections.”
The decision was taken in the meeting at Kudankulam on Sunday. “However, our protest will continue from October 18 at Idinthakarai where the protestors will continue their indefinite relay fast,” said S.P. Udhayakumar, convener of the anti-KKNPP struggle committee after the meeting which was largely attended by representatives of non-governmental organisations and a couple of local office-bearers of political splinter groups.
Dr. Udhyakumar said that the State government which had resolved in favour of halting construction activities at KKNPP should ensure that its Cabinet decision was honoured. “If construction activities continued at KKNPP, we will resume our struggle against the nuclear power programme with more vigour,” he said.
As per his “struggle schedule,” the indefinite relay fast would resume at Idinthakarai on October 18 with the participation of people from the southern districts of Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Tuticorin. Demonstrations would be staged at Kanyakumari (October 24), Chettikulam (October 31), Tuticorin (November 4) and Valliyoor (14).
On November 21, the World Fishers Day, demonstrations would be staged in the headquarters of all 13 coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, he told reporters after the meeting.
While he was announcing the decisions taken at the meeting, some of the protestors, mostly from the coastal hamlets, raised their objections saying that the one-day suspension of the struggle would have adverse impact on the protests' pace. However, they were pacified with the assurance that the struggle would be intensified until all the goals were achieved.
Following this decision, 106 persons who were on indefinite fast, gave up their hunger strike by 5 p.m.
The protestors against Koodankulam NPS and the TN Government in its stand on the project are very right, in fact they cannot be more right.
The improvement in design parametrs has not and could not have been conceived as the Japanese failure occured much later - in fact the Kodankulam construction was in advanced stage at the time of Japanese disaster. We are talking about the mech and civil engineering design safety. The Russian process is dependable.
Adequate high elevation, the strength to stand 8.3 richter scale earthquake, availability of resources like power, water, humnan and what not,are to be fit for emergeny without fail.
The objective is to avert any mishap. Explaining from Delhi that 20 KM is safe is irresponsible. With all the efforts it is very likely the required vital safe saving modifications to the conctruction may be impossible.If so the project has to be abandoned even at any loss. Risk to even a single life should not allowed
To escape joblessness & poverty all the projects should be completed on war footing. We all know how much production & other losses we bear because there is no electricity or there are nfrastructure shortages. agitation against any project is anti-poor. Think of whom it helps. Sorry!!! poors, you always pay.
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