Tamilaga Vivasayigal Livelihood Protection Committee has urged the Chief Minister to save farmers in Western Tamil Nadu from an “impending danger” to their livelihood that has come in the form of pipeline project by Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) from Kochi to Bangalore.
The pipeline on entering Tamil Nadu at Walayar would pass through agricultural lands in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Namakkal, Salem, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts.
Farmers who had already given their lands under acquisition for widening of highways, gauge conversion, railway line doubling, installation of electricity towers are very upset, as the GAIL pipeline project would almost leave them on the street, said Coimbatore MP and Chairman of the Committee P.R. Natarajan and coordinator G.K. Nagaraj.
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Adding woes to the farmers, GAIL’s condition that only ten per cent of the guideline value would be given as compensation was unacceptable, they pointed out. Farmers are not averse to the GAIL pipeline as it would do immense good to the infrastructure, but the same pipeline could be run along the railway line or national highways rather than laying it through agricultural land, they added.