Tirunelveli: Making some headway towards
resolution of the Koodankulam issue, anti-plant protesters
on Tuesday decided to nominate two of their members in the expert
committee to be set up by the Tamil Nadu government.
The protesters, however, made it clear that they would
not hold talks with the 15-member committee set up by the
Centre till the work at the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant
(KNPP) was stopped.
S P Udhayakumar, the movement`s leader, told reporters
here that the protesters had named Jesuraj and Pushparayan to
be appointed to the committee when the Tamil Nadu government
had asked them for their nominees.
Anti-KNPP activists had yesterday sought a clarification
from the state government whether any work was being carried
out at the plant even as they continued their stir demanding
its closure.
Udhayakumar, who is also the convenor of People`s
Movement against Atomic Power, had wondered if any work was
going on without the government`s knowledge.
He said Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Srikumar
Banerjee had stated that "minimum activity" is necessary to
maintain the plant`s "health" and future in view of the
completion of the Hot Run (dummy fuel).
In that case, KNPP workers should be continuing with
their work, unmindful of the protest and state cabinet`s
decision that work at the site should be stopped and taken up
only after people were convinced about the plant`s safety, he
said.
Udhayakumar said the protesters would also hold a huge
demonstration on November 5 at Palayamkottai, Tirunelveli in
order to garner more support for the stir.
The demonstration would be carried out involving
like-minded political parties and social groups, he said.
The Indo-Russian joint venture in Tirunelveli district
has run into trouble following protests from locals demanding
that the project be scrapped, citing safety concerns in the
wake of the Fukushima disaster early this year.
PTI
