KOCHI: After a brief interval, the Latin Catholic community is again on a warpath against the government for the alleged delay in rectifying anomalies in the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification.
The agitation has been launched by the Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council (KRLCC), in association with the organisations representing affected people. KRLCC political affairs committee convener Shaji George said the government had not considered the issue seriously.
“The government had promised that the respective local bodies would be vested with the power to grant permission for carrying out construction activities along the coast. No step has been taken in this direction. We were also assured that the rural areas included in CRZ-III would be shifted to CRZ-II, in the Coastal Zone Management Plan. But, the recently-published draft Plan shows that the promise was not kept,” said Shaji George.
Conditional permission is given for construction in areas under CRZ-II, while construction is strictly restricted in CRZ-III. Thruvananthapuram-based Coastal Zone Management Authority is vested with the power to grant permission for construction in CRZ-III. The life of people living in CRZ-III will be miserable as they have to get permission from the authorities even for carrying out maintenance works on their house. These people will not get fair price for their land. People of a certain area in Edakochi and 40-60 houses in Thanthonnithuruthu will have a tough time,” Shaji pointed out. He alleged the Plan was prepared without consulting respective local bodies.
“No steps have been taken to prepare the coastal regulation plan. Local bodies have not been instructed to conduct studies. The government has failed to effectively present the issues being faced by people living in the coastal areas, before the commission constituted to study the impact of the CRZ notification. The Coastal Management Authority has not been granted funds for preparing plan,” he added.
The announcement of the second phase the agitation and the inauguration of the newly- constituted Theeradesha Jagratha Samithi will be held at Bolgatty on Sunday.