The objection from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to the laying of gas pipeline by the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) through her state has triggered a fresh row over the commissioning of the Petronet LNG Terminal at Puthuvype here.
Experts point out that in all possibility, the protest against the project will intensify in the state following the remarks by Jayalalithaa. She had recently asked the GAIL officials to stop work of the Kochi-Bangalore gas pipeline project in Tamil Nadu and return the land being used for the project to the landowners.
Owing to various reasons, including the non-laying of pipelines, the commissioning of the Petronet LNG terminal in Kochi has been delayed by eight months.
So far, only less than 10 per cent of the pipeline-laying work from Kochi to Koottanad and from there to Bangalore and Mangalore has been completed.
Under the first phase, a 43-km pipeline stretch from Petronet LNG’s terminal in Puthuvype to Udyogamandal and Ambalamugal was completed.
In the wake of the latest development in Tamil Nadu, the entire gas infrastructure project in South India will be delayed further, said a GAIL official.