Vizhinjam Compensation Talks On
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson has been assigned the job of conducting negotiations regarding the compensation for 19 fishermen families who will be affected by the multi-crore Vizhinjam seaport project.
A committee headed by the District Collector had looked into the issue and fixed the compensation amount. The negotiation will be based on this amount, Ports Minister K Babu said, after a board meeting of the Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd (VISL), the government company in charge of the Rs 7,525 crore project.
The government has also expanded the empowered committee headed by the Chief Secretary into the ‘Implementation Committee’ by including the Revenue Secretary and the District Collector, Thiruvananthapuram.
Recently, the Latin Catholic Church had threatened to block the project unless the proposals were changed drastically to benefit the local fishermen communities. However, the government had taken the stand that a rehabilitation package for the fishermen and other affected groups on the coast was already a part of the project. Babu said that the project is inclusive of Rs 128 crore package in this regard.
The government needs to take over 30 more acres of land before the construction can begin, he said. The state government has announced that it would sign the concession agreement with Adani Ports and SEZ on August 17, Chingam 1, at the Durbar Hall in Thiruvananthapuram. Construction would begin on November 1, and, according to the Adani Group, would be completed in two years’ time.
Going Seaward
■ A committee headed by the District Collector fixed the compensation amount
■ The negotiation will be based on this amount
■ The government has also expanded the empowered committee headed by the Chief Secretary into the ‘Implementation Committee’
■ The Implementation committee has Revenue Secretary and District Collector
■ The Latin Catholic Church had threatened to block the project over the issue
■ The government says rehabilitation package already a part of the project
■ The project is inclusive of Rs 128 crore package in this regard
■ The government needs to take over 30 more acres of land for the construction
■ The state government to sign the concession agreement with Adani Ports and SEZ on August 17
■ Construction would begin on November 1 and would be completed in two years’ time