KARAIKAL: Villagers, political parties and NGOs of Karaikal district have complained that the coal handling operations by the private port at Keezhavanjore in Karaikal is causing severe environmental degradation.
The port, developed by a Chennai-based infrastructure company, started functioning during April 2009. It is handling all types of cargo, including coal, fertilisers, sugar and cement.
Within a short span, it has scripted success stories in cargo handling and in offering world-class infrastructure.
However, the handling of coal cargo by the port has come under sever criticism by various sections of the society. The people of Keezhavanjore complain that coal import was not being handled properly as a result of which coal deposits were found everywhere in the village, including water bodies.
A couple of weeks back, the villagers blocked the convoy of Puducherry Home Minister Valsaraj, when he visited the village to participate in a government function. Expressing fears that the pollution might cause health hazards, the people appealed to the Minister to initiate action in this regard.
Vincent, Karaikal, town secretary, CPM, has sent a memorandum to the Puducherry Lt Governor seeking immediate action to check the pollution by the port.
In his memorandum, Vincent has alleged that the coal particles from the port had polluted the water bodies and hundreds of cattle had lost their lives in the area. The sand deposits from the port as a result of dredging operations are affecting the free transit boats at the estuary posing severe threat to the livelihood of the fishermen, he added.
S P Selvashanmugam, convenor of Karaikal Struggle Group (KSG), a non-political organisation, accused that the port premises was always having a huge quantity of coal deposit.
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