TIRUNELVELI/TENKASI: Demanding the permanent closure of a private stone quarry and its crushing unit in Anainthanadarpatti of Idaikal panchayat, residents of Anainthanadarpatti, Kalitheerthanpatti, and Nalankattalai said the quarry is flouting many State government norms. They said their house walls and roofs cracked and agricultural activities were affected due to the illegal usage of high-power explosives.
A resident of north street in Anainthanadarpatti Paramasivan said, "My house built 30 years ago had its first crack on its walls and roofs once this quarry started functioning in 2020, and in just six months, the cracks expanded. During a rainy day, a portion of my house roof collapsed and I barely managed to escape. Many houses in this village's Indira Colony have cracks on their walls and roofs."
M Chelladurai, a resident of the Indira Colony, said his family members live in constant fear of seeing their house collapse in the wink of an eye. "I petitioned the district administration twice to address this matter. However, no officials have inspected our colony, " he said, showing the advanced cracks on his house walls.
Vice President of Idaikal Panchayat S Dharmaraj told TNIE that the quarry shares its border with three villages, and added that the quarry uses high-power explosives illegally to break the stones. "While Ananthanadarpatti and Kalitheerthanpatti fall under Tirunelveli district, Nalankurichi comes under Tenkasi. The quarry authorities are violating the norms of the mines department. Since our petitions were not responded to by the officials, we staged a road blockade against this quarry on May 26. I was denied the information sought about the operations of the quarry under the Right to Information Act. There are some unapproved buildings in the crushing unit. We have passed a resolution in our panchayat for the closure of this quarry and crusher," he said.
K Gajendran, a ward member of Idaikal Panchayat, is one among many whose houses have been affected by the quarry operations. "The quarry authorities would blast explosives between 1 pm to 4 pm daily. This is the time for the kids in our Anganwadi to sleep. When blasting happens, the children wake up in a panic and begin crying. The doors of windows, asbestos roofs, and some buildings in our colony would shake. This is normal here," he said.
Antony, a farmer, said the quarry operation has affected his livelihood. "My pump room collapsed after stones flew in from the quarry. Fortunately, I was not in the room. After this incident, farm workers refused to come to my field," he added.
Vice President of Ainthankattalai Panchayat, Suthan, said, "This quarry remains shut temporarily like other quarries in two districts after the Adaimithippankulam tragedy, which claimed four lives. The authorities of this quarry tried to hide its actual depth by refilling the deep pit with the quarried stones and crushed stone powder. They also shifted away from the giant borewell machines used to place the high-power explosives. We want this quarry to be closed permanently and legal action should be initiated."
Former MLA Raviarunan said the State government should reconstruct the damaged houses of residents in the Indira colony who are mostly daily wage workers from the SC community. "We will soon stage a protest against this stone quarry. Many quarries in two districts are illegally using high-energy explosives made by an unlicensed vendor in Kayatharu. They are making these districts vulnerable to earthquakes. This may harm the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant," he added.
When contacted, Tirunelveli District Collector V Vishnu said the impact of the stone quarry in the residential areas will be studied. Deputy Director (Mines) Gurusamy said special teams, formed to inspect stone quarries in Tirunelveli district, have noted down the violations of all quarries. "The report has been sent to the State government," he added.