CHENNAI: Fishermen village panchayat councils of Mullikuppam, Mullimanagar, and Mylapore will stage a mass protest on September 29, demanding the withdrawal of GO 564 issued for the construction of a new Secretariat-Assembly complex in Pattinapakkam.

In a joint statement issued on Tuesday, the fishermen councils said the protest would bring together fishing villages across Chennai district. They also demanded that the proposed site be declared a traditional residential area of the fisherfolk community.

The decision was taken at an emergency joint consultation meeting held at Mullikuppam community hall on September 21. The fishermen alleged that the government order was issued without prior notice to the fishing community, which had been living in the area for generations.

They also claimed that the land had earlier been acquired and earmarked by the Madras City Improvement Trust for providing housing to fishermen. Instead of using the land for the Secretariat complex, the government should declare it a "long-term housing plan" area for fisherfolk and issue a separate GO to this effect, the councils demanded.

Representatives of fishermen panchayats from Ennore Kuppam to Nainar Kuppam had given the government time until September 21 to withdraw the order, they said. With no announcement forthcoming by the deadline, the councils decided to hold the protest on September 29.