GAIL: Tamil Nadu farmers pledge their support to government

Farmers disclosed this to reporters after taking part in a meeting convened   by six ministers over the issue in the city on Monday. Kandasamy, a farmers’ union president of Coimbatore who is spearheading the opposition against the gas pipeline project told reporters that GAIL was taking a double stand to misguide the State and Union Governments. He said that the agenda of the meeting was to discuss the reply the Madras High Court had sought from the State Government on a PIL by Mutharasan of Madurai in 2013. 

“While the PIL was on pollution and seeking clean cooking fuel, it had GAIL as the seventh respondent. But GAIL was trying to divert it by taking up the gas pipeline issue,” he alleged and added that the ministers discussed in detail over the issue. 

“We (farmers) have explained the 109 cases, we filed before the court over the issue since 2012 and asked the ministers to add us as one of the respondents along with the government. The court has asked the government to respond by January 20. We will explain it to the Chief Minister in a couple of days and represent the same before the High Court,” he added. 

Stating that by sticking to the old alignment in the pipeline project GAIL was trying to pressurise them and it would directly and immediately affect 5,000 farmers by laying the pipeline through their fields. Farmers said that they would fight tooth and nail to protect their livelihood.

Ministers K Palanisamy (PWD and Highways), SP Velumani (Municipal Administration), P Thangamani (Electricity), KP Anbalagan (Higher Education), KC Karuppannan (Environment) and K Radhakrishnan (Housing and Urban Development) took part in the meeting.