The agitation against the nuclear power plant at Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu took a turn for the worse on Monday after a fisherman died in police firing in neighbouring Thoothukudi district. Near the plant site, police resorted to lathicharge and lobbed teargas shells to disperse protesting villagers who had laid a siege to the plant in a last-ditch effort to stop its commissioning.
About a hundred people from both sides received injuries in the protests, though not serious.
Led by the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), the villagers in the neighbourhood who are opposed to setting up of the plant had decided to change tact from observing a protest fast at Idinthakarai village to laying siege to the plant at a recent meeting. On Sunday, as per the new plan, thousands of villagers including women and children had started marching towards the plant. Stopped by the police, they camped on the seashore less than a kilometre from the plant site.
On Monday, they again tried to move closer to the plant, turning down police requests to stop. Thirunelveli district collector R Selvaraj, IGP (south zone) Rajesh Das and Superintendent of Police Vijayendra S Bidari were among those who held talks with the protesters.
A 48-hour hunger strike has been called at Idinthakarai against the police action and to seek the closure of the plant.
– source indianexpress.com