TIRUNELVELI: Giving a hint of the mechanics of the talks between the Central and State committees on Koodankulam, protestors on the State panel said on Friday that they would ask the other side to open a dialogue with a 21-member expert panel set up by the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), which is spearheading the protests.In other words, the Central team needs to convince the equally star-studded team of the PMANE, quite a few of whom are known for their demand for total ban on nuclear related projects in the country. That could be a tall order.M Pushparayan and M P Jesuraj are the nominees of protestors on the six-member State panel. At the time of going to Press, they said there was no official word yet on the other members of the State panel.Stating that the PMANE had already submitted its demands, including a white paper on the present status of the KKNPP, to the Tirunelveli collector, Pushparayan said they would meet the Central panel only if the demands were met.Reacting to Atomic Energy Commission chairman Srikumar Banerjee’s warning on serious damage to the plant in the event of a shutdown, PMANE coordinator S P Udayakumar told Express that Banerjee met State Chief Secretary in Chennai on Friday. “We will comment only after getting the details of the meeting.”Meanwhile, the relay fast at Idinthakarai entered the 18th day on Friday. Taking the anti-nuke stir forward, the PMANE staged a massive demonstration in Thoothukudi on Friday. Fishing activity was suspended across Thoothukudi district. At the same time, an association from Chettikulam has raised pitch in support of the project. In its petition to Collector R Selvaraj, the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant Support Association urged the administration to make efforts to launch the plant without delay. Meanwhile, former President A P J Abdul Kalam is expected to visit the Koodankulam plant on Sunday.
Comments
0 comment