Shashi Tharoor wants the Centre to announce a relief package for Vizhinjam fishermen
Shashi Tharoor, a Congress MP from Kerala, urged the Centre to release a relief package for the coastal community.
Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram invoked Rule 377 during the ongoing Parliament session, which allows members to raise important issues. He stressed the “imperative need to address the woes of the coastal community”.
Taking advantage of the end of the impasse over the Vizhinjam seaport, Tharoor says the government should immediately rehabilitate people along the coast. He said a study of coastal erosion along southern Kerala’s coast should also be done.
My intervention under Rule 377 this afternoon reminded the LokSabha of the imperative need to address the woes of the coastal community, particularly the fisherfolk, despite the recent end to the Vizhinjam protests. I called on the Central Govt to offer a relief package for them. pic.twitter.com/2wgZAPALjD
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) December 8, 2022
On Tuesday, demonstrations outside the main entrance to Mulloor’s multi-purpose seaport ended after 138 days. They’ve been demanding a coastal impact study and stopping the construction work as part of their seven-point charter of demands. One of the reasons for coastal erosion is the unscientific construction of groynes and the artificial sea walls for the upcoming port.
In its interim order on October 19, the High Court said the state government had to clear up the protesters’ obstructions at the port’s entrance.
The Vizhinjam project will, however, have a big impact on the development of India in general and south India in particular, Tharoor said earlier. “We want peace, so neither side should do anything extreme,” he said.
