The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Madurai News : SIPCOT industrial estate plan lands in trouble

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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Madurai

SIPCOT industrial estate plan lands in trouble

Staff Reporter

Farmers of Sengapadai against giving up their fertile land

MADURAI: The State Government’s attempt to acquire land for a proposed SIPCOT industrial estate in the district has run into rough weather for the second time, with farmers of Sengapadai region vehemently opposing acquisition of “fertile” farm land.

“The Government wants to put up industrial estate on the land where farming activities go on for eight months in a year,” one of the farmers said.

Scores of farmers and women from Sengapadai, Swamy Mallampatti, Karisalkalanpatti, Sivarakottai, Nesaneri and Puliyampatti villages in Tirumangalam taluk gathered here on Friday to stage a demonstration. The State Government had to withdraw its earlier proposal to set up a special economic zone at Valayankulam following protest from farmers. “Our land is more fertile than that of Valayankulam and we cannot allow it to come up,” another farmer said.

Addressing the protestors, Madurai MP P. Mohan said that attempts of officials to acquire farm land was against the Chief Minister’s assurance that land under cultivation would not be taken against the will of farmers for industrial purpose.

“But the Revenue Divisional Officer (Usilampatti), in a written statement, has said that the land acquisition is meant for setting up industrial units, for industrial development, generating employment opportunities and developing rural areas,” the MP said.

End of one lakh trees

Mr. Mohan said that the move would destroy over one lakh neem trees. He wondered why officials were trying to “snatch” people’s farm land to hand them over to a few industrialists. “The proposed units are not labour-intensive and hence will not generate enough employment opportunities. Even those people who have given land for the Neyveli Lignite Corporation are yet to get jobs and due compensation even after 40 years,” he said.

Over 3,000 families, along with their 50,000 heads of cattle, depend on agricultural land for their livelihood. Sengapadai is one of the major producers of ragi in the State, besides pulses and cotton.

“If the officials are so keen to generate employment opportunities, they should try to expedite the proposed IT Park and Tidel Park, for which land has been acquired months ago,” Mr. Mohan said.

G. Santhanam of Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam said that farmers would better give up their lives than giving up their land.

The officials were only trying to help push the price of huge tracts of land belonging to people close to the powers that be by bringing industrial units closeby, Thangaraj, CPI (M) functionary, alleged.

The farmers, who said no officials would be allowed to survey the land in their villages, wanted the industrial unit to be established on vast tracts of wasteland available in Tirumangalam taluk.

Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam district secretary K. Devaraj was present.

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