Hundreds Protesting Chennai-Salem Road Project Detained

Nearly 700 protesters, including farmers and members of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), were detained shortly after their march - "My land, my right" - began in Thiruvanamalai district today. The march from Thiruvanamalai to Salem is being staged to protest the eight-lane Salem-Chennai greenfield road project.  The event was flagged off by G.Ramakrishnan, Polit Bureau member of the CPI (M). The protesters planned to cover five districts - Tiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri and Salem in eight days. AIKS sources said the protests would resume immediately after they were released.

Participants said the protest was proceeding peacefully when the police arrived, arrested all of them and took them to a community hall. “Only after 7 pm we will know the situation. We may either be released or jailed. If we are released, we will continue our protests then and there,” said P. Shanmugam, State Secretary of All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS). The organizers had written to the police and administration in all the districts seeking permission for the march but it was rejected by the authorities, who cited law and order concerns.

State Secretary of CPI (M) State Secretary K.Balakrishnan addressed a gathering before the march. “We have come here with a strong determination to march to Salem and question the wrongdoings of the ruling government or be jailed in Vellore prison,” he said.  

The Chennnai-Salem road project has been in the eye of the storm for the huge impact it is likely to have on the lives and livelihood of farmers in the five districts, as well as its impact on the environment. The Rs. 10,000 crore project is likely to affect 159 villages and in addition to agricultural land, will have an impact on ponds, hills, as well as vital infrastructure such as health centres. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is planning to acquire nearly 2,500 hectares of land and is currently using unmanned aerial vehicles to survey the land for this expressway project.

A report by the All India Peoples Forum said that lakhs of trees may have to be cut down for the project even as the government continues to insist only 6,400 trees will be cut. Apart from the environmental concerns, farmers are also worried about the low compensation fixed by the government for the land acquisition project.  The slab is 33% lower than the market guideline value.

Earlier, speaking to Newsclick, T. V. Venkatesan, Tiruvanamalai district president of Vivasayigal Sangam, said, “People weren’t informed about the project before the announcement nor was their consent taken for the land acquisition. Lakhs of crores worth property will slip away from the hands of the farmers. Protesters and organisers are threatened by the police. The sole beneficiary of the project is Jindal,” he said, referring to the mining group. A report in the Theekkathir newspaper noted that the Jindal group had earlier targeted the iron ore-rich mountain ranges in Tiruvannamalai district but had been thwarted by the farmers of the region. This time, the same group was using this project as a facade to use the resources in the mountains, the report said.

Protests against the project have been suppressed earlier. Many protesters, including elderly women, were arrested, as were activists Piyush Manush and Valarmathi. On June 20, ahead of a consultation organized by the AIKS on the issue, 25 farmers and AIKS activists were arrested by the police.