Anti-Kudankulam struggle enters 200th day

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The people's struggle against the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) in Tamil Nadu entered its 200th day on Friday with villagers raising Rs.100,000 for the chief minister's relief fund for the victims of Cyclone Thane that struck Dec 30 last year, an activist said.

The struggle against the two 1,000 MW reactors being built by India's nuclear power plant operator Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) in Koodankulam in Tirunelveli district, around 650 km from here, began Aug 16 at Idinthakarai village.

The struggle is spearheaded by People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE).

"Today (Friday) is the 200th day of our struggle. The fast by people from nearby villagers is going on. We have raised Rs.100,000 from villagers as their contribution towards the Thane cyclone relief fund. The demand draft will be handed over to the district collector Saturday," M. Pushparayan, convenor of the Coastal People's Federation and a PMANE leader, told IANS.

The people's agitation against the atomic power plant is in its third phase as there were two breaks in the relay fast - the first between Sep 21-Oct 9 last year and the second on Oct 17, 2011, for the local governing body elections.

Villagers fear for their lives and safety in case of any nuclear accident and the long-term impact the nuclear plant would have on the population.

Their agitation has put a stop to the project work, thereby delaying the commissioning of the first unit by several months.

The staying power of the activists and the support from the local people has put the spotlight on Koodankulam.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in an interview to the American Science magazine had said the anti-KNPP movement was funded by NGOs based in the US and Scandinavian countries.

Taking exception to this statement, S.P. Udayakumar, coordinator of PMANE, sent him a legal notice saying that the comments are defamatory.

On Thursday, PMANE declared its statement of accounts. According to G. Stanly, a member of PMANE's finance committee, around Rs.2.5 million has been raised from donations from villagers and others and the total expenses of the struggle movement are around Rs.1.7 million.

"When it was clear that the agitation is going to be a long drawn affair, it was decided that the fishermen should contribute 10 percent of their catch value once a week towards the struggle fund. There are beedi workers, farmers and others who also contribute to the fund," Stanly remarked.

He said: "People were against the atomic power project ever since it was conceived in 1980s. The Japanese disaster in Fukushima shown on the television, the huge noises from the KNPP during its trial run last year and the mock drill in case of accident made the villagers firm up their resolve against the project."