CHENNAI: A fisherman from Ennore has moved Madras high court to restrain Tangedco from continuing with its land-filling and construction activity of its coal conveyor in the Koratalaiar river and backwaters in Konamudukku and Pazhankalvai.
Selvaraj Duraiswamy has also sought the court to direct the Union environment ministry and the Tamil Nadu Coastal Zone Management Authority to remove illegally dumped soil and constructions erected by Tangedco on the Koratalaiar and its backwaters in Konamudukku and Pazhankalvai, restore the area to its original state. When the plea came up for hearing, since the petitioner insisted for an interim order against construction of the conveyor, the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P D Audikesavalu directed the petitioner to put the respondents on notice and come back on August 9.
According to the petitioner, Tangedco has illegally encroached and filled in the Koratalaiyar river and its backwaters for constructing the coal conveyor. It has dumped dredged soil in the waterbody and is continuing to lay the foundation for the coal conveyor.
“Tangedco has illegally changed the alignment of the coal conveyor and has caused severe damage to the already challenged ecology of the region,” he said.
He further alleged that Tangedco has violated the environmental clearance and Coastal Regulation Zone clearances obtained by them by illegally changing the alignment of the coal conveyor.
It has destroyed ecologically sensitive mangrove areas. By encroaching and filling in the river and backwaters it has destroyed prime fishing grounds of the local fishers, he added. Alleging that Tangedco has no right to fill in a waterbody and construct its coal conveyor, the petitioner said the corporation has no right to privatise and degrade the poromboke commons which serve as the source of livelihood to thousands of fishers.
