Scrap new port project, demand green activists

PUDUCHERRY: Members of the civil society, on Tuesday, made an emotional appeal to the officials of the port department to convey to the government that they did not want the proposed new port project to go ahead as it would ruin the entire coastal stretch of Puducherry.Participating in a grievance redress meeting organised by the port department, a number of representatives from different civil society groups, along with leaders of the fishing community, demanded action on a special audit report produced by the Ministry of Home Affairs which lambasted the territorial government for inadequacies in the agreement with a private party in the original port proposal.They said that the audit had clearly pointed to specific issues, including the cheap rate at which land was transferred to the private party for the construction of the port.According to former secretary to government Hemachandran, who is also a member of the civil rights group People’s Pulse, the port department had selected the same private party for execution of the proposed new port even after the MHA had found grave inadequacies in the previous agreement.  Further, no attention had been paid to the fact that the company was now a blacklisted one. He also wanted the officials to clarify if the original agreement was still enforceable.Probir Banerjee, an environment activist, wanted to know what action was initiated on the special audit report. He said that if the government was serious about transparency, it should have called for fresh tenders rather than continuing talks with a blacklisted company.Replying to the issues raised by the members, Secretary to Government (Port) R B Pal said that the department was in the process of preparing a reply to the audit report and added that the grievances raised in the forum would be communicated to the government.