Political representatives skip all-party meeting
Monday November 27 2006 09:25 IST
CHENNAI: The much expected all-party meeting at Anakaputhur on Sunday, opposing expansion of the Chennai airport in residential colonies, turned out to be a damp squib, with only a few political representatives participating. The meeting was organised by the Struggle Committee Against Expansion in Cowl Bazaar, Anakaputhur and Pozhichalur.
Though organisers had invited representatives from all three aforesaid areas, only a handful of them turned up. DMK and Congress members made a fleeting visit and wanted to leave early to attend another meeting organised by local MP and Union Minister T R Baalu.
The members, normally used to giving long and prepared speeches, kept their impromptu talk to the bare details.
While one of them admitted it was a ‘grave situation and a great loss for residents’ and requested the State to look into the issue in a humanitarian way, another DMK member reiterated Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s assurance that the expansion would be carried out without affecting the people.
Velayudam, an AIADMK representative, said his party was for the expansion, but it should be carried out as per the earlier plan, which sought to use vast tracts of vacant land.
Bhoopalan, from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) proudly proclaimed that Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel was from their party and said he would be informed on the plight of the people if the project were implemented in its present form.
BJP district secretary I R Desikan stressed for unity among residents to see that the plan was shelved like that of the satellite city, where the PMK lead the agitation.
The list of speakers from political parties ended with these though many more were expected, as functionaries of all major parties from the three areas had been invited.
Former president of the Polichalur Panchayat, Gnanamani, one of the most expected high-profile speakers, failed to turn up though he had reportedly promised to participate.
It may be noted that the controversy over the airport expansion project had broken out during his chairmanship and the elected body was even criticised for its continued silence over the issue.
However, the new body, headed by his wife Varadammal, had passed a resolution recently, ‘‘condemning the irregularities in designing the proposal, where residential areas were included’’.
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Monday November 27 2006 09:25 IST
CHENNAI: The much expected all-party meeting at Anakaputhur on Sunday, opposing expansion of the Chennai airport in residential colonies, turned out to be a damp squib, with only a few political representatives participating. The meeting was organised by the Struggle Committee Against Expansion in Cowl Bazaar, Anakaputhur and Pozhichalur.
Though organisers had invited representatives from all three aforesaid areas, only a handful of them turned up. DMK and Congress members made a fleeting visit and wanted to leave early to attend another meeting organised by local MP and Union Minister T R Baalu.
The members, normally used to giving long and prepared speeches, kept their impromptu talk to the bare details.
While one of them admitted it was a ‘grave situation and a great loss for residents’ and requested the State to look into the issue in a humanitarian way, another DMK member reiterated Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s assurance that the expansion would be carried out without affecting the people.
Velayudam, an AIADMK representative, said his party was for the expansion, but it should be carried out as per the earlier plan, which sought to use vast tracts of vacant land.
Bhoopalan, from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) proudly proclaimed that Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel was from their party and said he would be informed on the plight of the people if the project were implemented in its present form.
BJP district secretary I R Desikan stressed for unity among residents to see that the plan was shelved like that of the satellite city, where the PMK lead the agitation.
The list of speakers from political parties ended with these though many more were expected, as functionaries of all major parties from the three areas had been invited.
Former president of the Polichalur Panchayat, Gnanamani, one of the most expected high-profile speakers, failed to turn up though he had reportedly promised to participate.
It may be noted that the controversy over the airport expansion project had broken out during his chairmanship and the elected body was even criticised for its continued silence over the issue.
However, the new body, headed by his wife Varadammal, had passed a resolution recently, ‘‘condemning the irregularities in designing the proposal, where residential areas were included’’.
LINK
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