Home News Indian archdiocese to continue protest against seaport project despite court order

Indian archdiocese to continue protest against seaport project despite court order

The High Court said the ongoing work of the seaport should not be disrupted at any cost

The archdiocese of Trivandrum in India announced that it will continue its protest actions against the development of Vizhinjam Port despite a High Court order to remove tents used by protesters.

“It is only an interim order and the Church will file a petition to review it,” said Father Eugine Pereira, vicar general of the archdiocese, in a report on Matters India.

“We have some 500 women currently protesting under the tents,” said the priest.



Last week, India’s High Court ordered the state government to demolish the tents used by protesters outside Vizhinjam Port.

A group of Catholic nuns earlier joined the protests, saying the building of the international seaport has caused severe damage to the homes and fishing activities of people.

Church leaders also opposed the construction of the Vizhinjam International Deepwater Multipurpose Seaport, also known as Vizhinjam Port, on the Arabian Sea coast near Thiruvananthapuram, capital of Kerala state.

Indian businessman Gautam Adani is behind the construction of Vizhinjam Port, adding to the 13 seaports and airports he owns throughout India.

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Construction of the port is under agreement between Adani’s company and the Kerala government, as well as the patronage of the federal government, as the port is being built on government land and sea.

According to the Kerala State Coastal Development Corporation, 42 villages around Vizhinjam coast have roughly 183,000 fisherfolk, 95 percent of whom are Catholics belonging to the Trivandrum Latin Archdiocese.

The fisherfolk demand a rehabilitation package for those who have lost houses and occupation because of the port; subsidized kerosene; and a study about the environmental impact of the project.

More than 500 fisherfolk have been temporarily rehabilitated at a warehouse and await a proper shelter.

The High Court, however, said the ongoing work of the seaport should not be disrupted at any cost and complaints regarding the project can be raised at appropriate forums.

The government has appointed one more commission to study the demands of the fisherfolk and the environmental impacts of the project. – from a report on Matters India

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