Contributed by Vaishali Borker
The church instigated an attack on a police station in protest to stop construction at Vizhinjam port near Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala even after a favorable High Court ruling. Archbishop & 14 priests booked.
Do you know Vizhinjam port is super critical for India! Why?
Vizhinjam port was selected as the most cost-effective choice for a transshipment terminal in India
• 20-meter natural depth for big ships.
• Requires minimum dredging due to natural sea currents.
• Is on southern tip of India, can act as midpoint of east & west trade.
Currently, India does not have a transshipment port. 85% of India’s cargo is handled at below ports, and India pays a fee to these countries for every shipment.
• Colombo SriLanka (China owned)
• Singapore
• Klang Malaysia
• Dubai
How will a transshipment hub benefit India?
• Forex savings
• Foreign direct investment
• Increase economic activity at other Indian Ports
• Development of logistics infrastructure & value-added services
• warehousing
• crew change facility
• ship repair, etc
Why church is instigating protests against Rs.7,525 crore Vizhinjam Seaport?
Protesters who are followers of the church are misled to believe the port is causing
• Large-scale coastal erosion & loss of fish habitat.
• Homes destroyed due to increased tidal wave attacks
Fishermen who fear for their live-hood with the church’s help now demand rehabilitation and adequate compensation for fisherfolk families who lost their homes in tidal wave attacks. The estimated cost is ₹ 3000 crore.
*Tidal wave attacks are due to reoccurring hurricanes.
This is not the first time that development projects have been stalled by a foreign hand.
In 2011, similar protests were fuelled by US & Scandinavian NGOs connected to church against ₹14,000 crore Kudankulam Nuclear plant, which India was building with help from Russia.
Sterlite Copper plant in Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi district became a victim of foreign-funded protests too and was forced to shut down in May 2018. Sterlite plant met 40 percent of India’s copper demand, and now copper is imported from China.
There are countless examples where foreign-funded NGOs have fuelled protests against developmental projects in India.
They use the church and environmental NGOs to funnel funds and keep the agitation simmering.
One country’s loss is another country’s gain.