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Events & Issues
Sethusamudram Controversy
EXPERTS VOICE VARIOUS CONCERNS
By Radhakrishna Rao
New Delhi, September 28, 2007
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, M.Karunanidhi’s controversial
remark which questioned the very existence of Lord Rama and
his ridiculous observation “from where Rama acquired his
engineering degree” has started creating ripples of protest in
the South.
In Bangalore, a group of pro-Hindu activists dared
Karunanidhi to paint the “venerated figures of non-Hindu
religious streams” in the same brush and thereafter attacked
the residence of his daughter, Selvi, in the posh Jayanagar
suburb of the city.
According to the watchman of the house, about 50 young
protesters, shouting anti-Karunanidhi slogans, hurled stones
and petrol bombs at Selvi’s house. They handed over a leaflet
threatening Karunanidhi with dire consequences and demanding
the resignation and arrest of the Union Minister of Roads,
Highways and Shipping, T.R.Balu. A Tamil Nadu state-owned bus
was burnt down on the outskirts of Bangalore, killing two
passengers. This too was believed to be the act of Hindu
activists though the Bangalore police are yet to establish a
link between the statement of Karunanidhi and the torching of
the bus.
Similarly, letters appearing in the mainline daily newspapers
of Bangalore have roundly condemned the “irresponsible and
unsavoury statement” of a person occupying a high
Constitutional position. For instance, in a letter addressed
to the editor of the leading English daily Deccan Herald,
N.S.Ramaswamy, former Director of the Indian Institute of
Management (Bangalore) observed that the religious belief of
the masses need not be disturbed for political purposes.
Ramaswamy argued that even if Rama was not a historical
figure, it did not in any way diminish his value.
Politicians’ Apathy
At a panel discussion “Bridge between Faith and Reason” held
recently in Bangalore and joined in by a galaxy of scientists,
historians, scholars and environmentalists, speakers expressed
their dismay over the glaring apathy of the politicians to the
public concern. Well known historian N.S.Rajaram stated that
an ulterior political-economic agenda was driving the Tamil
Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi, to deny the existence of Rama.
Dr. Rajaram observed: “The theory of Rama as an Aryan God
pitted against Dravidians, has been discredited. However,
Dravidian parties still have to go back to it because that’s
the founding doctrine of the Dravidian movement”. He also
expressed the view that Rama need not be seen as real or
mythological, but as representative of certain values that
should not be attacked with “distorted facts”.
In New Delhi, taking a position diametrically opposed to that
of Karunanidhi, the Union Minister of Science and Technology,
Kapil Sibal, said that he believed in Lord Rama and added that
one should respect public sentiments over the issues of faith.
“We must respect people’s view on Rama Sethu or the existence
of Rama. I personally am a believer of Rama”, quipped Sibal.
Nevertheless, like the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal, which
has created a spat between the Congress and Left, the
controversy over the Sethusamudram project has the potential
of driving a wedge between the Congress and the Dravidian
parties.
God Sent For BJP
Happily, for the BJP, the main opposition, the Sethusamudram
issue has come as “a God sent opportunity to revive its
sagging fortunes”. It has asked Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh
to clarify the ruling party’s position on the statement of
Karunanidhi.
The BJP spokesman, Prakash Jawedkar, has made it clear that
the observation of Karunanidhi was more offensive than the
affidavit submitted by the UPA Government on Ram Sethu (also
called Adams Bridge) to the Supreme Court.
“Raising questions about the college from where Lord Rama
acquired an engineering degree”, he added, “was not only
insulting but a direct affront to the faith of the Hindus”.
According to Jawedkar, the statement made by Karunanidhi had
exposed the inherent contradictions within the ruling
dispensation.
He also reiterated the BJP’s stand on the Sethusamudram
project: “it was not against the project per se but wanted an
alignment that would not disturb the Rama Sethu.” It is not an
issue of science versus faith, which does not offend faith
unnecessarily. It is not an issue of progress versus heritage
but a case for progress, which does not trample upon
heritage”, further quipped Jawedkar.
Environmentalists’ Concern
Meanwhile, many environmentalists have questioned the
ecological viability of the project, which could seriously
affect the marine biodiversity of the region. The
Rs.20,000-million 83-km long Sethusamudram project was first
mooted in 1860 and was studied from various angles over the
last five decades. However, it received the green signal only
in 2004.
All the political parties in Tamil Nadu support this project
which could involve the dredging of about 88-million cubic
metres of sand and other material from the sea bed in Palk
Bay. It has been estimated that the material would be
equivalent to 7-million truckloads, which could easily fill
Tamil Nadu’s largest natural water body Chembarbakkam lake in
the Chingelput district .As projected now, more than 2,000
ships and vessels are expected to make use of this shipping
channel.
As things stand now, this project is expected to enable the
smooth movement of bigger vessels from the Arabian Sea to the
eastern coast of India, without having to circumnavigate the
island of Sri Lanka. Once the project is implemented in full,
it would cut short the navigation time for the ships cruising
from the western coast to the eastern coast by about 30 hours
and the distance by about 4,000 nautical miles. The project
would, moreover, quicken the economic development of southern
Tamil Nadu.
The Tuticorin Port Trust is the nodal agency for the entire
project and for the smooth execution of this challenging
engineering project, an agency by name Sethusamudram
Corporation Ltd has been put in place. Based in Chennai, it
will have an equity participation from the Shipping
Corporation of India SCI), Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT), Chennai
Port Trust, Vishakapattanma Port Trust and Paradip Port Trust.
While the fishermen along the southern coastal belt of Tamil
Nadu are worried over the possibility of the project depriving
them of their livelihood, marine ecologists have their own
concerns. They fear that this biologically diverse coastal
region of India, with 36,000 species of plants and animals,
could be subjected to “yet unassessed damage”.
They point out that the creation of a high trench in the
depths of the Gulf of Mannar could instigate serious
“gravitational and geological changes in the oceanic dynamics
of the region”. Of interest in this context is an in-depth,
multi-disciplinary study of the possible fallouts of the
project by the Coimbatore based Doctors for Environment, a
voluntary group. They claim that “the safety and stability of
the canal project is a matter of concern”. ---INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature
Alliance)
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