Difference between revisions of "Andhra Pradesh and coal"
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The two fishermen killed were G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and G. Krishnamurthy (60) of Palasapuram. A fact-finding team headed by former Orissa high court judge P. K. Mishra issued the following account of the shootings:<Ref>[http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/story/fishermen-killed-as-cops-open-fire-in-srikakulam/1/106939.html "Fishermen killed as cops open fire in Srikakulam,"] India Today, July 28, 2010</ref> | The two fishermen killed were G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and G. Krishnamurthy (60) of Palasapuram. A fact-finding team headed by former Orissa high court judge P. K. Mishra issued the following account of the shootings:<Ref>[http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/story/fishermen-killed-as-cops-open-fire-in-srikakulam/1/106939.html "Fishermen killed as cops open fire in Srikakulam,"] India Today, July 28, 2010</ref> | ||
: "The firing was suddenly done from inside a police van on the Sompeta-Baruva road, on either side of which the fields are located. The police van started moving towards Sompeta, while the man inside continued firing from a close range. The bullets hit the victims above waist level, except two who were hit on the thigh and the ankle. Two persons--G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and Krishnamurthy of Plasapuram--died on the spot and five others, including a cameraman of a local television channel, sustained bullet injuries." | : "The firing was suddenly done from inside a police van on the Sompeta-Baruva road, on either side of which the fields are located. The police van started moving towards Sompeta, while the man inside continued firing from a close range. The bullets hit the victims above waist level, except two who were hit on the thigh and the ankle. Two persons--G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and Krishnamurthy of Plasapuram--died on the spot and five others, including a cameraman of a local television channel, sustained bullet injuries." | ||
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| + | One blogger described the "crony capitalism" behind the project as follows: | ||
| + | :"[This project]] is being developed by Nagarjuna Constructions and it has on its board of directors the esteemed presence of P.Abraham who served as Chairman of EAC(Hydroelectric) and who in the same position approved environmental clearances for various projects which he was himself promoting as a director. He also sits on the board of companies promoted by those who promote Kakarapalli project. Some of the promoters are marquee names in Telugu press by now, namely Karvy’s Mr MS Ramakrishna and Matrix Prasad. Mr P. Abraham also graces the director position in GVK, Lanco group and half a dozen other groups. The world is indeed a small place now. You run into the same names every day. Long live crony capitalism. | ||
==February 2011: Resistance against Bhavanapadu Thermal Power Project== | ==February 2011: Resistance against Bhavanapadu Thermal Power Project== | ||
Revision as of 16:03, 6 May 2011
{{#badges: CoalSwarm|Navbar-Indiacoal}} Rapid expansion of coal plant capacity across India is creating conflict between coal plant operators and local communities. Nowhere is this more evident than in the state of Andhra Pradesh, on the southeast coast of India. Here, construction initiatives by Nagaruna Construction Company and Reliance Power have led to widespread resistance among local farmers and fisherman. This resistance has attracted attention by regional and national media outlets, and subsequent investigations have revealed a pattern of "crony capitalism" behind the coal boom.
Contents
July 2010: Resistance against Nagarjuna Construction Company's coal plant
On July 14, 2010, police in Adhra Pradesh's Srikakulam district fired on farmers and fisherman protesting a 2,640 MW coal plant under construction by Nagarjuna Construction Company (NCC), killing two fishermen. In addition, 150 people were injured, including 45 policemen, during clashes between protesters and police. In the wake of the violence, police were deployed in about a dozen villages and banned assembly by more than five persons.[1]
The two fishermen killed were G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and G. Krishnamurthy (60) of Palasapuram. A fact-finding team headed by former Orissa high court judge P. K. Mishra issued the following account of the shootings:[2]
- "The firing was suddenly done from inside a police van on the Sompeta-Baruva road, on either side of which the fields are located. The police van started moving towards Sompeta, while the man inside continued firing from a close range. The bullets hit the victims above waist level, except two who were hit on the thigh and the ankle. Two persons--G. Joga Rao of Lakkavaram and Krishnamurthy of Plasapuram--died on the spot and five others, including a cameraman of a local television channel, sustained bullet injuries."
One blogger described the "crony capitalism" behind the project as follows:
- "[This project]] is being developed by Nagarjuna Constructions and it has on its board of directors the esteemed presence of P.Abraham who served as Chairman of EAC(Hydroelectric) and who in the same position approved environmental clearances for various projects which he was himself promoting as a director. He also sits on the board of companies promoted by those who promote Kakarapalli project. Some of the promoters are marquee names in Telugu press by now, namely Karvy’s Mr MS Ramakrishna and Matrix Prasad. Mr P. Abraham also graces the director position in GVK, Lanco group and half a dozen other groups. The world is indeed a small place now. You run into the same names every day. Long live crony capitalism.
February 2011: Resistance against Bhavanapadu Thermal Power Project
On February 28, 2011, in a set of clashes sparked by construction of Bhavanapadu Thermal Power Project by East Coast Energy, police in Srikakulam fired into villagers, killing two people and injuring nearly 25 others. The plant at the center of the violence was in the same district as the coal plant where two people were killed the previous July. The dead were identified as Sirapu Yerraiah (36) of Sirapuvani Peta and J. Nageswara Rao (35) of Akashalakkavaram. At least two of the injured were hit at close range with rubber bullets. Police used guns, teargas, and lathis against villagers, who used stones and sticks. After police threw smoke bombs in Vadditandra village, 50 houses were gutted. A police jeep was burned by villagers.[3]
The coal boom in southeast India
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ "Srikakulam still tense after police firing," The Siasat Daily, July 15, 2010
- ↑ "Fishermen killed as cops open fire in Srikakulam," India Today, July 28, 2010
- ↑ K. Srinivasa Rao, "2 killed, 25 hurt in police firing in Kakarapalli," The Hindu, March 1, 2011
Related SourceWatch articles
External resources
External articles
- "How Crony Capitalism Lead to the Kakarapalli tragedy," The Argumentatitve Indian, March 1, 2011
- "Srikakulam battle far from over," NDTV, July 24, 2010
