TIRUNELVELI (Tamil Nadu) | Jul 21, 2015: Over 150 villagers from South Chezhiyanallur near Maanur in Tirunelveli district submitted a petition to Collector M. Karunakaran on Monday seeking the closure of a limestone quarry near their houses, which, they alleged, was “illegally run” by a cement company.

The petitioners said that the Department of Mines had given permission to the company to mine limestone from a land (survey number 151/2, 151/3 and 171) situated close to their hamlet. Since these limestone quarries were closely located to their houses, the explosions triggered in the mines were causing heavy damage to the houses.

Besides damaging the houses, the cracks developed in the walls of a few hundred houses were posing serious threats to people living inside, they alleged.

Moreover, the South Chezhiyanallur residents, who used to take their cattle to the nearby forest for grazing, could not do so after the cement company started mining limestone from the nearby mines.

“The road connecting Gangaikondan, Keezhapillaiyaarkulam and Azhagiyapandiapuram, passing through the land (survey number 171), has been encroached by the company for mining.

Moreover, the road leading to the cremation ground of South Chezhiyanallur has also been illegally occupied for mining limestone,” said M. Sudalairaj, Tirunelveli taluk secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist).

Villager T. Mani Sudalai, who accompanied the petitioners, alleged that a few contractors of the cement company from Thaazhaiyooththu, Sankar Nagar and Tirunelveli were threatening the South Chezhiyanallur villagers in a bid to silence them.

“We could not even raise this issue in the gram sabha meetings as the contractor’s men in the village threaten us,” said Mr. Mani Sudalai.

The cement company sources said they were mining limestone by following all stipulated norms and the government officials inspecting the mines periodically had not filed any complaint.

(Source: http://www.thehindu.com/)