Coastal folks agitate against merchandised mining in Kerala

D Jose in Thiruvananthapuram

It is the rustic mindset working overtime, against that big, bad villain of modern world -- Commercialisation.

Here, in Chavra, a small village in Kerala's Kollam district, the war is against mining. And increasing resistance from the locals have jeopardised the state government plans to exploit the mineral-rich coastal area.

Already, a Rs 120 million project for setting up a mineral complex by two Australian companies has been shelved, following stiff opposition from the people. Now, the Indian Rare Earths Limited, a public sector company licensed for operations in Chavra, is finding the going tough.

Let the minerals be; let 'em stay in the soil where they belong, the locals say.

This week, the Chavra Coastal Coordination Committee (comprising of 11 local organisations), formed to fight the 'merchandising' of mineral resources, brought the traffic on national highway 47 to a halt for more than an hour.

They claimed the main reason behind the acute drinking water shortage in the area was the ongoing mechanised mining and, hence, it should be stopped immediately. Or else, more of this sort will follow.

The series of such agitations -- there have been many on other mining areas too -- in the last one month has created quite a few clashes between the locals and the authorities.

The IREL, for its part, is in an unenviable position. Neither can it back out, nor go ahead. To date, the company has been unable to install certain crucial machinery. The machinery had been brought on site some time ago (the locals did not allow it to be unloaded; the company officials managed to do so with police intervention), but can only be installed after a compromise is reached.

In 1995, two Australian companies which proposed joint ventures in collaboration with the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation and the IRE were blocked by the people and trade unions from carrying out sample drilling.

Going by the current mood of the people, the other mining proposals with the government are unlikely to be cleared. The previous government's intensive campaign to remove the rural apprehensions against mining, it would appear, has not succeeded.