Officials have to be bribed to obtain consent, SHGs allege

Self-help groups (SHGs) involved in brick making, as well as artisans, complain that restrictions imposed by the department of mines to control illicit sand mining are crippling their trade, a charge denied by mining officials.

The Madras High Court bench here on Tuesday directed the Tuticorin police to file a counter-affidavit to a petition filed by the Human Rights Protection Centre (HRPC), Tuticorin district, seeking p

S.P.

Members of People’s Confederation against Nuclear Energy organised a sloganeering protest here on Wednesday against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project.

The protestors said the KKNPP should be scrapped as various developed nations, having understood the dangers involved in nuclear power generation programme, had abandoned it and were switching over to non-conventional energy production.

Presidents of 21 coastal village panchayats submit petition to DRO

A team of 21 village panchayat presidents from the coastal areas of the district and the office-bearers of sand mining workers’ associations have appealed to Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to withdraw the recent ban imposed on coastal sand mining in the district.

5,000 were working as labourers for companies that exported sand’.

The Tamil Nadu government, which had suspended mining of rare earth minerals like garnet, ilmenite and rutile along the Tuticorin coast last month following complaints of large-scale illegal mining

Probe to look into alleged irregularities in 71 mineral quarries in the southern districts.

A special team will also survey 71 mines in these southern districts, said chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

The second unit is expected to go on stream by June next year

The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) Unit-I is set to begin production in the next 20 days. "The plant will start production in the next 15-20 days once it completes the trial run," said R S Sundar, plant's site director, and added experiments and tests were in progress.