Activists protest against Devada power plant in India

13.12.11

The 1,040 MW Hin­du­ja Ther­mal Pow­er Plant com­ing up at Deva­da vil­lage in the coastal dis­trict of Visakha­p­at­nam has run into trou­ble again, with locals and activists stag­ing mass protests against the mega project on grounds of envi­ron­men­tal pol­lu­tion and large-scale dis­place­ment of farm­ers.

A large group of res­i­dents and anti-project activists, sup­port­ed by oppo­si­tion par­ties and envi­ron­men­tal groups, staged a demon­stra­tion near the plant site on Mon­day, demand­ing imme­di­ate halt to the works and effec­tive reha­bil­i­ta­tion pack­age for the dis­placed fam­i­lies. As the protests led to ten­sion in the area, police swung into action and dis­persed the demon­stra­tors.

The coal-based pow­er project, being devel­oped by the Hin­du­ja Group, has run into rough weath­er with local farm­ers, oppo­si­tion groups, ener­gy experts and envi­ron­men­tal activists putting up a stiff resis­tance.