[Reader-list] Fw: Remember Bhopal; Fight for Cuddalore

[Karen Coelho]

Remember Bhopal;
Fight for Cuddalore

Youth on Cycles for Cuddalore – 28 November to 2 December

Appeal for Support: Those interested in supporting the campaign are 
requested to make contributions by cheque in the name of Samarthan Trust. 
Please write (For CEM) on the reverse. Only Indian Rupee contributions can 
be accepted. The cheque may be sent to:
Nityanand Jayaraman, 42A, 1st Floor, Besant Nagar, Chennai 600 090. Tel: +91 
44 24465461

Cuddalore is another Bhopal in the making. Youth from Chennai, Cuddalore and 
Mettur will cycle from Cuddalore to Chennai to raise awareness about the 
environmental issues confronting residents of SIPCOT, Cuddalore, and 
highlight the threats of pollution-intensive industrialization facing 
Cuddalore. The cycle tour will travel through the coastal areas of 
Cuddalore, Pondicherry and parts of Kanchipuram and Chennai districts, and 
through the inland areas along GST Road. Kindly extend your support to the 
cycle tour by organizing solidarity activities en route.

Distance to be covered - 280 km
Route and Schedule
28 November: Flag Off from Cuddalore Town.

29 November: Periyapattu to Sonnanchavadi, Semmankuppam, Sangolikuppam, 
Eachangadu, Kudikadu, Devanampattinam, Thazhanguda, Pondicherry. Film 
screening/Night Halt: Pondicherry

30 November: Pondy to Marakkanam, Tindivanam. Film screening/Night halt: 
Tindivanam

1 December: Tindivanam to Madurantakam, Chengalpattu. Film screening/Night 
halt: Chengalpattu

2 December: Chengalpattu to Kovalam, Besant Nagar. Film screening: Besant 
Nagar

Background: December 3 is the 22nd anniversary of the 1984 Union Carbide 
disaster in Bhopal. In the lead-up to the anniversary of the world's worst 
industrial disaster, the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal 
(Chennai) and its supporters wish to highlight Cuddalore as a Bhopal in our 
own backyard.

The Tamilnadu Government has earmarked coastal Cuddalore for locating the 
dirtiest, most hazardous industries in Tamilnadu. Already, an 8 km stretch 
of the district – the SIPCOT industrial estate -- is seriously affected by 
pollution from more than 19 chemical industries. The State Human Rights 
Commission and the Indian People's Tribunal on Environment and Human Rights 
have observed that SIPCOT residents are already overburdened with pollution. 
They have recommended against setting up any more chemical industries in the 
area.

Despite massive public protest and the recommendations of various expert 
agencies, the Tamilnadu Government is planning to intensify pollution in and 
around SIPCOT. In the pipeline, are the following proposals:
1.Chemplast PVC factory and marine terminal, and desalination plant, 
Semmankuppam and Chitrapettai
2.4000MW coal-fired thermal power plant, Naduthittu
3.A mega textile park, Periyapattu
4.A 6 million tones per annum petrochemical refinery by Nagarjuna, 
Thyagavelli
5.Effluents pumped into sea from Tiruppur textile dyeing units
6.Effluents pumped into sea from Ambur-Vaniyambadi leather tanneries
7.A shipbuilding yard

For more information on Bhopal and Cuddalore,
Email: nopvcever at gmail.com
OR
Visit:
www.sipcotcuddalore.com
cuddaloreonline.blogspot.com
www.bhopal.net