Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin refused to give permission for tungsten mining. Vishwakarma Yojana will also not be implemented.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote an open letter to PM Modi on Friday. It has demanded that the central government's tungsten mining rights in Madurai be revoked immediately. Earlier on Thursday, Stalin had also refused to implement Vishwakarma Yojana in Tamil Nadu.
CM Stalin in a letter to the PM said – the areas where the Center has given permission for mining are archaeological sites. Mining will harm them. Densely populated nearby. Those people also fear losing their livelihood.
Stalin warned that the Tamil Nadu government would never allow mining in these areas. The Ministry of Mines should not bid for mining without consulting the State Government.
At the center Permission granted for mining
On 7 November, the Union Ministry of Mines approved mining in Tamil Nadu's Naikarpatti tungsten block, appointing Hindustan Zinc Limited as the preferred bidder for the auction.
Nayakarapatti block consists of Kavattayamapatti, Ettimangalam, A Vallapatti, Arittapatti, Kidaripatti and Narasimhampatti villages. For the past one month, the people of this area have been protesting against the mining approval.
CM MK Stalin wrote a letter to Prime Minister Modi to stop tungsten mining.
Threat to the heritage site of the area
CM Stalin said that Arittapatti is a place with biodiversity. There are also many archaeological sites like cave temples, sculptures, Jain symbols. Mining can cause irreparable damage to it.
Apart from this, Stalin says that commercial mining in the area may affect the livelihood of the people living here. There is a lot of resentment among local people against the tungsten project due to which there is fear of loss of daily bread.
The Tamil Nadu government had written to the Center on October 3, 2023 opposing the auction of mining rights. But the Center refused to stop the auction of mining rights.
Refused to implement Vishwakarma scheme
Before opposing tungsten mining, CM Stalin on Wednesday also refused to implement the Pradhan Mantri Vishwakarma Yojana in Tamil Nadu. In the letter written by the Prime Minister, he has described the Vishwakarma scheme as caste based.
The CM said that the Tamil Nadu government has written to the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and suggested some changes in the scheme. The reply received from the Ministry made no mention of the suggestions. So Tamil Nadu government will not implement this scheme in its state.
Stalin has said that his government in Tamil Nadu will bring a scheme for artisans and sculptors that will not be caste-based.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
