Former justices bat for fair public hearing on Ennore power plant expansion

CHENNAI: With the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) scheduling a public hearing meeting pertaining to the expansion of Ennore Thermal Power Station on December 20, retired high court judges S Muralidhar, K Kannan and D Hariparanthaman urged authorities to ensure all the voices were heard properly in the meeting.

In a joint letter to Chennai District Collector Rashmi Siddharth Zagade, environment department secretary P Senthikumar and others, the former judges pointed out that Ennore was already heavily polluted.

“The air breathed by the predominantly working class population in north Chennai is significantly more toxic than the air in the wealthier parts of Chennai. We’re writing to you as we’re concerned that despite the project’s unsuitability, it has progressed this far, and we’re anxious that the public hearing – if held – is conducted lawfully,” they wrote.

Pointing out that their concerns were not without basis, the letter referred to a public hearing held in February 2023 for the Pen Memorial project by the Chennai District Collector and the Member Secretary, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board. “We were distressed to learn that many of those that came to convey their views on the project were prevented from speaking from the dais and were asked to make written submissions in view of the vitiated atmosphere by certain people who were vehemently in favour of the project,” they recalled.

The retired judges requested the district collector to do what was within her power to ensure that this “highly environmentally discriminatory project” was not permitted in Ennore or north Chennai, which is already suffering a disproportionate burden of pollution. “Ensure that all persons that wish to speak and express themselves are given an opportunity to do so from the dais,” they added in the letter.