Residents near Tirumangalam protest against opening of Tasmac outlet
Residents of Kurayur near Tirumangalam in the district staged a protest at their village on Tuesday condemning the opening of a Tasmac outlet in their area.
The protesters said they had already opposed the opening of the Tasmac outlet and it was after their strong opposition the plan was withdrawn.
But again, steps were taken to open the the shop, said a protester. “We opposed the opening of the shop and submitted a petition to the district Collector, following which the shop has been shut again,” he added.
“This has become a regular a¤air for them to open the shop despite knowing the people were protesting against the Tasmac outlet in their area.” People said there were several recent incidents in the district where inebriated people were caught attacking innocent people. “The village people do not want to experience such a horric incident in our place too,” the residents added.
AIADMK MLA and deputy leader in the Legislative Assembly R.B. Udayakumar
joined the people in their protest.
Speaking to The Hindu, he said, how could a government always think against people’s wishes. “DMK government which proclaimed it would make the State liquor-free is encouraging and opening more and more Tasmac outlets,” he added.
Since a petition has been presented to the Collector regarding this, people expect the shop to be closed permanently and such shops should not be opened in the future, he added.
“If the district administration fails to act according to the people’s wish, I will protest along with the people to turn it into a mass agitation on the highway,” he said.
Further, he insisted that the State government act swiftly to address the prevailing water scarcity issue in the State.
“Though data shows there is only 17% drinking water availability in the State, the Tamil Nadu government has not taken any measures to address the issue. It has only released a list of steps to be followed by the people, which are of no use to anyone,” he added.