2 months ago
1
Situated successful the tail-end of the delta region, the mostly agrarian constituency of Kattumannarkoil (SC) endowed with the Veeranam lake, which chiefly meets the drinking h2o requirements of Chennai metropolis is poised for an absorbing battle.
The spot is held by M. Sinthanai Selvan of the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and with the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) being allotted the constituency successful the AIADMK-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), successful each certainty it is going to beryllium a pugnacious combat betwixt the 2 parties.
Although the 2 large Dravidian parties person held sway present successful alternate elections implicit the past fewer decades, the constituency has hardly witnessed immoderate improvement implicit the years. In the lack of immoderate industries, agriculture sustains the agrarian system successful the region.
While farmers successful the constituency are faced with an array of issues, deficiency of employment opportunities locally has been forcing youths to migrate to different districts.
Given the caste matrix of the constituency, wherever determination are 2.24 lakh voters with a beardown premix of Dalits and Vanniyars, it is the consolidation of these large groups that holds the key. The constituency besides has a bully attraction of Muslims and has traditionally favoured candidates of the DMK, the Congress and the VCK.
In fact, the Kattumannarkoil conception returned the astir votes for the VCK during the 2024 elections. The VCK’s president Thol. Thirumavalavan polled 93,005 votes surpassing M. Chandrahasan of the AIADMK who polled a distant 2nd with 43,569 votes. P. Karthiyayani of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) polled 23,849 votes.
Though the VCK is expected to contention the spot again, the Congress, different state successful the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) is keen to contention the seat.
There is ever an undercurrent of caste hostility successful the constituency. Caste tensions erupted wrong fewer days of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and this has continued during successive elections arsenic well.
According to sources, determination is an undercurrent of dissidence and dissatisfaction wrong the VCK implicit the benignant of functioning of the sitting MLA and this whitethorn person a bearing connected the canvass outcome. The stakes are besides precocious for the AIADMK that is inactive struggling to retrieve mislaid crushed aft the rout of the 2021 Assembly elections.
In a constituency wherever agriculture is the superior concern of 90% of voters and the stream Cauvery the lifeline, the tapping of h2o from the Veeranam water to Chennai presents a communal origin cutting crossed caste and governmental spectrum.
“Notwithstanding repeated representations from the ryots to desilt the Veeranam lake, factual steps are yet to beryllium taken by the government. The constituency often suffers from floods, making it imperative to state Kattumannarkoil, a disaster-prone area. Promise to acceptable up a perfume mill for Jasmine farmers has besides not been fulfilled,” said Kamatchi, a resident.
According to K.V. Elangeeran, president of Cauvery Delta Farmers’ Federation, “Being 1 of the astir backward assembly segments, Kattumannarkoil, relies astir wholly connected agriculture for livelihoods. The Veeranam water serves arsenic the region’s superior h2o sources and irrigates astir 45,000 acres of cultivation onshore successful Bhuvanagiri, Kumaratchi, Parangipettai, Keerapalayam and Kattumannarkovil blocks successful Cuddalore district. Farmers person besides been demanding outgo of royalty oregon suitable compensation for h2o drawn from the water to Chennai. The royalty could beryllium fixed astatine the complaint of 1 paise a litre and this could beryllium utilized for taking up attraction works annually.”
Farmers are against tapping h2o from the Veeranam lake. They person been demanding that the governemnt supply them with royalty astatine the complaint of 1 paise a litre.
Farmers request desilting of the Veeranam lake.
