The Natural Resources Protection Federation of Tamil Nadu condemned the Union government for attempting to destroy natural resources in the State and the DMK and the AIADMK for failing to address this issue in their respective election manifestos.
At a press meet held in Madurai on Thursday presided over by environmental activists R.S. Mugilan and Kambur Selvaraj, they said the Central government in 2025 had issued a notification exempting mining proposals of 30 atomic, critical, and strategic minerals, including tungsten from the mandatory public consultation process.
Mr. Mugilan said this took away the rights of the States the people and there will be no restrictions. This will affect the livelihood of the people. The parties failed to address the issue in their election manifestos.
Therefore, the people should cast their votes in the elections only to the candidates who had genuinely opposed the destruction of natural resources, he said.
The activists said the government should provide an adequate compensation and government job to the kin of the officials and the activists who were killed by the assailants for exposing the illegal activities like illegal quarrying operations and the transportation of the quarried minerals.
