Social Activist Medha Patkar joined the residents of Eknapuram in Tamil Nadu’s Kancheepuram district on Thursday to express solidarity with their protest against the plan to construct an airport in their village. The protest, spearheaded by the Federation for the Welfare of Eknapuram Residents and Farmers, entered the 219th day on Thursday.
Patkar said only the people could decide whether they wanted a development project and that a resolution passed by a gram sabha could not be neglected under the panchayati raj law.
Alongside Patkar, other activists such as Geetha Ramakrishnan and S P Udhayakumar participated in the protest. Addressing reporters, Patkar asked how people who depend on agriculture for their livelihood could survive if it was destroyed in the name of development.
