Residents of Old Pallavaram gathered on Tuesday to protest against the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act (AMASR) 2010 by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). This amendment, residents say, has stopped construction work in the areas designated as ‘protected’ by ASI.
The protest had more than 4,000 affected members participating. Chidambaram MP Thol. Thirumavalavan, who attended the protest, said that he would raise the issue in Parliament. “What is the use of digging up old artifacts now and let living people fall under the earth? My party will stand by the residents in their fight to get their rights back. We will definitely raise this issue in Parliament,” he said.
The amendment that the Pallavaram residents are protesting against currently clearly demarcates a ‘protected area’ and a ‘regulated area’. Any construction work that needs to be done in the regulated area needs a ‘Non Objection Certificate’ (NOC) from the ASI according to CMDA regulations.
Senthil Kumar, member of the Federation of Welfare Associations of Pallavaram who organised the demo, said that they were forced to protest. “So many people have been affected by this rule. We cannot sell, modify or mortage our properties without the No Objection Certificate that the ASI is refusing to give. We have no other choice but to protest,” he said. “If our woes are not heard through this protest, we will do road rokos to make sure our demands are met,” he added.
Chengalpet MLA D Murugesan, former Minister of State for Railways, A K Moorthy and CPM member T K Rangarajan were among those who attended the protest.
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