Proposed pen statue for Karunanidhi’s raises environmental concerns in Tamil Nadu

Muthuvel Karunanidhi was a celebrated scriptwriter before he tried his hand in politics and he continued with his passion of penning his thoughts till his last breath. As a tribute to his writing skills, the DMK government led by M K Stalin, Karunanidhi’s younger son, wants to erect a ‘pen’ monument in the Bay of Bengal off the coast of Marina Beach here.

However, the proposal by the state government has met with intense opposition from environmentalists and opposition parties who have flagged concerns over pollution that the monument could bring on the seashore.

‘Muthamizh Arignar Dr Kalaignar Pen’ memorial is proposed to be built at a cost of over Rs 81 crore, according to an estimate by the Public Works Department (PWD). Despite opposition, the government seems to be proceeding with the process of acquiring necessary permission for the construction of the memorial.

The government has written to the Environment Impact Assessment Authority to grant permission for the project. The government has told the authority that the proposal has already been approved by the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority (TNSCZMA).

The government is already building a grand memorial for Karunanidhi at his resting place near his mentor C N Annadurai’s memorial on Marina Beach. Poovulagin Nanbargal, an NGO that is at the forefront of protecting the environment, said permission for construction of a monument/memorial has been granted only in exceptional cases since 2015 after imposing a slew of conditions.

“The proposal to build a pen memorial for Kalaignar Karunanidhi cannot be considered as an exceptional case because there is enough space for construction within Karunanidhi’s memorial complex. Moreover, the Marina Beach is undergoing massive changes due to climate change and building of ports within the city,” G Sundarrajan of Poovulagin Nanbargal said.

He said Marina Beach is an area which has a high-accretion rate (accumulation of sand) and the proposed memorial could further affect the coastline. “Not just this, it will have an impact on fish population as well,” Sundarrajan told DH.

He said the organisation is not opposed to construction of the pen memorial but is only raising objections on the proposed locations due to concerns over degradation of the environment.