Governments like victims. Distressed people make for thankful recipients of public largesse. Within a week of Uttarakhand’s watery disaster of June 16 and 17, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister announced a Rs. 5 crore relief in solidarity with the “Government and people of Uttarakhand.”

This generous gesture stands in stark contrast with the way the Chief Minister is dealing with people in her own state who are concerned about their increased vulnerability to natural disasters. Around the time that she handed out her cheque to Uttarakhand, 19 fishermen from Sulerikattukuppam, a hamlet about 40 km south of Chennai, begged their way to bail after spending a month in prison. They were arrested for demanding relocation and rehabilitation; the celebrated 100 million litres per day Nemmeli seawater desalination plant constructed by Chennai Metrowater had triggered severe sea erosion and brought the sea dangerously close to their homes. The highly toxic brine rejects were polluting their seas. Continue reading The Greater Common Omelette →