Indian state will proceed 'no matter what' with protest-hit Adani port | The Business Standard
Skip to main content
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard

Thursday
May 29, 2025

Sign In
Subscribe
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
THURSDAY, MAY 29, 2025
Indian state will proceed 'no matter what' with protest-hit Adani port

South Asia

Reuters
03 December, 2022, 03:10 pm
Last modified: 03 December, 2022, 03:13 pm

Related News

  • Shrimp fry worth Tk1cr seized in Cumilla while being smuggled to India
  • Cabinet secretary to present protesting Secretariat officials' demands to CA after his Japan visit
  • India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks the surveillance industry
  • 31 more people pushed into Bangladesh through Kurigram, C’Nawabganj borders
  • 36 trafficked Bangladeshis return after serving jail terms in India

Indian state will proceed 'no matter what' with protest-hit Adani port

Reuters
03 December, 2022, 03:10 pm
Last modified: 03 December, 2022, 03:13 pm
Police officers stand guard near the barricades during a protest rally by the supporters of the proposed Vizhinjam port project in the southern state of Kerala, India, November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Munsif Vengattil/File Photo
Police officers stand guard near the barricades during a protest rally by the supporters of the proposed Vizhinjam port project in the southern state of Kerala, India, November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Munsif Vengattil/File Photo

India's Kerala state will proceed "no matter what" with a $900 million port project and is open to deploying federal police if needed to protect it from protesters blocking construction, a government minister told Reuters on Saturday.

The local fishing community, led by Catholic priests, has blocked construction of Vizhinjam port by Adani Group for almost four months, erecting a makeshift shelter at the port's entrance. The protesters say the huge project causes coastal erosion that has undermined their livelihoods, calling for a complete halt on the construction.

Adani Group, led by Asia's richest man Gautam Adani, and the Kerala government, which is shouldering two-thirds of the project cost with the federal government, have denied such accusations. Clashes between police and protesters last weekend injured more than 100 people, including 64 police.

The Business Standard Google News Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel

Although the protesters have refused to budge, Kerala's minister of ports, Ahammed Devarkovil, said the government of the southern state was hopeful of resolving the deadlock but there was no chance it would halt construction.

"We want to complete the port project no matter what. No compromise can be made on that," he said in an interview. "Because these are civilians protesting, the government's position is to take this forward without inflicting any harm" on protesters.

Asked for comment on Devarkovil's remarks, a protest leader, Fredy Solomon, said protests would continue as "houses and livelihoods of thousands of fishermen are at stake."

Adani Group did not immediately respond to an email request for comment. The conglomerate has repeatedly urged a state court to authorise having the federal police guard the project so work may resume, saying local police were "mute spectators".

Minister Devarkovil said Kerala remains open to the idea of deploying the federal Central Reserve Police Force.

Adani wants to complete the first phase of construction by December 2024, but Devarkovil said his government was hopeful of getting the first vessel to the port by September next year, even as construction continues. It wants to make up for lost time by deploying workers to work extra hours and putting more industrial equipment to use.

"Adani Group is willing to do that," Devarkovil said.

Gautam Adani, whose empire spans gas and power projects as well as a ports and logistics business valued at some $23.5 billion, has described Vizhinjam as an "unmatched location" on the critical east-west shipping route.

"The possibilities being opened up by Vizhinjam port are unmatched by any other in India," Devarkovil said. "We will be set to grab business from Sri Lanka port."

World+Biz

Adani port / India / Protests

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • How termination of USDA-funded trade facilitation project will affect Bangladesh
    How termination of USDA-funded trade facilitation project will affect Bangladesh
  • File photo of Bangladesh Secretariat. Photo: Collected
    Visitors banned from entering Secretariat on Mondays and Thursdays
  • File photo of BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir. Photo: Collected
    Asked for roadmap, govt didn’t give in 10 months, now 'December it is': Mirza Fakhrul

MOST VIEWED

  • Google Pay. Photo: Collected
    Google Pay likely coming to Bangladesh soon
  • Graphics: TBS
    Suspicious banking activities surge by 56% since July: Cenbank
  • Representational image of cable car/Freepik
    Cable car to be installed from Himchari to Reju Khal in Marine Drive Road
  • Illustration: TBS
    Bangladesh sees highest-ever per capita income of $2,820 in FY25, BBS provisional data shows
  • IFIC Bank receives Tk6,000 cr in new deposits in six months
    IFIC Bank receives Tk6,000 cr in new deposits in six months
  • Abdul Awal Mintoo, chairman of National Bank Limited. Sketch: TBS
    'Regulatory support must for National Bank to restore depositors' confidence'

Related News

  • Shrimp fry worth Tk1cr seized in Cumilla while being smuggled to India
  • Cabinet secretary to present protesting Secretariat officials' demands to CA after his Japan visit
  • India's alarm over Chinese spying rocks the surveillance industry
  • 31 more people pushed into Bangladesh through Kurigram, C’Nawabganj borders
  • 36 trafficked Bangladeshis return after serving jail terms in India

Features

In recent years, the Gor-e-Shaheed Eidgah has emerged as a strong contender for the crown of the biggest Eid congregation in the country, having hosted 600,000 worshippers in 2017. Photo: TBS

Gor-e-Shaheed Boro Maath: The heart of Dinajpur

2d | Panorama
The Hili Land Port, officially opened in 1997 but with trade roots stretching back to before Partition, has grown into a cornerstone of bilateral commerce.

Dhaka-Delhi tensions ripple across Hili’s markets and livelihoods

3d | Panorama
Photo: Collected

Desk goals: Affordable ways to elevate your study setup

3d | Brands
Built on a diamond-type frame, the Hornet 2.0 is agile but grounded. PHOTO: Asif Chowdhury

Honda Hornet 2.0: Same spirit, upgraded sting

3d | Wheels

More Videos from TBS

The fight between two brothers; Adidas vs Puma

The fight between two brothers; Adidas vs Puma

2h | Others
Trump is again keen to make Canada the 51st state

Trump is again keen to make Canada the 51st state

3h | Others
Trump's tariff strategy and Europe's investment politics, violence or negotiation?

Trump's tariff strategy and Europe's investment politics, violence or negotiation?

4h | Others
Rumours surrounding the Club World Cup: Which club will Ronaldo join?

Rumours surrounding the Club World Cup: Which club will Ronaldo join?

5h | Others
EMAIL US
contact@tbsnews.net
FOLLOW US
WHATSAPP
+880 1847416158
The Business Standard
  • About Us
  • Contact us
  • Sitemap
  • Advertisement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
Copyright © 2025
The Business Standard All rights reserved
Technical Partner: RSI Lab

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - oped.tbs@gmail.com

For advertisement- sales@tbsnews.net