Anti-nuke plant protestors end fast at Koodankulam

Protesters on Thursday formally ended their 12-day fast against the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Project, a day after the Tamil Nadu government promised to pass a resolution at the Cabinet for halting the project.

127 protesters broke their fast accepting a glass of juice from their supporters. They decided to call off their fast after a meeting between a delegation of the core group of protesters and Chief Minister Jayalalithaa in Chennai on Wednesday.

The Tamil Nadu government had said the Cabinet would pass a resolution asking the Centre not to go ahead with the works on the plant site till the people's fears were allayed.

Jayalalithaa had also assured the delegation that she would talk to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his return from the US on September 27.

S P Udhaya Kumar, convener of People's Movement against Atomic Power, spearheading the stir, had announced withdrawal of the fast on Wednesday but said they would continue to keep the pressure on the Central government to scrap the project, set to be commissioned in December.

The Prime Minister had sent Minister of State in the PMO V Narayanasamy as his emissary to met protestors in Tirunelveli district after Jayalalithaa wrote to him on the issue.