Chennai: At a time when several Indian states are facing power outages due to a shortage of coal, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has requested both the central and state governments to make sure that Tamil Nadu does not face frequent power cuts.
According to a report in IANS, the founder of Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) urged both the central and state governments to work together to ensure that there was no shortage of coal in the state. He expressed concerns over the reports that Tamil Nadu’s coal stock would last only for four days.
In a statement, Kamal had requested the ruling DMK government to take up the matter with the central government. He said industrialists in the state were already worried about the possibilities of frequent power outages in the state in the coming days following the reports regarding low stock of coal availability with TANGEDCO.
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Quoting Kamal, the report said that Tamil Nadu had faced unprecedented power outages during the previous DMK rule between 2006 and 2011 and it had forced several industries to shift their base from the state. Pointing out that industrial cities like Coimbatore, Tirupur, and Sivakasi had suffered a lot during those stints, he said that common person had lost their jobs as industries moved their base.
To prevent history from repeating itself, the DMK government should remain firm and alert, he said and added that the state might incur a huge loss if it remains inactive especially at a time when the economy of the state has started to recover gradually.
Kamal requested the state government to work in hand with the central government to maintain a steady flow of coal supply in the state, he said as per the report.