The Madras High Court has stayed a Tamil Nadu government order directing removal of pipelines laid by the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) in farmlands in the state for the Kochi-Bangalore pipeline project. This has come as a relief to both GAIL and the industry in the state. The state government had directed officials to remove the pipelines already laid in farmlands in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Namakkal, Salem, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri.
When chief minister J Jayalalithaa announced in the Assembly that the Tamil Nadu government is against GAIL running its Kochi-Bangalore natural gas pipeline (KKBMPL) across agricultural lands in the state, she dealt a major blow to the organisation. The industry, which was looking forward to increased supply of natural gas in the South, was also upset. India could suffer a ?huge long-term disadvantage? because of inadequate gas grid, said B Santhanam, chairman, CII, Southern Region. The chief minister said that the farmers in the seven districts the pipeline crosses are worried about their loss of livelihood. She wanted GAIL to align the pipeline along highways to avoid farmland and habitations, remove pipeline-related structures from the fields and restore them to original condition, and compensate farmers for loss.
GAIL officials feel this is not a practical proposition. In India, of the 12,000 km of pipeline for various projects, just about 25 km is aligned along highways as a ?last resort?. Globally, too, this is the approach to gas pipelines as a highway alignment affects more populated areas. Such high pressure pipelines are never taken along the highway. A change in alignment would push the cost up three times as the project will need to be redesigned to bring in a different class of pipes. The project that can be completed in about a year will be delayed by more than three years. The consumers?essentially industry which needs fuel?will end up bearing the costs. Any setback to the project will also have adverse impact on the R4,500-crore LNG terminal, which is almost ready for commissioning at Puthuvype, Kerala. Natural gas is imported largely from West Asia. It is more viable to get it through ports on the west coast.
GAIL authorities and industry sources are puzzled why the farmers are protesting. As provided under the Petroleum and Minerals Pipeline Act, 1962, GAIL acquired the right-of-use of a 20-metre breadth of land along the pipeline alignment. Once the line is laid, the farmers get their land back with minimal restrictions. The only thing they are not allowed to do is to construct any permanent structure along the 20-metre breadth. GAIL pays compensation to land owners during construction. The rates are settled by the state agriculture department. The value of trees felled is decided by the forest department. Nothing is done without the knowledge of the state government. Already, compensation of R4 crore has been paid to 30 villages. Out of 337 crossings, 332 crossing permissions have been obtained. In the initial stages of the project, there were no issues.
The state government?s stand puts a question mark on the R3,263-crore project, with a planned length of 6,126-km of pipeline, carrying 16 MMSCMD of gas in Tamil Nadu. GAIL owns and operates over 10,000 km of natural gas pipeline across 14 states in the country with a transmission capacity of 204 MMSCMD. Another 2,500 km is being added across eight states to expand capacity. In Tamil Nadu, over 270 km of gas pipeline has already been laid under agricultural lands in Thanjavur, Nagapattinam and other areas. The major beneficiaries are Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd (TANGEDCO), independent power producers and other large and medium scale industries. The current controversy is about laying another 310 km in seven other districts.
GAIL officials say that Dabhol-Bangalore pipeline has recently been commissioned, covering a distance of 1,000 km passing through Maharashra, Goa and Karnataka, and the cross-country pipeline has been laid without affecting the livelihood of farmers. The project had met with some resistance in Kerala and in parts of Karnataka. The compensation was hiked as appropriate after negotiations. In Karnataka, GAIL hiked the compensation for land six times as compared with its initial estimate, particularly in urban centres like Tumkur.
Tamil Nadu really needs natural gas, which, many feel, is the fuel of the future. It is a cleaner fuel than, say, coal and is relatively safe to handle and transport. That apart, the state is going through a power crunch. There is a 4,000 MW shortfall between supply and demand. Although the chief minister has announced that the problem of power shortage will be totally overcome by this year-end, there are no signs of that happening. The state has got a respite thanks to wind energy, which declines from September. Many small and medium scale industries have been struggling to survive. The crisis has been most acute in the western districts, particularly Coimbatore which has had 16- to 18-hour power cuts. The pipeline would pass through highly industrialised but power starved places like Coimbatore, Tiruppur and Namakkal. There are also plans to extend the pipeline to Chennai, Cuddalore and Tuticorin to meet the natural gas demand. Already, cities like Mumbai, Delhi and many places in Gujarat get piped gas for cooking. It is expected to be available in Bangalore soon.
LNG is much more expensive compared to hydropower or thermal power. However, Tamil Nadu has no scope for more hydro-electric projects. When rain fails, hydel generation drops dramatically. The thermal power projects being planned will take several years to be completed. The industry is using generators which consume diesel and furnace oil, which are far more expensive and environmental-unfriendly. Gas-based power plants can be set up comparatively quickly and be combined with wind power and thermal power. Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation itself has signed up with GAIL to set up a 500-MW gas-based power plant along the pipeline route.
Industry hopes these recent protests do not become a norm and end up holding pipeline projects. GAIL is worried that Tamil Nadu?s stand could set a wrong precedent for other states.
sushila.ravindranath@expressindia.com