Dr. Sasi Tharoor (MP candidate from Thiruvananthapuram):

The Vizhinjam port project - the biggest in Kerala and one of the biggest in the country, which had been hanging fire for nearly two decades - has finally got the approval of the central government last September. A major advantage of Vizhinjam port will be that with a natural depth of 24 metres - among the deepest in the world - it would not require any dredging. Another advantage is that it lies very close to a busy international shipping route. Once complete, the port will be able to handle over four million containers annually and would create 5,000 direct and 150,000 indirect jobs. I believe it is essential for Thiruvananthapuram to support this idea.

But we must fight for the displaced people from the Vizhinjam port trust area who must not become the victims of development. I will work closely with the local population to ensure that any people who are displaced are properly rehabilitated, and that decent work is found for those whose livelihoods may be affected by the development of the port. We must do everything possible to help the displaced to find jobs in the new port. In the end, all of Thiruvananthapuram should benefit from the development of Vizhinjam. The enhanced trade through our backyard should also stimulate serious levels of related investment in Kerala.

It is also essential to devise effective plans to provide relief for those newly-unemployed Malalyalis who are coming back to Kerala from the recession-hit Gulf countries. I will press the Centre to provide additional resources to help these workers. In the good times, India has benefited form their remittances; in the bad times, the country must stand by them.
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Lets hope Dr.Sasi Taroor (A man who represented India in the UN, a peace-keeper, refugee worker, human rights activist and now a political candidate for the Indian parliament) will do something good to Trivandrum's Dream for a Mother Sea Port.

People have fed up with the false promises made by the politicians and ministers of Kerala Government for many years..

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