CPM calls on Tamil Nadu government to halt underground sewerage privatisation plans
Chennai: The Tamil Nadu unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Wednesday strongly condemned the state government’s decision to privatise underground sewerage projects across the Madurai and Nagercoil municipal corporations. The party demanded the immediate cancellation of all tenders issued under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.
In an official statement, CPM State Secretary P Shanmugam expressed shock over the executive decision, terming the transfer of vital public infrastructure into private hands for profit an "anti-people" initiative.
Highlighting historical precedents, the CPM noted that water distribution in Coimbatore was privatised under the former AIADMK administration, while a comparable initiative targeting Salem’s water supply under a previous DMK regime met with intense public opposition. The party criticised the present administration for advancing the same privatisation policy by transferring entire sewerage networks to corporate operators.
Warning of severe repercussions stemming from the privatisation of essential sanitation services, the CPM outlined three major risks:
Financial Burden: Lower- and middle-income households will face exorbitant sewerage taxes and maintenance fees imposed by private operators.
Loss of Civic Accountability: Citizens will no longer be able to resolve grievances directly through elected municipal bodies, forcing them to deal with private corporate management.
Labour Exploitation: Job security for sanitation workers and temporary municipal staff will be compromised, leaving them exposed to heightened exploitation.
The CPM urged the Tamil Nadu government to fully fund these infrastructure projects through state resources, keeping them under public management and direct municipal governance. The projects carry estimated investments of ₹2,377.48 crore for Madurai and ₹189.82 crore for Nagercoil.
Recalling that a previous tender proposing the privatisation of sanitation services across 12 municipal corporations was scrapped following widespread public outcry, the CPM stressed that systematically outsourcing core civic functions amounts to an abdication of governmental duty.
A welfare state must not pull back from delivering fundamental public amenities, the party stated, demanding the immediate revocation of the PPP tender process. (PTI)