Eroded beach irks Jairam

PUDUCHERRY: Making an unscheduled visit to the Puducherry beach following a request by local environment activists, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, who was previously the Minister for Environment, expressed disappointment over the state of the eroded shoreline.  The visit was facilitated following an interactive session at the All India Editors’ Meet, when activists from PondyCan, an NGO, reminded Ramesh of a promise that he made in 2009 and urged him to come see the state of the eroded beaches.Accepting the request, the minister immediately directed his convoy to go to the beach. Shocked at the level of erosion, he wondered what happened to the `60 crore proposal to restore the beaches in the Union Territory brought up during his tenure as the Environment Minister. He promised the activists that he would take up the matter with the current Environment Minister, Jayanthi Natarajan.