The National Green Tribunal has stayed the felling of trees at Auroville, a spiritual township in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram. The residents have been on protest path since a week after the township administration razed a building and fell trees for a road project.
On the morning of 9 December, several excavators arrived at the Youth Centre in Auroville – a spiritual township in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram, near Puducherry – to demolish buildings and cut down trees.
"We are distraught and helpless. We are fighting for our trees and land. All we are asking for is a dialogue."Resident, Auroville
The NGT has posted the second hearing on the matter to 17 December.
The clearing is to make way for development of the Crownway – a 16.7 meters-wide peripheral road meant to be laid around Auroville. The Crownway was designed based on a masterplan.
The residents told The Quint that at 7 AM over 100 locals reached the location without any police escort. The people of the community rushed to the scene and held on to the JCBs in an attempt to stop them from demolishing.
In a personally drafted note to Dr Jayanthi Ravi, the secretary of the Auroville Foundation who was appointed by the Centre, a resident wrote, “I ask you to stop this action and the method you are applying to build the city of Auroville.”
Residents Allege Intimidation by Authorities
A similar incident happened on Saturday, 4 December, when the police came with 3 JCB earthmovers to clear the trees, a little past midnight, residents said.
“Some of the youngsters who were sleeping outside the centre and all of us were rattled. We couldn’t even figure out what was happening as it was late in the night and everyone was sleeping in their respective houses,” said a resident on the condition of anonymity.
Following protests, the police called the demolition off and urged the secretary to hold discussions with the Auroville residents.
On 5 December, around 500 residents met peacefully and decided to request the community’s internal planning body to pause the development work until further notice from the Residents Assembly.
“First, the secretary called the youth and asked them for their opinion and they strongly objected to it,” a resident alleged.
“But later a compromise was arrived at between the secretariat, a member of Auroville’s planning body, a member of the working committee and a few residents,” read a statement from the residents. An ultimatum was issued to the Youth Centre, which stated that clearance will be carried out even if they do not agree to it. The Youth Centre agreed "to work towards peace and progressive harmony" and agreed that they will clear out the area themselves. The management, however, did not wait for this, the residents allege.
Police Deny Involvement
Villupuram Superintendent of Police A Shreenatha told The Quint, "We are aware that the residents are not okay with this plan so we urged them to hold a dialogue and come to a consensus. We said we will not interfere in the matter until then."
He categorically denied allegations that the police sent locals to Auroville.
“Today I climbed on top of the JCB which was working at the Youth Centre, and asked the driver to stop the machine. The driver was scared, he would have stopped. But 20 goondas surrounding the JCB, lifted me off and carried me away. Of course, in the process I got hurt physically, but that is not the point.”Resident, Auroville
Why Are Residents Opposing an Approved Plan?
The Auroville Universal Township Master Plan – Perspective 2025 was approved by the Human Resource Development Ministry in 2001 and notified in a Government of India gazette in 2010.
A resident explained that while the Auroville Master Plan was approved by The Mother – Mira Alfassa, founder of Auroville, the masterplan is no longer ecologically feasible.
Residents have alleged that the development plans, required under the Master Plan, are not agreed upon by the Residents Assembly and Governing Board. A resident felt this move by the authorities was a way of “belittling the collective decision-making process” of the community.
The Auroville Foundation is an autonomous body under the Central Government. The Residents Assembly is made up of the adult residents of Auroville and is one of the three authorities of the Auroville Foundation, as per the Auroville Foundation Act-1988.
“Human Unity will not be built by bringing police or goondas...You all know that but at this moment are blinded by the narrative of perfect circle and sacred geometry. Human Unity will be built by touching hearts, talking and solving and not being stuck in our positions,” read a note by a resident.
“I object to the tactics of manipulation, subterfuge, divide and conquer, and obstinacy to the extent of using strongarm tactics,” it read.
However a statement from the Auroville Foundation read that the Governing Board had met with residents and decided to proceed with the master plan, after considering the concerns of the groups. The Quint was unable to reach Jayanthi Ravi for an official comment.
The residents told The Quint that they had proposed an alternate plan in the past but it was rejected, without citing reasons.
"We are not opposing the plan. But the way it is being implemented. Brute force should not be used. We are shaken because the recent events contradict our peaceful way of living. Shouldn't we all come to a consensus before implementing projects that will impact our living," said a resident.
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