Meet the techies, who fight for Tamil soil from foreign shores

Despite being hundreds of miles away from home, for Tamils living in the United States and Canada, their hearts beat for their motherland. Be it raising funds for causes like the 2015 Chennai floods or expressing solidarity with those protesting against the jallikattu ban, farmer suicides and the Neduvasal hydrocarbon project, many young professionals employed in the IT and other sectors abroad are trying to contribute to their home state in some way or the other.

In a recent example Tamizha Foundation, a Canada-based non-profit run by a group of like-minded professionals is trying to raise awareness on issues affecting the people of TN — recent political developments, jallikattu, hydrocarbon project, and farmers suicides et al — through a series of short videos. Praveen Raj Ganesan, a 28-year old IT professional based in Canada who features in the videos says, "We had a massive protest for jallikattu here in Toronto, which saw a gathering of around 1,500 people."

The death of a TN farmer, known to one of Praveen’s close friends, spurred him and his associates to launch Tamizha Foundation in Canada this year. "The farmer committed suicide after he was unable to repay `25,000. My friend spoke to the man and said that he would give him the money. But this was after the farmer had consumed poison. He didn’t survive. The incident deeply affected all of us," he said. The foundation is run by a group of working professionals aged between 25-35 years, based in Canada, the US, Dubai, and across TN. The group seeks to help farmers in the state and create awareness on social and political issues, in partnership with local groups working in TN.

Earlier this month, a group of Tamils living in Houston, Texas, met minister of state for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan at a meet-and-greet event in Houston.

Perumal Annamalai, an IT professional who works in the oil and gas industry there, said they gave a petition to the minister urging the Centre not to go ahead with the hydrocarbon extraction project in Neduvasal. The petition raises issues on possible contamination of water, air pollution, sand shifting, and other environmental concerns.

"When the jallikattu protests were on in Tamil Nadu, we also organised a protest here. Initially, it was to involve only our colleagues but in the end, around 750 people joined the peaceful protests here," he said. The team also discussed the Ennore oil spill with the minister, and its impact on the environment and sea creatures.