COLOMBO, Dec 29: Indian state-owned National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding with Sri Lanka amid protests from Tamil parliamentarians.

Tamil lawmakers are voicing concerns that the coal-fired power plant project to be established in the east of the country has a hidden political agenda to evict Tamils from the eastern area of Sampoor populated with Muslims and Tamils.

The plant to be set up in Sampoor in the eastern Trincomalee district would cost $500 million.

Sampoor, inhabited by a large number of Muslims, was also a stronghold of the LTTE which held large parts of the area until the military fully took over the region in August after heavy fighting with the Tamil Tiger rebels.

The pro-LTTE Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian from Trincomalee, K. Thurairetnasingham, in a media release, slammed the Sri Lankan government for ‘rushing’ with the project without consulting Tamil representatives.

The power plant is expected to commence operations from 2011.

Meanwhile, defence analysts say the LTTE would be worried about Indian presence in Trincomalee.

Rebels in a statement on the pro-LTTE website, Tamil Net, referred to the power plant agreement as part of the Sri Lanka’s ‘international safety net’ against the Tamil Tigers.