A communication from L. Kalivarathan, secretary, said the fast was aimed at urging the Union Territory Administration to set up immediately a welfare board to benefit more than one lakh farm workers in the Union Territory, provide relief and assistance to the workers hit by the current drought in the two regions and launch measures to ameliorate the lot of the workers.

Among those who would address the agitators include S.Tirunavukarasu, S.Dorairaj (both from the Tamil Nadu unit of the Union), and T. Murugan (Pondicherry CPI-M leader).