K-Rail stone laying put off following strong protests at Chottanikkara

Around 70 houses likely to be affected in panchayat by land acquisition for project

People in Chottanikkara, near Kochi, protested strongly against the laying of survey stones for the SilverLine semi high-speed rail project in the panchayat on Wednesday. A resident of the panchayat said a strong posse of police personnel were deployed in the forenoon as revenue officials came to lay the stones. However, residents in ward six (Kidangayam and Tehkkineth Nirappu) protested against the move with the support of United Democratic Front (UDF) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) activists.

Police sources said no one has been arrested in connection with the protest and stone laying has now been put off following the protest.

A spokesman for the UDF said former MLAs V. J. Paulose and V.P. Sajeendran and Mohammed Shiyas, District Congress Committee president, were among those who led the protest against the move by officials to lay boundary stones for land acquisition.

It is learnt that around 70 houses will be affected in the panchayat initially by the land acquisition for the project. However, creating a buffer zone for the project would affect more residents, said the UDF spokesperson.

Former MP and Kerala Congress working chairman P.C. Thomas said officials who are appointed to lay survey stones and the police appeared to be playing hide-and-seek.

He said here on Wednesday that officials and the police ran away after seeing protests by a large group of people against the project. He claimed that he had witnessed the situation in Chottanikkara on Wednesday.

He said Minister for Fisheries Saji Cherian had said there would be no buffer zone for the K-Rail project. However, CPI(M) State secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said there would be a buffer zone for the project. The K-Rail authorities had said there would be a 10-metre buffer zone on both sides while the Detailed Project Report said there would be a 30-metre buffer zone, he added.