Tension as protesters block K-Rail survey
The Hindu
Officials had come to measure the water level in the Karingali puncha
Tension prevailed at Nooranad in Alappuzha when protesters tried to block officials of the Revenue Department and the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (K-Rail) who came to measure water level in the Karingali puncha on Wednesday.
The officials who reached the place with police protection in the morning were met with strong protests. The agitators demanded a change in the alignment of the SilverLine project, a semi-high-speed rail project to link Kasaragod in the north to Thiruvananthapuram in the south, by avoiding wetland and paddy fields in the area.
The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.