Union minister Muraleedharan visits K-Rail affected areas, slams Kerala govt

Union minister Muraleedharan visited areas affected by the Kerala government's rail project and said the state does not need development that displaces thousands of people.

Union Minister V Muraleedharan on Saturday visited the areas affected by Kerala government's ambitious K-Rail project in Thiruvananthapuram. The minister interacted with local residents and slammed the state government for SilverLine project.

SilverLine project is a semi-high-speed rail project, expected to reduce travel time from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod to around four hours. The 532-km stretch would be developed by K-Rail -- a joint venture of the Kerala government and the Railway Ministry -- for developing railway infrastructure in the southern state.

Muraleedharan said, "Kerala doesn't need development that displaces thousands of people who have no other means of income. SilverLine does not have people's assent. It will force Kerala into debt trap. Kerala government is threatening innocent civilians in the name of Social Impact Assessment - which doesn't permit planting yellow [marker] stones."

READ | Company withdraws from Kerala SilverLine project, K-Rail claims it was sacked

The minister also urged Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan to put a full stop to efforts that don't have approval from the central government.

The local residents have staged protests backed by the opposition UDF and BJP in places where the government attempted to lay demarcation stones in the name of SilverLine project. The state government had been pushing forward with the project despite stiff public opposition.

LDF government has claimed that they have union government's support even when people, including the railway minister, denied the same.