THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The coastal residents, who have been protesting against the Vizhinjam port project, plan to block roads at eight locations in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday. The protest, led by the Latin Church, is being staged against the government for not addressing any of their demands, including the stopping of work at the port.
The protesters will block roads at Attingal, Station Kadavu, Chakkai, Thiruvallom, Vizhinjam, Mulloor, Poovar, and Uchakada from 8 am to 5 pm. They will also take out a protest march ot the Secretariat.
In a pastoral letter read in the parishes under the Thiruvananthapuram diocese during the Holy Mass on Sunday, Archbishop Thomas J Netto urged the community members to work for strengthening the protest till they get justice.
The archbishop blamed the government for taking a unilateral stand on the issue. He called upon the community members to cooperate with the panel formed by the church as a parallel committee to the one appointed by the government to study the impact of port construction around the coast.
Vicar General of the Thiruvananthapuram Latin Archdiocese and general convenor of the protest, Eugine H Pereira, said the road blockade was not meant to cause inconvenience to the public, but against the adamant attitude of the government against a marginalised community.
He said there will be a statewide protest on Wednesday to highlight the issue with the support of various organisations. The protesters will organise an art and cultural meet in front of the Secretariat on the same day.
Meanwhile, the Janakeeya Prathirodha Samithi (JPS), a group supporting the port project at Vizhinjam, has strengthened their protest against the Latin Church-led agitation. They had set up a stage opposite to the one erected by the group opposing the project and demanded that the venue of the Church-led protest be shifted out from the project gate.
Collector bans road blockade at Vizhinjam
T’Puram: District Collector Geromic George has ordered a ban on staging road blockade by protesters at Vizhinjam Junction and Mulloor on Monday, citing law and order issues. He has also banned sloganeering in the area. The order said the restrictions have been imposed considering the presence of two opposing groups -- one led by the Church and other by Janakeeya Prathirodha Samithi, a group supporting the port project -- in the area.
Earlier, Janakeeya Prathirodha Samithi accused the police of siding with the protesters and allowing them to stage a protest in front of the project site despite a High Court order against it.