Residents of Chellanam, Fort Kochi demand breakwaters

Residents of the coastal area between Chellanam and Fort Kochi blockaded the Mattancherry BOT Bridge on Friday demanding breakwaters along this stretch to prevent sea erosion and save coastal homes.

July 26, 2014 10:03 am | Updated 10:03 am IST - KOCHI:

Activists of the Kerala Swathanthra Matsyathozhilali Federation and people of Chellanam and Fort Kochi block the Mattancherry BOT Bridge to demand breakwaters in Kochi on Friday. — Photo: By Special Arrangment.

Activists of the Kerala Swathanthra Matsyathozhilali Federation and people of Chellanam and Fort Kochi block the Mattancherry BOT Bridge to demand breakwaters in Kochi on Friday. — Photo: By Special Arrangment.

Residents of the coastal area between Chellanam and Fort Kochi blockaded the Mattancherry BOT Bridge on Friday demanding breakwaters along this stretch to prevent sea erosion and save coastal homes.

The blockade, organised by Kerala Swathanthra Matsyathozhilali Federation, disrupted traffic on the bridge and link roads for about an hour starting from 11 a.m. Traffic was diverted to prevent further congestion and the police have registered cases against 150 people and members of the Federation. Police sources said that there is a High Court directive against assembly in public places.

District Secretary of the Federation N. J. Antony said in a press release here that the people were forced to blockade the road because the authorities concerned had not paid heed to their appeal for building the breakwaters which can save many coastal homes along this belt.

Around 1,000 homes had been partially damaged in sea erosion along the 17-km stretch between Chellanam and Fort Kochi, he said.

Hundreds of people, who arrived for the protest, assembled at the BSNL office and marched to the bridge. The blockade was inaugurated by Mahilavedi President Magleen Peter, the press release said.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.