Upset over the railways’ decision to withdraw the stop for all passenger trains at Kulipalaiyam Railway Station near here, the residents of eight villages near the station said that they would boycott the Lok Sabha polls if the decision was not reconsidered.
On Monday, people from Kulipalaiyam, Vavipalayam, Nattakattipalayam, Guruvayoorappan Nagar, and few other localities, met District Collector G. Govindaraj and appraised him of their difficulties after the earlier petitions to railways officials seeking revival of stoppage at the station did not yield any result.
“Till a few days back, at least Erode-Coimbatore Passenger was stopping at the station, which is located on Tirupur-Uthukuli sector. The stop for other passenger trains have been withdrawn in phased manner. The railways took off the stop for the passenger train running between Coimbatore and Erode at Kulipalaiyam station on January 25,” said A. Sigamani, a resident of Vaviapalayam.
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The decision has affected a large numbers of teachers of government schools and workers in garment units who come from Coimbatore and Erode.
The railway sources said that lack of commercial viability was the reason to remove the stop.
“How can railways state such a vague reasoning when they did not even set up a regular ticket counter in the station,” asks S. Jagadeesan, a regular train passenger. Railways have been outsourcing ticket sales on a commission basis, he said.
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A group of people laid siege to a liquor shop at Anupparpalayam on Monday demanding that the outlet be shifted from there.
The protesters said that because of excess consumption of liquor of male population in the area, women were getting harassed.
“A few days back, a housewife committed suicide unable to bear the atrocities of her spouse in an inebriated condition,” they added.