Villagers protest against stone quarry by leaving their voter ID at Collectorate

Villagers protest stone quarry project in Velanputhukulam by leaving voter ID cards at Collector's office.

A stir erupted in the Collectorate when residents of Velanputhukulam village left their voter identity cards at the Collector’s office to show their opposition against the establishment of a stone quarry in their village.

Villagers of Velanputhukulam located in Sathankulam Taluk submitted a petition to Collector K. Elambahavath on Wednesday opposing the stone quarry project in their village.

“There are more than 200 people living in our village and we rely on agriculture for our livelihood. Two months ago a private company began work to set up a stone quarry in our village. Despite various protests staged, urging the work to stop, no action has been taken and now the work is progressing at a rapid pace, ” a villager said.

They added that establishment of quarry in their village would adversely impact their livelihoods by affecting agriculture and cattle rearing. They further mentioned that the road in the area has already become non motorable and blasting in the quarry poses a risk of houses collapsing in the village.

Moreover, the villagers staged a protest by submitting their voter identity cards to the district collector. As a result the person who collected all the cards was restricted from entering, while others met the Collector. After the meeting the villagers left their voter ID cards in the corridor of the collector office, to express their dissatisfaction after the meeting.