Will not block any vehicle to Vizhinjam seaport construction site: Protesters tell Kerala HC

Kochi, Nov 22 (PTI) The protestors in front of the under-construction Vizhinjam seaport at Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday assured the Kerala High Court that they will not block the vehicles to the port premises.

Justice Anu Siivaraman who was hearing a plea filed by the Adani Group against obstruction and blockade due to protests, said the court will hear it further on Monday.

The court once again warned the protesters of tough measures if they fail to remove obstructions before the port.

The counsel for the protesters assured the court that none of the vehicles will be blocked.

Meanwhile, Adani Group informed the court that vehicles carrying construction materials will reach on Friday.

The court has multiple times asked the protesters not to block the road to the seaport premises and have asked the government to remove the shed erected by the agitators as part of their protests.

However, the government had on November 7 told the court that it was unable to demolish the protest tents at the Vizhinjam sea port due to the presence of children, pregnant women and aged people among the agitators.

Adani group had earlier claimed that the court's order to provide police protection for the construction work was not implemented. It has also sought demolition of the tent set up at the protest site.

The court had said that it cannot prohibit protests, but at the same time no one should take law into their hands or be a threat to law and order, while staging agitations like the one against Vizhinjam Port.

A large number of people have been staging protests outside the main entrance of the multi-purpose seaport at nearby Mulloor for a few months.

They have been pressing for their seven-point charter of demands that include stopping the construction work and to conduct a coastal impact study in connection with the multi-crore project.

The protesters have been alleging that the unscientific construction of groynes, the artificial sea walls as part of the upcoming Vizhinjam port, was one of the reasons for the increasing coastal erosion.

The High Court in its interim order on October 19 made it clear to remove obstructions created by protesters at the entrance of the port and asked the State government to implement it. PTI RRT KH KH