Hundreds of residents from Prathabarampuram panchayat staged a road blockade near Velankanni on the Nagapattinam–Thoothukudi East Coast Road on Saturday, opposing the excavation of soil from Chinneri for the ongoing four-lane highway project. The agitation, led by former panchayat president R.V.S. Sivarasu, lasted over three hours, disrupting traffic along the busy coastal route.
The district mining authorities had permitted soil extraction over 540 metres in Chinneri. Villagers, however, fear that the quarrying will salinise groundwater and damage the local ecosystem. On August 13, they stopped earthmovers at the site. Police provided security for the exercise to resume on Friday, prompting the call for a blockade.
The protesters demanded that the permission granted for the removal of sand from the waterbody be revoked before talks could be held.
Additional Chief Secretary J. Radhakrishnan, who was visiting a nearby area, visited the protest site and held discussions. Later, officials agreed to suspend soil extraction until talks with District Collector P. Akash on Monday.
