Residents, mostly brick kiln workers and their families, in Puthur village blocked Cuddalore - Chittoor Highway near bus terminus in Kaniyambadi town in Vellore on May 25, 2026 against a local Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) functionary for reportedly demanding extortion of money to run the units
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Residents, mostly brick kiln workers and their families, at Puthur village in Vellore district blocked the Cuddalore - Chittoor Highway near bus terminus in Kaniyambadi town on Monday (May 25, 2026) against a local Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) functionary for reportedly demanding money to run the units.Residents said that villages such as Nelvoy, Puthur, Vallam, Athiyur, Budur, Kuppam and Odiyathur were traditionally dotted with brick kiln units due to proximity to lakes and ponds in these areas.Most of the families in these villages depend on these units for work. The region has had at least 300 brick kiln units for many years. “Most of the brick kilns in these villages are small-scale units. Work in these units are seasonal as silt from water bodies can be taken only during summer when water level declines. Such extortion of money by local political functionaries will affect the livelihood of brick kiln workers,” said B. Pasupathi, a brick kiln worker.
