Latest news with #NH)66
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Transport woes persist for Kunniyoramala residents amid NH 66 construction
Sixty-two-year-old K.V. Ramakrishnan recalls the death of a neighbour three months ago. The resident, whose family did not wish to be named, died of a heart attack after a doctor from a nearby hospital was unable to reach him due to a lack of transport access. A former fisherman, Ramakrishnan, lives in Four Cent Colony in Kunniyoramala near Koyilandy taluk, Kozhikode district, where residents face persistent transport issues, exacerbated by the 'encroaching' construction of National Highway (NH) 66. On May 8, the residents launched a protest demanding the restoration of transport services and raising objections to the land acquisition process. The protest was temporarily suspended after Vadakara MP Shafi Parambil, the project director, and National Highways Authority officials met them during a meeting held on May 28 and assured that their concerns would be addressed within 20 days. 'We will decide our next step once a decision is made,' said Shajith O.P., convener of the Kunniyoramala Samyuktha Samara Samiti. 'We are not against development, but compromising basic transport facilities and safety cannot be considered progress,' he added. Mr. Shajith pointed out that Kunniyoramala has remained cut off since the hill was split during NH 66 construction, leaving residents without access to emergency transport. Concerns over landslides are also growing, with new cracks appearing on the hill and supporting cement walls weakening. Many displaced residents have returned to their houses in high-risk zones after the government reportedly failed to provide the promised rental support. 'How can daily wage workers afford months of rent?' asked K.P. Sunil Kumar a resident. 'We wouldn't be living in fear if land acquisition had been completed,' he added. Residents said they have raised these concerns repeatedly over the last three years but have received little response from authorities. They were particularly disheartened by District Collector Snehil Kumar Singh's remarks during a recent visit, where he reportedly told them to wait through another monsoon and said land acquisition would take place only in the event of a landslide. 'What guarantee do we have that a landslide won't happen next monsoon?' residents asked, recalling the previous year's landslide, which forced them into relief camps. This time, however, residents are hopeful as the issue surrounding the NH construction has gained more visibility. While no date has been fixed for a follow-up meeting, residents hope for a timely and lasting solution.
The Hindu
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
KPCC frames broad campaign talking points against CPI(M) and BJP ahead of local body polls
The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office-bearers' meeting here on Thursday broadly outlined the party's line of attack against the State and Central governments in anticipation of the 2025 local body polls and the 2026 Assembly elections. The KPCC has sought to tap into the public's concern over the 'perilous structural weakness' of the National Highway (NH) 66. The KPCC sought to redirect the citizens' ire against the Union government by alleging high-level corruption, a lack of oversight, and setting impossible construction deadlines. It demanded a comprehensive probe. The KPCC also faulted the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government for falsely claiming credit for big-ticket schemes, including K-Fon, which the party alleged remained primarily on paper and failed to meet its original objectives. Anniversary celebrations The meeting aimed to counter the LDF government's 'much-hyped' fourth-anniversary celebrations by labelling the Statewide fete, which included exhibitions and public outreach programmes, as election campaigning at taxpayers' expense. The KPCC accused the government of draining the 'depleted' public exchequer to give Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's 'tainted' public image a facelift. The KPCC also sought to focus on citizens who had failed to obtain redressal for their grievances at Mr. Vijayan's Navakerala Sadas. The meeting decided to politically capitalise on the illegal arrest of a Dalit woman on a trumped-up charge of pilferage and the Forest department's 'witch-hunt' against Ambedkarite rapper Vedan as emblematic of the LDF's apathy towards the marginalised sections of society. The KPCC also spotlighted the death of Vinayakan, a Dalit man, allegedly due to humiliation and intimidation at the hands of the Thrissur police. It accused the government of saving the errant officers responsible for the crime. 'Caste slurs' The KPCC also slammed Sangh Parivar leaders for 'demonising and stigmatising' Vedan by making 'caste slurs' in an attempt to put the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the defensive. The KPCC equated the Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s [CPI(M)] opposition to erecting a Mahatma Gandhi memorial at Malappattam in Kannur to the BJP-controlled Palakkad Municipality's decision to name Nehru Yuva Kendra after Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue K.B. Hedgewar. It stated that the CPI(M) and the RSS shared the same political stance, given their mutual aversion to Gandhian and Nehruvian political thought. The KPCC's political affairs committee will meet in Kochi on May 26. It condemned the BJP's subversion of Central agencies to target the Lok Sabha's Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. The KPCC would organise at the grassroots level to fight the elections. KPCC president Sunny Joseph, MLA, chaired the meeting. Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in Kerala, Deepa Dasmunshi, and former KPCC president K. Sudhkaran were present.
