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Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan on Saturday met people protesting against the K-Rail Silver line project in the Kottayam district of Kerala and said it will create "ecological issues" in the state.
The protest erupted in Ernakulam, Kottayam, and Kozhikode districts against the Kerala government's proposed SilverLine semi high-speed rail project on Friday. "Central government hasn't approved the project. It'll create ecological issues and render many homeless. If state government goes ahead, BJP will mobilise people and thwart such efforts," Muraleedharan told ANI. Local residents, including women and children, disrupted the laying of the stones in the land identified for the project in Kallai in Kozhikode district and Mamala near Thiruvankulam in Ernakulam district yesterday. Reportedly, women were protesting with kerosene in their hands and were removed by the police force in the said incident. The Kerala government's ambitious Silverline project, which is expected to reduce travel time from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod to around four hours, is being opposed by the opposition Congress-led UDF, which has been alleging that it was "unscientific and impractical" and will put a huge financial burden on the state. (ANI)
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