Udupi, October 22: The construction labourers, daily wage workers and other workers involved in sand transportation have decided to sit in an indefinite dharna in front of the deputy commissioner’s office here from October 25, demanding solution to the sand problem in the district.
Interestingly, cutting across party line, all elected representatives from the district have decided to extend their support to the dharna.
Speaking to reporters here on Monday, Opposition Leader in the Legislative Council Kota Srinivas Poojary said that the dharna would continue till the problem was solved. In the last two decades, he has not seen such a worst administrative system in the district. The strike being observed by the lorry owners and drivers has entered the fifth day on Monday. They have parked their tippers and lorries on either side of national highway from Byndoor to Hejamadi. The district administration has not given permission for them to hold strike on the premises of the DC office, he said.
If the police tortured the vehicle drivers and owners who have been protesting peacefully, all MLAs would support the agitators, he warned the SP.
Now, the labourers who are dependent on sand were facing tough days due to scarcity of sand in the district. So, they have decided to stage dharna demanding solution to the sand problem and all five MLAs and MLCs of the district would support their cause, he said.
When the Chief Minister came to Udupi last time, he had directed the district administration to solve the problem by October 15. Even he held a meeting of the MLAs from coastal districts in Bengaluru and directed the authorities. But the district administration has been dilly-dallying to start the sand mining which shows that the state government has no control over the administration, he said.
Though 27 sand mines were identified in SRZ zone in the district, proposal was sent for only nine blocks and approval was taken only for seven. There were provisions to begin the sand mining legally, the district administration was not showing interest in it. As a result, the families which are dependent on sand mining have come on to the streets. They would continue their protest till they get justice, he said.
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Chhapra (Bihar) (PTI): Four people, including two women, died on the spot and six others were injured in an accident in Bihar's Saran district on Wednesday morning, a police official said.
The incident took place on the Brahmpur-Revelganj road in Bhagwan Bazar police station area of the district.
Talking to PTI, Chhapra SDPO (Sadar-1) said, "Around 5.45 am, a pickup vehicle travelling from Brahmpur towards Uttar Pradesh, which had 12 people on board, lost control and overturned. An unidentified truck allegedly ran over four people, including two men and two women, who had fallen onto the road."
Of the six people who were injured, four are undergoing treatment at Sadar hospital in Chhapra, and two others, who are in a critical condition, have been referred to Patna Medical College and Hospital for treatment, he added.
The bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination.
An FIR was registered at the Traffic police station, and further legal action is being taken, officials said.
CCTV footage from nearby areas is being examined to identify the truck and its driver, they added.
The SDPO said the deceased belonged to different regions of Uttar Pradesh, and police are trying to reach out to their families.
