Soil extraction by levelling a hillock at Mattappally in Palamel grama panchayat, near Mavelikara, which led to huge protests, has been suspended till November 16.
Following the decision to temporarily halt the mining activities, residents called off their agitation for the time being.
Last week, residents clashed with the police over the removal of soil for the development of the National Highway 66 at Kayamkulam. It resulted in the arrest of over 100 people. After mining activities resumed at Mattappally on Monday morning under tight security, residents, including women and children, hit roads in protests. They tried to block the Kayamkulam-Punalur road. The police put up barricades to prevent the agitators from going to the mining site.
As directed by Agriculture Minister P. Prasad, District Collector John V. Samuel intervened in the issue and sent a high-level district administration official to hold talks with the contractor and protesters. The talks led to a temporary halt to soil extraction.
Officials said that an all-party meeting would be convened in the presence of the Agriculture Minister on November 16 to discuss the issue.
Residents fear that “indiscriminate” mining would be detrimental to the environment and result in an acute drinking water shortage in the region.
The State government and Kerala High Court have permitted soil extraction from Mattappally. The residents, however, have filed an appeal in the court challenging the single-bench order. The move to extract soil before a decision by the High Court’s division bench infuriated the residents and resulted in protests.