Now Reading: Hunger strike and sand feast mark Thiruvonam day in Kerala
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Hunger strike and sand feast mark Thiruvonam day in Kerala
On Thiruvonam day, Congress-led UDF MPs from Kerala held a hunger strike at Palakkad against the bifurcation of the Mangaluru region from the Palakkad railway division. The Railways plans to attach Mangaluru…
On Thiruvonam day, Congress-led UDF MPs from Kerala held a hunger strike at Palakkad against the bifurcation of the Mangaluru region from the Palakkad railway division. The Railways plans to attach Mangaluru to the Mysuru division from October 1.
Kerala Congress chief Sunny Joseph inaugurated the protest. Railway sources said the move would hit Palakkad division's revenue and future development. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the division would lose Rs 1,100 crore. Chief Minister V D Satheesan has urged the PM to reconsider.
Separately, job aspirants who cleared Kerala PSC exams held a symbolic 'sand feast' outside the secretariat. They accused the state government of failing to act on assurances that their appointment delays would be resolved.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The Palakkad railway division dates to the British era, when the Southern Mahratta Railway linked Mangaluru with the peninsula. A revenue loss of Rs 1,100 crore represents nearly a third of the division's annual earnings, according to a 2023 railway board estimate. The bifurcation follows a 2022 reorganisation plan that the Southern Railway board approved but Kerala opposed. The Kerala Public Service Commission, which sets appointment timelines, had posted a vacancy list for 12,000 posts in February but has not scheduled the next counselling round. The secretariat protest is the latest in a series of sit-ins by applicants who have cleared written exams since 2021. The state assembly's committee on assurances reviews the government's reply in September.
Source: deccanherald.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
