Locals see red over Kinfra exploitation of water in Thiruvananthapuram.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Local people on Monday blockaded Kinfra international apparel park near Thumba alleging that the companies there were overexploiting ground water.
The blockade, led by the Kinfra Joint Action Council, began in the morning.
According to the demonstrators, the over 80 industries and allied agencies in the park had constructed four huge wells to draw the water which has left neighbouring residential areas high and dry in the summer.
The demonstrators demanded that the pumping of water from these wells should be stopped with immediate effect.
They also wanted the waste water generated in the industrial premises processed properly, and closure of all industries in the park which fail to follow the pollution norms set by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board.
The coastal areas of Thiruvananthapuram, especially Veli and Thumba and their neighbourhood have been hit hard by water scarcity during the current summer season.
In most of the coastal belt water trickles down through public taps only a few times a week.
Oxygen cylinders are supplied to the hospital from Kinfra Park.
Hospital officials, however, said hospital activities were not hit on Monday due to the blockade.