Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (TU)

Udupi, Aug 29: Nearly five hundreds of students from various colleges of the region turned up at Brahmavar to block the national highway in protest of deteriorated condition of the road between Kalyanpur and Maabukala stretch on Thursday Aug 28.

Students from SMS College, Crossland College and Barkur Government College blocked the national highway for 20 minutes at Akashwani circle after arriving on a march from SMS College.

Students shouted slogans against national highway authority for its lukewarm response to the constant demand to repair work on this stretch. Demanding a ban on plying of manganese-laden lorries, they alleged that potholes and plying of manganese lorries has left many students reaching late to the colleges.

Students submitted memorandum to the probationary tahasildar Vasudeva Aachar demanding to start repair work immediately and to ban plying of manganese-laden lorries on national highway.

Addressing the protesters, Shivanna, assistant engineer, NH Kundapur sub-division assured, "we have sent a plan of Rs 8.25 crore to the head office of the highway department for complete asphalting work. We will start repair work between Sastan and Santhekatte from Friday August 29 onwards."

Businessman Pramod Madvaraj, Brahmavar block Congress president Udaychandra Shetty, taluk panchayat member Satish Poojary, Gita Shambu Poojari, Shankar Kundar, Mallika Balakrishna, students leaders Yogish, Srinidhi, Sushanth, Prasant Shetty and others were present.