They urged the authorities to grant the Bhovi community permission for quarrying, which is its family vocation for decades. The workers, who staged the protest with the support of the Dalit Sangharsha Samiti, alleged that the outsiders were allowed to work in the quarry neglecting the native Bovy community members. Hence, these local workers are now deprived of their means of livelihood, they complained.

They said, their forefathers have not claimed the licence as they were illiterate. Taking advantage of the ignorance of the community members, those from other states have been carrying out quarrying and settling down in the region, by forcefully evicting the natives who worked here for years, the protesters complained.

They urged the district administration to carry out a survey and give licence to the rightful workers on the site, said  Dalit Sangharsha Samiti district unit convenor K C Rajakantha who led the protest. They submitted a memorandum to Additional DC G S Nayak.

ZP member P Muniraju, DSS taluk unit convenor B V Anand, Venkatesh, Hanumantpur Krishna were present .