JOIN USMembers of Udupi District Lorry Owners’ Association, who have been staging indefinite protest against the shortage of sand for the last two days, gheraoed Udupi-Chikmagalur MP Shobha Karandlaje and expressed their displeasure at her.
Hundreds of tippers have been parked at Kundapura, Hemmadi, Koteshwara and other areas in protest against the district administration's failure to solve the problem of scarcity of sand and to reintroduce sand mining activities in the district.
The MP visited the protesters at Koteshwara while returning to Udupi after taking part in the election campaign in Byndoor, which is part of Shimoga Lok Sabha constituency.
The protesters, who took the MP to task, said "We have MLAs, MP and MLCs but none of them have come to our rescue when we are facing the problem. We will only find a solution to the problem."
Reacting to the protesters, Shobha Karandlaje said, "There was no sand-related problem when the BJP was in power. The sand crisis increased during the Congress and coalition government tenure. The chief minister promised a new sand policy. However, it is yet to become a reality."
She promised to pressure the state government to solve problems related to sand in the district.