Residents stage road roko demanding eviction of encroachers at Eriyur bus stand

COIMBATORE: Locals on Saturday staged a road roko on the Pennagaram-Nagamarai Main Road demanding the removal of encroachments at the Eriyur bus stand in Dharmapuri district. They placed stones on the road and held a sit-in protest, disrupting traffic for over two hours in the area.

According to sources, more than 50 pushcart shops have encroached upon Eriyur bus stand, both inside and outside. The govt issued eviction notices to these shops 15 days ago, after which most of them were removed.

On Friday, the evicted shops resumed operations in the same location. Agitated over this, the locals staged the road blockade protest. The Eriyur police and the panchayat administration engaged in talks with the protesters. The protesters demanded the removal of the shops, stating that congestion caused by the encroachers led to frequent accidents. The police ordered the immediate removal of all shops and engaged workers to carry out the evictions. Subsequently, the protest was called off.