Residents from four hamlets in Veppampattu village, around 10 km from Kaniyambadi town in Vellore, staged a road roko and seized a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus on Thursday, demanding restoration of bus services between the four hamlets, including the Scheduled Castes (SC) colony in the village, and Vellore town.
Resident said that the existing bus (Route No. 15 N; Vellore town; Nanjukondapuram village) has been operating since 1990, when the first bus service operated to tiny hamlets Periyapalampakkam Colony, Mullathukottai, Krishnavaram, and Kollumedu that come under Veppampattu village panchayat of Kaniyambadi panchayat union of Vellore district. The bus has made at least seven trips to these hamlets every day.
However, the bus has skipped the four hamlets and gone through Kumpu Kottai village to reach Nanjukondapuram for the past few months. TNSTC officials said that caste Hindu in Periyapalampakkam village have been opposing the operation of bus services to hamlets via the colony in the village. “We gave petitions to the Vellore Collector, P. Kumaravel Pandian, TNSTC officials, and J. L. Eswarappan, MLA (Arcot), on August 3. But the bus services have not been restored so far,” said A. Silambarasan, a resident.
Since then, residents, including students, office goers, and farmers, have had to trek to Kaniyambadi, where government schools, agriculture offices, and other facilities are available. More than 50 residents, mostly women, work as housekeeping staff at the Government Medical College Hospital in Vellore. Most of the residents in these hamlets are farmers and wage labourers.
Around 11 a.m. when the regular bus reached Kumpu Kottai village, residents from four hamlets blocked the Kaniyambadi-Arcot Main Road in the village.
Immediately, a team of revenue officials, Kaniyambadi police, and TNSTC officials led by S. Mohan, Branch Manager, Kaniyambadi bus depot, reached the spot and pacified the residents. After more than an hour of talks, residents dispersed with assurance . “The restoration of the bus service to the hamlets will be made after getting the nod from the Collector and senior transport officials,” said Mr. Mohan.
