Residents protest against ‘diversion’ of Calicut airport’s CER funds

People residing in the neighbourhood of the Calicut International Airport took out a march to the district collectorate here on Saturday (July 5) to protest against the alleged diversion of the airport’s corporate environmental responsibility (CER) funds to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s constituency in Kannur district.

The protesters alleged that diverting the airport’s CER funds for purposes other than addressing local environmental concerns in the airport’s neighbouring civic bodies contravened CER rules. United Democratic Front (UDF) committees of Pallikkal grama panchayat and Kondotty municipality spearheaded the protest.

Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) district general secretary P. Abdul Hameed, MLA, inaugurated the march. He claimed that the funds meant for addressing the concerns of residents who surrendered their land for the airport’s development were being misused to benefit the Chief Minister’s constituency. “We will never accept this unjust move. We will fight until the funds are utilised for their original purpose,” said Mr. Hameed.

Agitation council chairman A.K. Abdurahman presided over the meeting. T.V. Ibrahim, MLA, and District Congress Committee president V.S. Joy delivered the keynote address.

District panchayat members P.K.C. Abdurahman and Zareena Haseeb, Kondotty municipal chairperson Nitha Shaheer, block panchayat president K. Bindu, Pallikkal grama panchayat president C.K. Abbas, Kondotty municipal vice chairman Ashraf Madan, and councillor K.P. Firos addressed the march.