VHP protests against Sethusamudram project (Lead: VHP)

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) staged countrywide blockades on Wednesday against the governments plan to go ahead with the Sethusamudram project.

New Delhi/Patna, Sept. 12 : The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) staged countrywide blockades on Wednesday against the government's plan to go ahead with the Sethusamudram project.

In New Delhi, the VHP activists blocked traffic at several places.

"We have been requesting the government for the past one year to stop the project but they are not listening. Therefore, we have organised blockade all over the country from 8.00 am till 11.00 pm today. It has been successful," saidamkrishna Srivastava, a VHP leader.

The scene was similar in Indore where the protestors tried to halt trains. Some protestors were arrested by police.

In Ayodhaya, considered birthplace of Lord Rama, Hindu seers took to the streets to protest against the project.

In Patna, protestors were successful in halting train traffic for a few hours.

"We oppose the Congress and UPA Government and warn them to wake up to the sentiments of people. Or people will not forgive them and throw them out of power," said Nitin Navin, a BJP legislator.

The VHP is opposing the 560 million dollars Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project, which they say would destroy the Ram Sethu, a 48- kilometer chain of limestone shoals that once linked Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu to Mannar inri Lanka.

Hindu groups have called on the government to stop the project, saying it will demolish a bridge linking India and Sri Lanka, believed to have been built by Lord Ram.

The 560-million dollar Sethusamudram Ship Canal Project will dredge a channel in a narrow strip of sea between India and Sri Lanka, reducing distances and cutting costs for freight traffic.

According to the Central Government, research has shown that the bridge was a series of sand shoals created by sedimentation.

Dredging for the project began in 2005 and the channel -- 12 metres deep, 300 metres wide and almost 90 km long -- will provide a crucial link between the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar.

When the project is completed, ships sailing between India's western and eastern coasts will no longer have to go around Sri Lanka, and are expected to save up to 36 hours of sailing time.

The project has also sparked protests by other groups including conservationists and local fishermen, who say the dredging will mean dumping sediment in deeper water further out to sea.

This and increased freight traffic will harm marine life and threaten the livelihood of thousands of fishermen in both countries.

ANI