TIRUCHY: A day after the state government granted sanction for the land acquisition for the Mannargudi-Pattukottai rail project, the members from various associations organised a rally in Mannargudi in Tiruvarur urging the government to expedite the project and submitted a petition with the Revenue Divisional Officer.

On Friday (July 24), the state government granted an administrative sanction for land acquisition for the long-pending Mannargudi-Pattukkottai railway line project and sent a detailed order to the Thanjavur district collector to acquire 89.49 hectares of land under the Tamil Nadu Acquisition of Land for Industrial Purposes Act, 1997.

Meanwhile, on Saturday (July 25), the members of various organisations from Mannargudi, including a traders' body and rail users association, organised a rally demanding that the project be expedited.

The rally, which commenced from Theradi to the DRO office, saw several hundred people from various walks of life, including the general public, participate. They said that the Mannargudi-Pattukkottai section of railway line, which they have been demanding for several decades, would facilitate enormous growth in the town.

Pointing out that the project would enhance transport infrastructure and connectivity not just in Mannargudi town but also in most parts of Thanjavur district, they appealed to the revenue department to accelerate the land acquisition and the realisation of the project at the earliest.