Mysuru & Madikeri: Opposing the Thalassery-Mysuru Railway line via Kodagu , a protest will be staged at the Dasara Exhibition Grounds on Sunday, said ‘Kodagu against Railway’ coordinator J P Ayyanna.

Speaking to reporters here on Thursday, Aiyanna said, “River Cauvery is the lifeline of Karnataka.

Coffee and paddy are mainly grown in Kodagu district. If the railway project is implemented, it will severely impact the main catchment area of Cauvery. With unwanted development projects like the Mysuru-Kushalnagar-Mangaluru Railway line and widening and upgrading of state Highways to National Highways will affect the Kodagu belt.” “The high-tension power line project from Mysuru to Kozhikode had resulted in the cutting down of 50,000 trees. With the road widening and railway line projects, many more trees will be cut resulting in groundwater depletion,” he added.

“Two proposed railway lines will pass through Kodagu and both will have Periyapatna or KR Nagar as junctions. The Thalassery-Mysuru Railway line will lead to more than one lakh trees being cut,” he said.

Railway minister Piyush Goyal has already invited us for a discussion on the railway projects in Kodagu.