Quarry strike: Construction sector moving towards crisis

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Coordination Committee has decided to intensify the quarry strike which started on April 17th in protest against the increase in the security fee of the quarries as well as the royalty levied on the mined rock and the imposition of the weighbridge. Minister P Rajeev is of the stand that the government is not ready for negotiation as the strike is a challenge to the people. With this, the construction sector in the state is in crisis amidst the rise in the price of materials.

Although the strike will not cause problems for the contractors who have their own quarries or take quarries on leases, and the big contractors who import rock products from the neighbouring states, the strike will have a negative impact on construction, including house construction. The strike comes when the works in the summer season are entering the final stage. With the arrival of summer rains followed by monsoons, contract work will get disrupted.