india

Updated: Apr 27, 2020 16:24 IST

Tamil Nadu’s (TN) Vellore district administration unilaterally sealed its borders with Andhra Pradesh (AP) Chittoor’s district on Sunday by erecting two concrete walls on a state highway in a bid to prevent inter-state movement between TN and AP amid the growing concerns over the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

The walls, which were built without taking the Chittoor district authorities into confidence, has raised the latter’s hackles, as they plan to draw their Vellore counterpart’s attention, citing a severe breach in inter-state emergency protocols.

The walls were built amid the nationwide lockdown restrictions, which were initially enforced for 21 days from March 25 and then further extended for another 19 days till May 3, to rein in the pandemic.

The walls, measuring three feet in width and five feet tall, was constructed at Gudiyattam village in Vellore district, which shares its border with Chittoor district’s Palamaner block.

Chittoor district’s joint collector D Markandeyulu confirmed the erection of the two walls to HT.

“Chhitoor district collector N Bharat Gupta was informed about the erection of the walls by Palamaneru revenue officials on Sunday evening,” said Markandeyulu.

“Vellore is an important town in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and borders Chittoor. Many Telugu-speaking people live there. No inter-state transport or movement of people is being allowed due to the ongoing lockdown restrictions. Besides, there is an inter-state check-post between Vellore and Chittoor. In this context, the abrupt construction of these concrete structures between the two states is strange, unusual, and also unwarranted,” Markandeyulu said.

Vehicles carrying essential commodities are being allowed between the two states, despite the ongoing lockdown restrictions, he said.

“Emergencies are bound to arise and inter-state movement of people has to be allowed. The border check-posts are in place for this purpose. If the highway is blocked permanently by constructing walls, it’d severely affect emergency transport services,” the Chittoor joint collector said.

“For instance, the cancer hospital at Vellore caters to thousands of patients from AP, who go there for treatment every year. Similarly, the Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) is another favourite educational institution for Telugu-speaking students,” he added.

Markandeyulu alleged that the Vellore district authorities didn’t consult with their Chittoor counterparts before taking ‘such a strange decision’ to erect the walls on the highway.

“We’d take up this issue with the Vellore district authorities to ensure that the walls are taken down soon,” he added.

Vellore district collector A Shanmuga Sundaram said that the authorities erected walls only in two places of the highway of the six borders that it shares with Chittoor district. “There are also a few other rural routes between the two states, which have been closed with boulders,” he said.

“We’ve sealed these areas in a bid to prevent unauthorised movement of people amid the lockdown restrictions. However, both the transport of goods and the movement of people on emergency situations are allowed through alternative routes,” he added.

Contrary to Chittoor district authorities’ claims, Sundaram clarified that the walls are makeshift and not permanent structures, and they would be demolished after the lockdown restrictions are lifted.

Both TN and AP have reported a high number of Covid-19 positive cases.

While TN has recorded 1,885 Covid-19 positive cases and 24 deaths till Monday morning, the corresponding figure in AP is 1,177 and 31, respectively. AP has reported 80 new Covid-19 positive cases over the last 24 hours.