Wall between AP, Tamil Nadu borders near Tirupati removed

Tamil Nadu's (TN) Vellore district administration which unilaterally sealed its borders with Andhra Pradesh 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, pulled it down on Monday evening as the blockage denied access to ambulances and other vehicles with medical emergencies from the neighbouring state, according to Vellore district official.

Earlier, 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.

"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.