Thousands of Goa residents gathered in the village of Chandor on Sunday night to participate in a protest against the government projects lined up for the state, Herald Goa reported.

Protestors in Chandor conducted a candle march to attract attention to their voices. They also blocked a railway track till dawn, the report added. “By sitting on the tracks here, we want to tell the government that we are vehemently opposed to the projects of double tracking,” Abhijit Prabhudessai of Goyant Kollso Naka was quoted as saying. “We will prove to the government that we are not approving its plan to make Goa a coal hub.”

Residents of Goa fear that projects related to doubling of the railway tracks will cause severe environmental damage and will also increase coal transportation through protected forest areas.