THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After much hue and cry, the district administration has finally initiated steps to give compensation for 25 landowners who surrendered their property for the proposed Outer Ring Road (ORR) project in the state capital.
According to sources, the landowners will be given compensation next week.
An official of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) told TNIE that the district administration has submitted the documents of 25 landowners and they will be given the compensation next week.
However, procedural delays are plaguing the distribution of compensation as multiple departments are involved in the process. The district collector has convened a meeting on Friday to review the progress.
As many as 2,500 families handed over their properties to facilitate the ORR project nearly two years back. The affected families have been clamouring for the promised compensation which was supposed to be handed over within three months after the submission of documents.
Last month, a 57-year-old man, who surrendered the land for the project from Kilimanoor died by suicide because of the inordinate delay in getting compensation.
According to sources, even now the procedures to finalise the compensation package for the affected families are going on at a snail’s pace. It is learned that the PWD, in charge of assessing the depreciation value of the properties for fixing the compensation, is not working at the desired speed owing to lack of human resources.
“There are hundreds of properties that need to be assessed to fix the value and the PWD authorities are complaining that they don’t have enough staff strength to do the assessment. Giving compensation for a few landowners only will not solve our issue. We are tired of empty promises and people are really suffering here,” said chairman Chandramohanan Nair, Outer Ring Road Vizhinjam-Navayikulam Janakeeya Samiti.
The ambitious project implemented as part of the Capital Region Development Programme II (CRDP), is crucial for the upcoming Vizhinjam port project and will facilitate smooth port-bound transportation in the future.
An official of the district administration said that it’s a lengthy process and they are doing their best to expedite the procedure. “Around six departments are involved in the exercise and the affected families are unnecessarily putting pressure on officials. These procedures often take time and we are doing our best. We have initiated steps to give compensation for landowners immediately,” said the official.