THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The preliminary land acquisition proceedings of the much-touted coastal highway project connecting Thiruvananthapuram and Kasaragod have begun. As part of it, the demarcation of land using pink stones has started in a few districts. The proposed 623-km coastal highway with a width of 14 m starts from Pozhiyoor in Thiruvananthapuram district and ends at Kunjathoor near Thalapady in Kasaragod district.
The Kerala Road Fund Board project management unit (KRFB-PMU) is entrusted with the construction of 468 km, while the remaining work will be done by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) under the Bharat Mala Pariyojana Scheme. The revenue department decided to lay pink stones as yellow stones have already been laid for demarcating the boundaries along the stretch that comes under the coastal regulation zone.
Former PWD minister G Sudhakaran inaugurated the work on the first stretch of the highway in Malappuram on March 10, 2019. It was expected to be completed in 2022. Further proceedings were halted due to stiff opposition from landowners. However, the project has been revived after two years of the pandemic.
Dinky D’Cruz, chief engineer, KRFB-PMU, told TNIE that demarcation of land is under way in seven out of thirty-three reaches. “The preliminary proceedings began last month. The revenue department has issued a 6(1) notification in this regard. 6(1) notification refers to the laying of stones as part of private land demarcation. The tender proceedings for selecting the contractor for laying demarcation stones have been completed. The acquisition proceedings will be carried out by assigning land acquisition (LA) officers in each district. But the resettlement and rehabilitation package for landowners has not been finalised. “The Coastal Area Development Authority is doing it,” she said.
The highway will run parallel to the coast. The state government and KRFB plan to complete land acquisition in two years. The draft of the detailed project report (DPR) has been finalised, and the project is estimated to cost Rs 6,500 crore.
The state government has given approval for the alignment prepared by the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre in 2017. However, the alignment was later changed due to opposition from the residents, especially in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts. The coastal highway project is expected to be implemented in three phases. The highway passes through Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod districts.