THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Land acquisition for the much-delayed widening of the 1.5-km-long stretch at Balaramapuram on the Karamana-Kaliyikkavila inter-state highway from Kodinada to Vazhimukku is likely to be completed by the end of February. The stretch is being widened to four lanes.
The revenue department has acquired land from 46 people so far on either side, from Vazhimukku to Thaikkapalli mosque towards Balaramapuram. The department needs to acquire land from 250 more owners until Kodinada from the mosque.
Sources close to the land acquisition division of the district administration said proceedings were moving ahead swiftly and will be wrapped up by February. The Kerala Road Fund Board (KRFB), the executing agency, is likely to float a tender in March, and widening works are expected to begin in April.
Earlier, the state government had proposed an underpass at Balaramapuram to decongest the junction. However, the plan was dropped following stiff opposition from traders. At present, KRFB has been asked to widen the stretch to 30.2m. Special tahsildar (LA, NH) Satheesan S N told TNIE that collection of documents of the remaining land owners is on.
“We are verifying the documents of land owners from Thaikkapalli mosque to Balaramapuram junction. Of the 46 owners, eight have received compensation (market value), while the process is on for the remaining 38. Once the state treasury passes the bills, they will start crediting the money to their bank accounts.,” Satheesan said. He said though acquisition is over till Thaikkapalli mosque, some buildings were not acquired owing to disputes over finalising land and building values.
“So, KRFB has decided to hold off on such cases so that the structural evaluation of the buildings is restarted. However, work is going on at a fast pace, and the acquisition is expected to be completed by February,” Satheesan said.
A KRFB official said once the tender is finalised, widening work will start soon. “While we cannot provide an exact date now, we hope to start the work in April after completing tender proceedings by March 31,” the official said.At Vazhimukku, it is reported a landowner will receive `16 lakh per cent as compensation, with the figure expected to rise for the plot at Balaramapuram junction.
As per the current alignment, land will be acquired via the Old Rajapatha road near Thaikkapalli mosque. Revenue officials noted that there will be minimal land acquisition on the 300-m-long Old Rajapatha stretch, as most of the land is already under the state’s ownership. Only a small portion needs to be acquired from private owners.
The government had decided to drop the plan to build an underpass at Balaramapuram junction at a meeting led by Public Works Minister P A Mohamed Riyas, following recommendations from Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) officials. Initially, KIIFB officials had proposed the underpass and allocated funds for it, but has now revised their stance, opting for a widened junction similar to Pravachambalam-Kodinada road, spanning 30.2m.