KOZHIKODE: The Kodenchery-Kakkadampoyil road, the first completed reach in Kozhikode district of the statewide Hill Highway, will be opened to traffic on Saturday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the 34.3km stretch at the St Sebastian’s HSS ground in Koodaranji.
Built at a cost of Rs 195 crore, the road is 12 metres wide. Drains, provisions for underground cables and pipes, solar lights, and signal system have been set up on either side of the road. Prominent streets along the stretch have bus stops, concrete pavements, and guard rails.
Two bridges at Koombara and Veettippara, in Koodaranji, are also part of the road.
Public Works Minister P A Mohamed Riyas will preside over the inaugural function scheduled to begin at 3pm.
“The next phase of the development of this road is from Kakkadampoyil to Nilambur. The Kodenchery-Kakkadampoyil road, which passes through Kodenchery, Thiruvambady and Koodaranji panchayats, joins the Thiruvambady-Maripuzha road at Pulloorampara, leading to the proposed Anakkampoyil-Kalladi-Meppadi tunnel road,” said Kodenchery panchayat president Alex Thomas.
The Hill Highway, or State Highway 59, stretches from Nandarapadavu in Kasaragod to Parassala in Thiruvananthapuram.
The construction of the highway is being carried out in three reaches in the Thiruvambady constituency, the longest of which is now being inaugurated. The road is expected to provide a huge boost to the agriculture sector in the hilly parts of the district.
Tourism also stands to benefit as the road connects Kakkadampoyil, Iruvanjipuzha in Elanthukadavu where the Malabar River Festival is held, and the Thusharagiri waterfalls. The road passes through an area donated fully by people. Protective walls have been built for those who gave up their land for the reach constructed by the Uralungal Labour Cooperative Society.
Advanced technologies including full-depth reclamation which strengthens the foundation of the road and ensures longer life have been used in the construction of the road, besides improved road surface, markings, and basic safety systems.
The Hill Highway -- passing through 13 districts, Alappuzha being the only exception -- is the longest state highway in Kerala. The Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) is providing financial assistance for the work in 54 reaches. KIIFB has approved Rs 3,593 crore for 793.68 kms of the highway.
While 506.73km of road work has received technical approval, work on 481.13km has been contracted. So far, 166.08km of the Hill Highway has been completed at a cost of Rs 1,288 crore.
The construction of about 250km of the highway is scheduled to be completed by December 2025, the PWD minister said.
