The district administration is getting ready to conduct a Social Impact Assessment study for the proposed flyover at Sreekaryam as mandated by the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act.
The study is being taken up as the physical demarcation of the land needed for the flyover has been completed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the turnkey consultant for the interim works of the ₹4,219-crore Light Metro project from Technocity to Karamana.
The study, to be completed in six months as per the Act, will look into whether the proposed land acquisition serves public purpose, the number of families to be displaced, extent of lands public and private, houses, settlement and other common properties to be affected and whether the extent of land proposed is the bare minimum needed.
Official sources told The Hindu that stones would be laid to demarcate boundaries. By reducing the overall depth of the beams of the proposed 535-m-long four-lane flyover along the NH 66, the length had been reduced by 85 m.
Thus, land to be acquired for the flyover that will also accommodate the proposed light metro had been reduced from the initial 4.91 acres to 3.28 acres. With reduction in the length, the cost of the flyover at Sreekaryam will also come down from the estimated ₹135.37 crore.
Land acquisition
The move is also seen as a step to pacify the local people and the traders in the busy junction to cooperate with the land acquisition move. The Kerala Rapid Transit Corporation Ltd. (KRTL), the SPV set up to execute the Light Metro project, is also in touch with the local people to bring clarity on the proposed development.
Minister for Cooperation and Tourism Kadakampally Surendran, the local legislator, held a meeting with the project officials recently work out ways to expedite the work on the flyover. In all, 2.11 ha is needed for the four flyovers, including Thampanoor, on the 21.8-km corridor. Already, the government has given approval to the Revenue Department for negotiated purchase.
