A five-member high-level committee headed by the Chief Secretary is to be set up to expedite development of National Highway stretches in Kerala into four-lane carriageways of 45 metre.
This was communicated by the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy during the discussions with the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi on Tuesday. The committee will have Secretaries of Public Works Department, Revenue and officials of the National Highway Authority of India.
The Chief Minister, who was accompanied by Minister for Public Works, V. K. Ebrahim Kunju, informed the Minister that the State was ready to take up the development of the NH 66 with 45 metre as suggested by NHAI. The State is ready to pay more than the market rate to the land being acquired for development of NH stretches in the ratio of 1:4 in city and 1:2 in rural areas.
NH links will be provided to the upcoming fourth international airport of the State at Kannur near Mattannur and to the Vizhinjam International Multipurpose deepwater seaport project in Thiruvananthapuram.
Mr. Gadkari, who also holds the Shipping portfolio, informed the Chief Minister that the request of the State for relaxation of Cabotage Law for the Vizhinjam seaport has been forwarded to the office of the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
