Water World Tourism Company, promoters of Lake Palace Resort, has violated rules and reclaimed paddy fields for construction purposes, reveals a probe report by the Alappuzha District Collector. Transport Minister Thomas Chandy is the non-executive director of the company.
District Collector T.V. Anupama, who submitted the report to the Revenue Department last month, noted that the company had violated the Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act and diluted the Kerala Land Conservancy Act. It says that the resort had constructed a parking lot after reclaiming paddy fields in three survey numbers. The company had been maintaining that the parking lot was on a leased land. But the report says that the land is owned by one Leelama Esow, who is a relative of Mr. Chandy.
The report also notes that company had encroached upon puramboke land and constructed an approach road to the resort by filling paddy fields. It had illegally encroached and filled 65.8 cents of land for the construction of the parking lot and the approach road. Other than this, the course of the rivulets in the area was changed for the construction purpose, reads the report.
Regarding the construction of the 690-metre-long Valiyakulam-Zero jetty road, the report says that the road was built utilising funds sanctioned under the MPLADS of P.J. Kurien, MP, and K.E. Ismail, MP, and the only real beneficiary is the Lake Palace Resort.
The report suggests that the offences committed by the company amount to imprisonment of up to 3 to 5 years and a fine of ₹50,000 under the KLC Act.
Hearing postponed
The Ramankary Judicial First Class Magistrate Court on Monday postponed the hearing of a petition demanding registering of a criminal case against Mr. Chandy, his family and the officers concerned, alleging that 34.68 acres of land belonging to the Devaswom was occupied by the Minister after forging documents.
The court will consider the case on November 30.
