The final 3G notification issued by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for acquisition of land for development of the 44 km-stretch of the National Highway from Karivellur to Pappinissery here has turned the spotlight on Keezhattur once again.
While the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] cited the 3G notification as a proof that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been ‘duping’ Vayalkilikal activists of Keezhattur who agitated against the bypass passing through a paddy field in the village, those who led the protest against the bypass alignment said that the agitation would continue.
Proof of ownership
The 3G notification of November 21, published by the NHAI in various newspapers on Tuesday, has asked landowners to appear before the special tahsildar LA (NHAI), Taliparamba, with documents to prove their ownership on specified dates and time for finalising compensation.
The NH development from Karivellur to Pappinissery includes the proposed Payyannur and Taliparamba bypasses and parts of the Kannur bypass. Defying the CPI(M)’s stand on the issue, local residents of Keezhattur, mostly CPI(M) workers, were up in arms against the alignment of the Taliparamba bypass alleging that the bypass would destroy paddy fields and cause damage to the ecosystem. The BJP had backed the stir by the Vayalkilikal.
“This is the final notification and what remains now is just office work to finalise compensation,” said a senior official attached to the office of the special tahsildar. The compensation procedure would start after fixing the land value, the official said.
The notification is seen as a setback for the Vayalkilikal and the BJP leadership that sought to use the protest against the bypass alignment as a political opportunity to get a foothold in what is a CPI(M) stronghold village. The 3G notification served the CPI(M) district leadership here to accuse the BJP of deceiving Vayalkilikal activists. “The Vayalkilikal activists were duped by the BJP to believe that it could persuade the NHAI to change the bypass alignment,” said CPI(M) district secretary P. Jayarajan at a press conference on Tuesday. The Vayalkilikal should now call off the stir immediately and disband the group, he said.
‘Struggle will continue’
When contacted Suresh Keezhattur, the leader of the agitation, said the latest notification showed that both the CPI(M) and the BJP were on the same side of the corporatisation happening in the country since economic liberalisation. “The Narmada agitation (Narmada Bachao Andolan) was not a success in technical terms, but it was not a failure either,” he said adding that the struggle for the livelihood of the people in the village would continue.
