KANNUR: As the public sector GAIL (India) Ltd. is all set to resume work on laying the natural gas pipeline in the Malabar region, the project has drawn mixed response, with residents of areas through which the proposed pipeline will pass through reiterating their concerns amid the hope that the compensation package from the government and efforts to clear people’s safety concerns can smoothen the way for the project in the district.
The 508-km-long pipeline from Kochi to Mangaluru passes through a stretch of 82 km in the district, covering Panur, Koothuparamba, Dharmadam, and Taliparamba constituencies. The proposed pipeline project in the district has remained stalled, as elsewhere, thanks to protests by local residents whose land has been identified for laying the pipeline.
As the authorities have kick-started efforts to make the pipeline project a reality, the protesting residents here have backed down from their earlier stand that they would not allow the pipeline which, they said, posed safety threats.
“Our demand now is that the entire land required for laying the pipeline should be acquired by paying full compensation for the land and offering rehabilitation as is done for other infrastructure projects,” said A. Gopalan, chairman of Gas Pipeline Victims’ Forum in the district. A resident of Karimbam near Taliparamba, he said under the Petroleum and Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Rights of User in Land) Act, 1962, the land was being taken over by GAIL (India) Ltd. under the right of way rules by paying only 10% of the land value.
The forum also wanted the company to give jobs to members of the families affected by land takeover. It also wanted rehabilitation initiatives for them. GAIL officials had announced a few months ago that the compensation fixed for laying the pipeline was ₹32 crore, which included ₹20 crore for loss of crops.
When contacted, Taliparamba MLA James Mathew told The Hindu that the pipeline project in the district was unlikely to face any major hassles from residents as the route identified for the project had avoided areas with houses and other buildings. “The right of way rules under which the land is being taken over for pipeline laying allows its owners to use it for cultivation,” he added.
Residents, whose land is being taken over for the project, feel that incidents of gas pipeline bursts in the past have heightened their fears about the safety risks of the pipeline that passes through their land. GAIL officials had attended officials meetings here to convince them that there was no possibility of any mishap as the project involved all safety measures.
