Residents want administration to act on land acquisition

KOCHI: With the Kerala High Court directing Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and the state government to complete the construction of Pachalam railway overbridge (ROB) within six months, local residents are hoping the district administration would complete the land acquisition process quickly. The Pachalam ROB action council welcomed the high court order and demanded the administration to immediately compensate people who will lose their land, houses and commercial spaces for the project.
"In fact, DMRC launched the construction work of ROB on March 4. It took almost six months for the state government to issue an order to carry out the land acquisition process. The order was issued on August 20. The Metro authority has made it clear that they would complete the work in six months after the administration acquires required land," said K G Panicker of the action council. Citing past events, he said that any delay in compensating land owners and rehabilitating tenants would adversely affect the project.
Commenting on concerns raised by local residents, the district administration said that three land owners have already handed over their property for the project. The district level purchase committee (DLPC) has fixed the land value at Rs 14 lakh per cent. "The district collector has agreed to compensate land owners as per the new Land Acquisition Act, 2013 (Central act). Initially, 80% of the money will be given to them. The remaining 20% will be handed over later. The collector will soon hold a meeting of tenants and settle disputes with them," said deputy collector Shobana P.
Meanwhile, DMRC reiterated that they would complete the work within the stipulated time. DMRC's spokesperson pointed to the agency's track record in completing works on time. "Once the land is handed over to us, we can complete the project in the set time frame," he said.