Protest to resume over delay in completion of NH widening

KOZHIKODE: The Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu Road Action Committee is set to launch the fourth phase of their protest demanding authorities concerned to initiate action to complete the widening of national highway 766 (NH 212).
The action committee leaders have decided to block the Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu Road on May 27.
The committee has decided to resume protest as the state government failed to keep their promise regarding disbursal of fund for the widening work.
A convention to proclaim the protest will also be organized by the committee leaders.
The Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu stretch of the NH is one of the worst accident-prone stretches in the district and four lives were claimed on the stretch over the past four months. Flow of vehicles to the civil station and to various hospitals in the city contributes to the heavy flow of vehicles on the stretch.
“Landowners, merchants and others who have either land or building along the national highway are struggling owing to delay in completing the acquisition and other works,” said M P Vasudeven, general secretary of the committee.
The state government in 2008 froze all land and property transactions on the land proposed for the widening work and this is causing mental trauma to many, he added.
A convention of different sections of people who are struggling owing to the delay in commencing the widening work of the NH will be held near Malaparamba housing colony on May 21.
Landowners, merchants, residents’ association leaders, corporation councillors and representatives of various socio-cultural organizations will take part in the protest.
“The committee had started protest four years ago owing to the lackadaisical approach of the government. Repeated protests by the committee, later, forced the government to complete the acquisition of land near major junctions,” said Vasudevan.
An amount of Rs 60 crore was allocated for the junction development work and 38 shops were acquired as part of the move. However, the government and officials are showing lapse in completing the widening work at the earliest, he alleged.
Though finance minister T M Thomas Isaac and PWD minister G Sudhakaran had assured to include the work of Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu Road under the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), the project was not included in the first two meetings of the KIIFB, the action committee leaders pointed out.
The widening of the road was not even mentioned in the state budget, the action committee leaders said. The action committee president, M G S Narayanan, and Gandhian Thayattu Balan will lead the protest programmes.
Mayor Thottathil Raveendra, M K Raghavan MP and others will participate in the protest programmes.