THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Decks have been cleared for land acquisition proceedings of the much-awaited Sreekariyam flyover project, which is part of the preparatory works of the upcoming light metro project in the capital, with the district administration deciding to hand over the land to Kerala Rapid Transit Corporation Ltd (KRTL) by November end after completing the acquisition proceedings. Earlier, a section of land owners had decided to move the court seeking hike in compensation and better rehabilitation package. The district administration has already started scrutiny of documents of land owners who surrender their land for the flyover.
The first phase of inspection of documents was completed on Saturday. Some land owners sought extension till September 30 to secure possession certificates for the land and pay pending tax.
Jacob Sanjay John, Deputy Collector (Land acquisition), who leads the acquisition proceedings, told TNIE that the land owners who had rejected the compensation offered can move court, but it will not affect the project’s proceedings.
“Scrutiny of title deeds and other documents related to land to be acquired is on. By October, we will finish scrutiny. Then, we will go ahead with awarding compensation. We expect to complete the whole proceedings by November and hand it over to KRTL by November end, “ he said.
Meanwhile, the land value has been fixed with a negotiated price of Rs 21 lakh per cent for those who surrender their land willingly as soon as possible while the price is Rs 18 lakh per cent for the remaining land owners as per the land acquisition rules on the land value fixed by revenue authorities. The plan is to acquire around 1.34 hectares from 168 private parties to facilitate the construction.
A senior official associated with KRTL said tender proceedings will begin once the land is handed over to KRTL. “As the acquisition proceedings are on, we will wait till the completion. We will start the tender proceedings accordingly,” the official said.