The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Delay in land transfer likely to affect road works

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 27, 2006

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Delay in land transfer likely to affect road works

T. Nandakumar

Work on six of the 12 road corridors yet to begin

Thiruvananthapuram: Procedural wrangles between Government departments and delay in land acquisition have bogged down the City Roads Improvement Project, threatening to upset the work schedule and push up costs.

Of the 44 km of roads identified for the project, only 11 km have been handed over to Thiruvananthapuram Road Development Company Ltd. (TRDCL). Project managers are concerned over the prospect of cost escalation if the completion schedule is stretched beyond reasonable limits.

The work on several key roads is held up by the failure to transfer land in time.

"Two years after the scheme was launched, work on six of the 12 road corridors has not even begun, while on several other stretches; the widening had to be taken up in small stretches. At the current rate, the project may well spill over beyond the deadline, adding several crores to the cost," says an official.

By the initial cut-off date of December 2004, the Government had delivered only 6 km of roads. In the 15 months since then, it could transfer only five more km. The failure to hand over land for bus bays has affected the progress of work on several stretches like the Vellayambalam- Kowdiar road. The construction of the second flyover at Mele Pazhavangady has not commenced.

Officials admit that Government departments are more reluctant to part with the land in their possession than private institutions and individuals.

They point out that acquisition proceedings are mostly stalled by objections from middle-level and clerical staff, even after department heads have issued orders. In May last year, at a high-level meeting, the then Chief Secretary Palat Mohandas had directed all the departments to accelerate the transfer of land for the roads project. But despite standing orders, most of the departments have dragged their feet on the issue.

Outdated survey methods have also contributed to the delay. "At a time when advanced techniques like theodolite survey and the computerised total station are available, the Survey Department still relies on the obsolete chain survey method," says an official.

In commercial areas, the rehabilitation of traders has bogged down the acquisition. Construction managers are frustrated by the lengthy process involved in realigning utility lines such as sewerage pipes and electric cables.

Project supervisors maintain that the lack of adequate surveyors, diversion of staff for other projects and the frequent transfer of officials in the Revenue Department are largely responsible for the delay in land acquisition.

Advisor to the Government on externally funded projects Babu Jacob said the land acquisition for the roads project was in progress.

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