Title - Metro land acquisition on

Land acquisition for the preliminary works of the Kochi Metro Rail is expected to be over by November, while that for building stations will be over by February.The preliminary works include the two overbridges being constructed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and the widening of three arterial roads — M.G. Road and the Town Hall-Madhava Pharmacy Junction and the Jos Junction-South Railway Station stretches.The area of land required for the metro stations is yet to be assessed. This is mainly because the DMRC’s detailed project report does not insist on parking lots at the stations, while Kochi Metro Rail Ltd. (KMRL) has been advocating them close to stations.Banerji and M.G. Roads will be widened to 22 metres, while the road leading to the South railway station will have a width of 18 metres. For this, around 56 cents of land will be acquired on Banerji Road (the DMRC has awarded the contract to widen the road), nine cents on M.G. Road and 37.5 cents for the South station’s approach road.

Metro village
District Collector P I Sheik Pareed said 32 hectares of land was required for the metro rail project. “The survey for land acquisition is over. The stations from Aluva to Edapally have been finalised. Over 55 more hectares (of fallow land) is expected to be acquired at Muttom to set up a metro village, near the proposed coach-maintenance yard.”

The proposal is to develop a village, or rather a mini township, having housing units for Kochi metro’s employees and also commercial complexes from which revenue can be generated to augment the metro’s revenue. Though the State-level expert committee’s approval is awaited for land acquisition, the Revenue Department can take possession of properties by paying 80 per cent of the compensation amount.

December had earlier been fixed as the deadline to complete the land acquisition process for the metro. “We hope to take possession of all the land required, by February. Fifteen of the 32 hectares of land to be acquired is government land,” said KMRL sources.

Land acquisition teams headed by three special tahsildars are engaged in acquiring land. Owners of prime land located in the commercial hub located on the western side of city will be given Rs 52 lakh per cent, while lesser amounts will be paid to others. The total cost of land will be assessed only after a clear picture emerges about the scale of land needed for metro stations.

Land might also have to be acquired at a few places along the Aluva-Edapally National Highway stretch and further west on the metro’s alignment, to ensure steady flow of vehicles when piling and related works begin for the metro projectThe four-laning of the narrow Vytilla-Pettah Road is suffering delays because a few land owners are opposed to even the 26-metre width proposed in some places, a PWD official said.