Kerala only state to pay 25 pc for land acquisition for NH development: CM Vijayan

Kerala is the only state in the country that has agreed to pay 25 per cent of the cost of land acquisition for National Highway development in the State, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Tuesday.

Chief Minister also added that the state has already handed over Rs 452 crores for this and the road development projects are going to be a milestone in the development of the basic infrastructure of the state, an official release said.

The Chief Minister was speaking at the inauguration of the Thiruvananthapuram NH Bypass on NH 66 (Kazhakoottam - Mukola road) by the Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs, Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday. The Union Minister also laid the foundation stone for seven other National Highway projects in Kerala.

Speaking on the occasion, Gadkari said, "The Mumbai - Kanyakumari Economic Corridor with a length of 1,760 km was being developed as a part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana. The corridor will greatly enable the economic prosperity of the region. As a part of the Economic Corridor, 23 projects with a length of 650 km are being developed in Kerala at an investment of Rs 50,000 crores.

"The corridor traversing the entire length of Kerala from North to South is expected to be the lifeline of Kerala," he added.

He also said that the problems related to land acquisition could be resolved due to the good cooperation of Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan.

"The cost of land acquisition is the highest in Kerala. The bulk of the project cost is required for this. Road development in Kerala will be given due consideration. The performance of this state government in the development of national highways was better than that of the previous government and it was very helpful", he added.

( With inputs from ANI )