NEW DELHI: In a bid to accelerate railway infrastructure development in Kerala, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, urging the state government to expedite land acquisition for several critical projects.In the letter, a copy of which is available with this newspaper, the Union Minister highlighted that despite substantial financial support from the Centre, progress has been sluggish, delaying the timely execution of key rail development initiatives in the state.Vaishnaw stated, “The Kerala government has acquired only 64 hectares of the 470 hectares required for various rail projects. This limited acquisition has occurred despite the Centre disbursing Rs 2,100 crore to facilitate the process.”Providing project-specific details, Vaishnaw noted that Kalpataru Projects, worth Rs 2,273 crore, are being delayed due to slow land acquisition for the Angamali-Sabarimala new railway line. This project requires a total of 416 hectares of land, but the Kerala government has managed to acquire only 24 hectares, despite the Centre depositing Rs 282 crore specifically for land acquisition.The Union Minister expressed concern that the delay in securing the required land is hampering the progress of this significant project, which aims to enhance connectivity to the Sabarimala temple, a prominent pilgrimage destination in Kerala.
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