Minister keeps fingers crossed, Angamaly MLA Roji M John welcomes road

KOCHI: The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is set to invite tenders for identifying the agency to prepare the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the new Angamaly-Aroon NH bypass, to be constructed parallel to the existing bypass, within a fortnight, a senior NHAI official has disclosed. He said that the expected length of the bypass would come to 42 km, a little more than expected. “The thrust of the land acquisition will be to avoid demolition of maximum number of buildings and the alignment would be finalized based on this principle. The bypass will save the vehicles from negotiating the busy stretch from Kalamassery to Kundanoor and thus save time,” said the NHAI official. Reacting to the proposal, PWD Minister Mr G Sudhakaran said that land acquisition is a major challenge for such projects in the state.

“Let NHAI come out with a DPR where the alignment is specified. Then we can discuss land acquisition and other matters,” Mr Sudhakaran said. The NHAI New Delhi office has asked the Thiruvananthapuram regional office to invite tenders for identifying an agency to prepare the DPR. Roji M John, MLA of Angamaly, said that the proposed bypass should start from Karayamparambu junction north of Angamaly town so that congestion at Angamaly town could be lessened. “The Stat Government has already allocated Rs 50 crore for a bypass from Karayamparambu to Angamaly railway station avoiding Angamaly town and this bypass can be made part of the NHAI proposal. Anyway it is a welcome move and it should touch the airport road also so that users can reach airport fast,” Mr Roji said.