With K-Rail's attempts to plant survey poles getting stalled in various parts of Kerala, K-Rail MD V Ajith Kumar told reporters on Monday that the rooting of survey stones was unrelated to land acquisition.
"We have not started any land acquisition proceedings. This is just preliminary work as part of conducting a social impact assessment and not a step towards land acquisition," Ajith Kumar said. "The land will be acquired only after following all the necessary procedures and full compensation was paid," he added.
He said after the boundary markers were placed a public hearing of affected families would be held to assess the social impact of the project. "A report will be drawn up on the basis of this public hearing, which will then be subjected to a study by an expert committee. The committee will then submit a report to the state government. Only after the government approves the report and the centre gives its final approval for the project will we go ahead with the land acquisition process," the K-Rail MD said.
The MD further said that the placement of boundary markers would be completed in two months. "It is for the police to sort out any obstacles to our work," the MD said. "Wherever the poles have been uprooted, we will restore them," the MD said.
He also justified the placement of the survey poles saying it was the only way to inform the public of the boundaries of the project. "Without these poles, how are people going to know. Showing them just a sketch will not help," the MD said.
After the boundary markers are laid, the MD said the social impact assessment would take three months. He said any delay in the project would be costly. "A year's delay will escalate the cost by Rs 3,500 crore," he said. The official project estimate is Rs 64,000 crore.
The MD contradicted minister Saji Cherian who earlier in the day was highly dismissive of the widely held impression that there was a buffer zone for the project. The minister had said that there was not even a metre of buffer zone for the project.
The MD, however, said that there indeed was a buffer zone of 5 metres on either side, where construction of any sort would be prohibited. In fact, the total buffer zone would be 10 metres but in areas beyond 5 metres construction would be allowed with a no objection certificate. Saji Cherian had earlier said in Alappuzha that there was not even a single metre of buffer zone for the project. "I say this because I have read the DPR in detail," he said.