The 92 km Mysuru-Kushalnagar four-lane highway has hit a road block due to land acquisition issues that are yet to be resolved.
Though a meeting with multiple agencies and departments involved in the project was held on Sunday, the complexities are immense and it transpired that departments were blaming each other for the delay. The meeting was chaired by Mysuru MP Pratap Simha and Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra was also present, and they were not impressed by the pace of progress displayed by the officials.
Some of the impediments being highlighted by the officials turned out to be the same that were aired in the previous meetings held a few months ago and the Deputy Commissioner took exception to it. Mr. Simha said the entire process has to be expedited to commence the civil works during the current month. But in the absence of environmental clearance the work cannot get started but Mr. Simha said that the NoC from the Ministry of Forests Environment and Climate Change was expected in due course.
The foundation stone for the ₹4130 crore green field project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2023. The land acquisition cost has been pegged at ₹1100 crore and the land required is 547 hectares. But the authorities own only 290 hectares so far. Lack of proper documents with the land owners, litigations over disparity in compensation, etc., was hindering the acquisition process, said Mr. Simha.
