Thiruvananthapuram: Pinarayi Vijayan, the chief minister of Kerala, stated that after gaining approval from the federal government, the state would move forward with the Silverline semi-high-speed railway project.
The government hasn't abandoned or frozen the project, according to Vijayan, who also denied the rumours. The Central government, according to Pinarayi, is to blame for the project's delay by putting up barriers for political ends. On Thursday, UDF MLA Roji M John requested an adjournment of the legislative session. He was responding to that request.
After Speaker AN Shamseer rejected the request for an adjournment motion, the opposition staged a walkout. They demanded that the government respond to the issues that affected landowners faced. The government has designated the site for a social impact survey related to the Silverline project, according to the opposition, which prevents the landowners from selling or mortgaging the property.
"The central government has approved the project in principle. They had asked the state government to expedite the land acquisition and other clearances while the arrangements are made with Japan International Cooperation Agency for co-financing. The geotechnical, hydrological, and Comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (CEIA) are underway," he informed the house.
The administration's recent order to redeploy the revenue employees involved in the survey for Silverline was cited by the opposition as evidence that the government was abandoning the project, NIE reported.
The Chief Minister said that the reassignment was done in order to use the officers' services for other tasks while they awaited the central approval for Silverline.
He also explained that there were no issues for proprietors to transact the land because the survey was carried out and yellow stones were just set for a social impact study. He added that the government's notification under Section 11(1) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement Act of 2013 (LARR Act, 2013), is the only step before the land is acquired for a project.
VD Satheesan, the leader of the opposition, was not pleased with the response. He claimed that the survey conducted in accordance with section 4(1) presented the landowners with real challenges. "No national bank or new generation bank will be ready to give loans with the surveyed land as collateral. The government has created trouble for these people by jumping into the project without adequate clearance. The chief minister knows that this project is not going to happen. Even if the centre approves we will not let the project happen, because it will be an environmental and economic disaster for the state," said Satheesan.