Metro agency looks forward to handover of Kakkanad land

KMRL is prepared to begin work on the metro project at Kakkanad as soon as the land is formally assigned to it, say managing director A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish.

KMRL is prepared to begin work on the metro project at Kakkanad as soon as the land is formally assigned to it, say managing director A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish.   | Photo Credit: H_Vibhu

The area now houses living quarters of government employees

Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) expects the land at Kakkanad, which comprises also the area that houses the living quarters of State government employees, to be handed over to it soon.

KMRL managing director A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish said the land had not been formally handed over to KMRL by the Public Works Department (PWD) and expressed hope that the formalities would be completed soon.

He added that the metro agency was prepared to begin work on the project at Kakkanad as soon as the land was formally assigned to it. KMRL had proposed building a business centre at Kakkanad as well as reconstructing the government servants’ living quarters after the land was assigned to it.

The government had issued the sanction order in March 2013 on the assignment of land available with the PWD at Kakkanad.

The metro agency had also proposed to build multi-storey quarters for government servants after the demolition of the present quarters. The Government Order had said that of the total of 33 acres, an extent of 17.31 acres would be assigned on registry to KMRL after realising the market value by invoking Rule 21 (ii) of the Assignment of Land Within the Municipal and Corporation Areas Rules 1995.

The order said KMRL would construct a multi-storey housing complex equivalent to the number of government servants’ quarters in use on the remaining 15.68 acres.

The expenditure borne by KMRL for reconstructing the government servants’ quarters will be adjusted against the cost of the land to be paid by the agency to the State government.