The work on widening the bottleneck at Parkala on the Malpe-Tirthahalli National Highway 169A here is likely to start in mid-November meeting a long-pending demand. This bottleneck road in Parkala is just 5.5 m wide and about 900 m long. At present, heavy vehicles and buses struggle to get through this bottleneck, especially when two trucks or two buses are moving in the opposite direction.
This portion is included in the work to widen the 9.2-km stretch from Adiudupi to Parkala in the city, which is under way at a cost of ₹ 98.46 crore.
According to sources in the National Highways Division of Public Works Department, which is overseeing this work, when widened, this bottleneck would be 30 m wide, which is about six times the present width (that is 15 metres on either side from the centre line). There would be proper concrete drains on either sides of the widened road.
The widening work in some areas, including this one, was held up due to land acquisition issues. However, Special Land Acquisition Officers (SLOs) held public hearing on these issues here last month. They went through the land records of over 100 owners in this and other areas on the Adiudupi-Parkala stretch.
The next step is to carry out a joint measurement or survey of the areas where the road will be widened by the staff of the SLO office, surveyors from the Additional Director of Land Records office, officers from the National Highways Department and owners of property.
After property owners give their consent, compensation would be released to them. After compensation is released, the demolition of structures by the side of the road will start, sources said.
This joint measurement will begin by end of this month and it is expected to be completed by the end of October. The release of compensation will take about a fortnight. The widening work on this stretch could start in mid-November. “Once started, the work will be completed in a month, provided there are no obstructions,” said an officer involved in the work.
One of the obstructions could be cutting of trees. Some environmentalists have protested against it. But at least 85 of the 140 trees marked would have to be felled, the sources said.