MYSURU: Hours after Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari announced that works on the proposed 23.6 km long Shiradi tunnel road project in Sakaleshapur of Hassan district will be taken up at the earliest to cut travel time between Bengaluru and Mangaluru, activists urged him to reconsider the project.
On Saturday the minister said land acquisition for the Rs 10,000 crore project is in progress.
Activist AN Yellappa Reddy said the central government should reconsider this project as it will have a devastating effect on the entire stretch of the Western Ghats region. “Yettinahole project has already caused huge damage which can’t be reversed. This tunnel road project is not required at all. The project will cause permanent damage to this sensitive eco zone. The central and state governments must not implement any new projects in this region,” he said.
“Indian economy is in bad shape. The money can be utilised in a sensible manner. Who wants this project?” he added.
Local MLA HK Kumaraswamy from JD(S) said, this project will further worsen the man-animal conflict in this region. “The Sakaleshpura stretch of the Bengaluru-Mangaluru National Highway is good. At one side the Centre is implementing the Rs 700 crore concrete road works on this stretch and 20% of the work is already completed. In such a scenario, this project is not required for the vehicle movement,” he said.
“The projects should be people centric and not government centric. The locals don’t want this project as it will affect their livelihood and day-to-day life in many ways,” he said.
Joseph Hoover, member, state wildlife board said, “The Western Ghats are attacked from all the sides. New projects proposed in this region will cause a huge damage to our ecosystem. No one knows why Gadkari is showing such interest in these kinds of destructive projects.”