Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 20 (SocialNews.XYZ) Kerala will approach the Supreme Court against its recent order restricting construction along national highways, Public Works Minister P.K. Basheer said on Thursday, arguing that the directive is impractical in a densely populated state where land is scarce, and thousands of homes and businesses could be affected by it.
The Supreme Court has directed that construction of residential buildings should not be permitted within 40 metres and commercial establishments within 75 metres on either side of the centre line of national highways.
The order also envisages keeping additional land vacant for service roads and adjoining areas.
"Given Kerala’s special circumstances, it is not possible to leave such large stretches of land free for construction. It is not practical. Kerala will directly place its concerns before the Supreme Court. The state government will take a clear and firm stand on the matter,” Basheer said.
The Supreme Court issued the directive in a suo motu case following a road accident in North India in which several people were killed.
The court's directions were aimed at regulating access to national highways and improving road safety.
Basheer, however, said the circumstances in Kerala were fundamentally different from those that led to the court's intervention.
In the case that prompted the proceedings, vehicles could reportedly enter the national highway from various points along the service road.
The access system was subsequently modified, including in Kerala, with highway entry and exit being restricted to designated points.
Under the present system, vehicles cannot freely enter the national highway from every point along the service road, and access is controlled through specified entry and exit locations.
The minister therefore argued that the accident risks cited in the case before the Supreme Court do not arise in Kerala in the same manner.
The government is also expected to highlight Kerala's unusually high population density and limited availability of land compared with most other states.
Imposing a blanket restriction of the kind ordered by the court, the minister said, could have serious consequences for property owners along the length of the state.
If the directive remains unchanged, hundreds of acres of land belonging to private owners and thousands of houses and commercial establishments from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram could be affected, Basheer said.
The issue assumes added importance as construction work on the six-laning of National Highway 66 is progressing across Kerala.
The minister also warned that several new projects recommended by the National Highways Authority of India could be affected by the order.
Kerala will therefore seek appropriate relief from the Supreme Court, while maintaining that highway safety can be ensured without imposing uniform restrictions that fail to take into account the state's unique geographical and demographic conditions.
Source: IANS
About Gopi
Gopi Adusumilli is a Programmer. He is the editor of SocialNews.XYZ and President of AGK Fire Inc.
He enjoys designing websites, developing mobile applications and publishing news articles on current events from various authenticated news sources.
When it comes to writing he likes to write about current world politics and Indian Movies. His future plans include developing SocialNews.XYZ into a News website that has no bias or judgment towards any.
He can be reached at gopi@socialnews.xyz