Phase II of the Kochi-Mangaluru natural gas pipeline project executed by GAIL India is complete, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan says in a Facebook (FB) post.
The State government has given full compensation for the acquired land to all the people who had proved their rights over the land in possession as part of the 514-km-long pipeline project. Those who failed to produce the documents to prove their rights over the land will be given compensation upon producing the documents. The State government had earmarked ₹404 crore for the land acquisition of the project and distributed ₹372 crore as compensation so far.
There has been a big campaign against the project that provides gas to all the households at reasonable rates. However, all the efforts to turn a large number of people against the project failed to yield any results at the end of the day. The State could alleviate the apprehensions of the people by providing good compensation to all deserving people, he says.
The project, first conceived as impossible to execute but billed as a game changer in the development of the State, has been implemented by the State government with the support of the people, says Mr. Vijayan, while urging the people to follow the same model for the development of the State by standing together.
The natural gas pipeline, launched in 2009 at an estimated cost of ₹2,915 crore, was to be commissioned in 2014. But it got delayed due to the opposition of a section of people on safety and commercial grounds, resulting in cost overrun of the project.
