Land acquisition for Pathankot-Mandi road not notified, Palampur area residents live in uncertainty

Residents of areas adjoining Palampur are living in uncertainty due to the delay in the notification of the acquisition of land for the widening of the Pathankot-Mandi road beyond Paror in Kangra district to four lanes. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has acquired land for the widening of the Pathankot-Mandi road till Paror. Beyond that the notification for land acquisition was yet to be issued. The areas beyond Paror where land was yet to be acquired fall in the Palampur, Sullah, Jaisinghpur and Baijnath Assembly constituencies of Kangra district.

The residents of these constituencies say that the work on the Pathankot-Mandi road road widening project had started about four years ago. Since then they had not been able to do anything on their land along the road as they were not sure which land the NHAI would acquire for the project.

Satish Sharma, a resident of Panchrukhi near Palampur district, says, “We have been hearing for the past four years that the four-lane road will pass through our village. The NHAI is yet to finalise the alignment of the four-lane road beyond Paror and as a result, people are living in uncertainty. People are not being able to construct houses or do business on their land fearing that the NHAI may acquire it. We have requested the NHAI to finalise the alignment of the road and acquire land so that we do not live in uncertainty.”

Shiv Kumar Sharma, a resident of Palampur, says that the NHAI should expedite the work on the road project. At many stretches, this road has just one or two lanes. Traffic rush on the road has increased, leading to jams, he adds.

Vikas Surjewala, NHAI Project Director for the Pathankot-Mandi road, says that the tender for the appointment of a consultant for finalising the alignment of the road beyond Paror is in the final stage. It may take a few months before a consultant is appointed and the alignment of the Pathankot-Mandi road beyond Paror is finalised. Once the detailed project report for the four-lane road beyond Paror is finalised, the NHAI will initiate the process for land acquisition, he adds.