Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala’s ambitious National Highway development plans have hit a roadblock with the central government putting the project on hold citing cost escalation.

According to central authorities, the average cost of developing one kilometre of NH stretch into a four-lane road in Kerala is much higher compared to the other states.

The initial estimate prepared by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) for the development of the 39-km Thalapady-Chengala corridor and the 48-km Chengala-Kalikadavu stretch in Kasaragod district was Rs 42 crore per kilometre. The estimate was revised to Rs 32 crore per km after the proposal failed to get the nod from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The project is awaiting final clearance even months after the revision of the estimate.

The project ran into trouble at a time when land acquisition procedures were in full swing in all the districts for the widening of the 590-km Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram National Highway corridor. The Centre’s decision came as a big blow for the state government which was aiming to complete four/six-laning of National Highway 66 by December 2020. The Centre had earlier promised to provide sufficient funds to the state for land acquisition.

The proposal to upgrade the two stretches in Kasaragod was submitted to the Union Ministry for Road Transport and Highways in January. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, during his visit to Kochi in April, had assured the chief minister that the required funds would be released at the earliest.

Following delay in the issue of required clearances, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Minister for Public Works G Sudhakaran had written to the Centre to expedite the process to grant approval to the proposal. However, the file has not been cleared.

The state government had informed the Centre that the land acquisition costs would be much higher in Kerala due to the state’s unique geographical features and high population density. As a result, the project requires construction of several flyovers, subways and culverts. It was also pointed out that the Centre had earlier allotted Rs 40 crore per kilometre for widening NH stretches in Bengaluru and a bypass in Kozhikode.