A major hurdle that had halted the construction of a four-lane road over bridge (ROB) along NH27 over a railway crossing in Maynaguri block of Jalpaiguri district for around four years was removed on Monday at a meeting convened by the district administration.
From Tuesday, work on the ROB and the approach road will commence , administrative officials said.
In 2017, construction of the ROB had started at Ulladabri of Maynaguri, through which the rail track that connects New Mal station with Changrabandha, passes.
However, local residents, who had parted with their land for the four-lane road — the east west corridor that connects Porbandar of Gujarat with Silchar of Assam — resorted to protests and halted the work, demanding an increase in compensation.
The aggrieved land owners also filed a case against the National Highways Authority of India, prompting the agency to file another case against them.
“For many years now, we have been discussing the issue. Altogether, 186 people provided 22 acres of land for the construction of the ROB and the approach roads. Today, we had a meeting where it was decided that every land owner would receive compensation ranging from Rs 1.09 lakh to Rs 1.63 lakh per decimal of land, depending on the land’s nature. We have agreed to it and from tomorrow, work will start,” said Pradip Roy, a representative of an association of the land owners of Ulladabri.
He said the case was pending with Calcutta High Court where a decision would be made on the interest that they would receive on the compensation and the amount of solatium.
In Jalpaiguri district, work on the four-lane highway has completed in most of the stretches, barring some locations in Maynaguri and Dhupguri blocks.
Sources in the administration said from Tuesday, the compensation would be transferred to the bank accounts of the land owners.
“It is good that the issue has been resolved. The NHAI will resume construction work from tomorrow. The land owners have promised complete cooperation for early completion of the project,” said Moumita Godara Basu, the district magistrate of Jalpaiguri.
