Soon after the State government had decided to hold GPS-based geotagging survey to determine the proposed K-Rail’s (SilverLine) alignment in the wake of strong public resistance against the ambitious semi-high-speed railway project, the K-Rail has decided to hold joint survey in the railway land using the Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) to ascertain the extent of railway land to be required for the project.
There will be no laying of marker stones on the railway land. It is estimated that around 189 hectares of railway land is required for the SilverLine, which promises to take commuters from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod in four hours. Earlier, the project hit air pocket after the attempt by the authorities to put boundary stones on private properties identified along the route was stalled by the residents who feared the project would displace them.
The K-Rail has invited quotations from the agencies to conduct surveys in railway land by using DGPS in Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam, and Kottayam districts.
According to V Ajithkumar, managing director, K-Rail, digital boundary marking of railway land would be carried out first as part of the survey. It would be followed by the marking of the railway land required for the project separately as the railway authorities have sought details of the exact extent of land needed for the project.
Both digital geotagging of private and railway land would be completed in two-three months. After the geotagging and social impact study, for which the various District Collectors issued notification, a detailed report would be submitted to the Centre.
It is expected that the Centre would take a call on granting the final approval for the project only after this, according to officials. The new tender document has also insisted that all the field works regarding the survey shall be conducted in the presence of Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL) and Southern Railway officials.
