Mangaluru: Karnataka HC stays construction work on Harekala-Adyar dam, next hearing on Dec 16

Mangaluru, Dec 14: The High Court of Karnataka has stayed the construction work on the Harekala-Adyar vented dam-cum-bridge with immediate effect as land acquisition had not been undertaken and landowners were not paid compensation. The court has also ordered to maintain the status quo on further construction activity until further orders.
Construction of the Harekala-Adyar vented dam-cum-bridge was taken up by the Minor Irrigation and Groundwater Development Department in 2020 at a cost of Rs 215.62 crore after tenders were awarded.Construction work on the bridge has been completed. However, due to land acquisition issues at two locations that join the road, the vented dam-cum-bridge is yet to be inaugurated. Meanwhile, landowners living in the vicinity including Kadenja Mohandas Rai along with five others filed a complaint under 24402/2022 with the High Court of Karnataka. The advertisement released by the Department in a newspaper stated that 100 acres of land in the surrounding areas is likely to be submerged following the construction of the vented dam-cum-bridge. The ad also said that the land acquisition process would commence soon while requesting the cooperation of the locals.However, with the construction work almost over so far no notices have been served or no information has been made available on the land acquisition process to the land owners. Mohandas Rai had sought information on the matter about three months back but he has so far got no information about the compensation or the land acquisition process. Meanwhile, the department has arbitrarily laid survey stones on the construction site. The case will come up for next hearing on December 16 and until then the High Court of Karnataka has ordered a status quo on the construction work.