Sabarimala airport should not be abandoned unimplemented

It is not justifiable that any development related to Sabarimala - be it an airport or railway line- is delayed for many years due to various reasons. If it were in any other state, these projects, which will be a huge financial asset to the government exchequer, would have been implemented without this much delay. When the airport comes to Sabarimala and the train reaches Erumeli, the largest number of people who deboard there will be from other states and abroad. Sabarimala will become the pilgrimage centre that generates the most income in India. As a result, comprehensive development of the hilly areas will be possible and an opportunity will arise for the youth to earn a living by doing various jobs in their own place of birth.

Although everyone knows this, there are continuous lapses on the part of the authorities in preparing and implementing projects related to the development of Sabarimala. These projects should have been realised long ago if they were implemented flawlessly and if authorities had moved forward with sincerity without giving priority to external interests. The High Court single bench has invalidated the preliminary notification to acquire land for the Sabarimala airport. The government had issued a preliminary notification on April 25 to inform if there was any objection, prior to the acquisition of 2570 acres of land, which includes Cheruvally Estate in Manimala Village, Erumeli and adjacent areas, for the Sabarimala Greenfield Airport. This notification was quashed by the High Court. The related reports as part of this have also been partially quashed.

Justice C Jayachandran's order was based on the assessment that the government has failed to clarify why it is acquiring 2570 acres of land for Sabarimala airport when a minimum of around 1,200 acres is typically sufficient for large airports. Acquiring a little more land for Sabarimala airport is not a misstep because this much land will be needed to provide accommodation for those who will come there in maybe a hundred years. However, the government has the responsibility to convince the public of this, along with the reasons, based on the study report of a committee consisting of high-ranking experts. It did not do so. Therefore, the intervention of the High Court is relevant.

The Secretariat of Kerala had more than enough space when it started functioning. Today, it is in a state of bloat without space to even build a new building. At that time, there were very few obstacles to acquiring most of the available land. Our High Court itself is having to be shifted to another place due to space constraints. Therefore, a little more land coming into the hands of the government as part of a project will not do any harm in the future but rather do only good. The failure to clarify this properly is a failure of the administrative process. Similarly, there were mistakes in conducting the social impact study. The High Court has performed its constitutional duty to examine and correct all these. Therefore, it is necessary to correct the mistakes and move forward with steps to make the Sabarimala airport possible, no matter which government comes to power.