http://oheraldo.in/node/9667
Land acquired for western bypass BY HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, FEB 9 — After four long years, the process to acquire around 4.48 lakh sq mt of land for the proposed Margao western bypass stands finally completed. But, officials in the know says it will take some more years before the bypass - linking Navelim to Nuvem — becomes a reality. Herald understands that the Land Acquisition Officer (LAO) has passed an award to the tune of Rs 1.63 crore to acquire the land and the process to hand over the acquired land to the National Highways has got underway. The land acquisition process was started way back in December 2001 for the western bypass, which was mooted to divert heavy traffic from entering the city. The process, however, got bogged down in between given the magnitude of the exercise, only to be vigorously pursued two years back. The bypass begins at Navelim near Rosary Auto Centre and passes through the villages of Telaulim, Benaulim, Seraulim and culminates behind Nuvem church. The original proposal was to connect the bypass to the main road near Carmel College, Nuvem with a link road, but plans are now afoot to connect the bypass at Nuvem directly to the Verna bypass to avoid the congested areas between Nuvem and Verna. According to information, the LAO has awarded compensation of Rs 19 lakhs as compensation for loss of coconut trees and Rs 17 lakh for residential houses and compound walls coming within the bypass alignment. High ranking PWD officials say the NH No 17 has a task cut out for them given the magnitude of the exercise, saying the work on the bypass can be expedited by allotting the works to various agencies. -- Peace be with you! Gabe Menezes. London, England
