An
uncertainty over whether to acquire an additional 11.59 acres for the
proposed bus stand project at Pumpwell in addition to the 7.23 acres
available now appears to have ended for the time being with a
decision-making committee of Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) dropping
the move.

The Standing Committee for Town Planning and Improvement
in its meeting on July 18 decided not to acquire additional land. The
council in its meeting on June 30, 2009, had resolved to acquire the
additional land in the second phase.

A corporation official said
the Land Acquisition Officer had asked the corporation to initially
deposit Rs. 19 crore for acquiring the land. The corporation had not
deposited the amount as there was no money. Hence, the proposal had come
to a standstill.

Chairman of the standing committee, Abdul Rauf,
said the project consultant had informed that there was no need for the
land now. According to an estimate, about Rs. 40 crore was required to
acquire the land, and the civic body did not have it at present.

According
to Keshava, councillor, Maroli ward, compensation would have to be
given to about 60 persons. He said that as the corporation had
“reserved” its decision on acquiring land, property owners were not
getting licences from the corporation and the Mangaluru Urban
Development Authority (MUDA) for building new houses. They were unable
to sell their properties. A clarity was needed on whether the
corporation required the additional land or not for the project.

Mr. Rauf said the project design was being prepared taking into account the extent of the land available now (7.23 acre).

Premananda
Shetty, BJP councillor, said the committee has taken a hasty decision.
Considering the growth of the city, the matter should have been
discussed in the council, MLAs and officials. When the project was
conceptualised five years ago, it had been discussed to develop the
Pumpwell area as a transportation hub. The corporation required land for
the visionary project.