K-Rail Silverline project not formally approved yet: Central government to Kerala High Court

The Central Government on Thursday informed the Kerala High Court that the K-Rail (Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited) Silverline Project has not been formally approved by it yet [Muralikrishnan v State of Kerala].Justice Devan Ramachandran had previously asked the Central government to clarify its stance on the project and whether it had been formally approved or had only received an in-principle nod. Today, Assistant Solicitor General of India S Manu informed the Court that a final decision with respect to the project has not yet been taken and that its further consideration is possible only after the Detailed Project Report (DPR) is properly examined, financial viability assessed and apprised by NITI Aayog and Ministry of Finance..The Court recorded that the DPR has been placed by the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL) before the Railway Board and that the State has been advised by the Board to provide detailed technical documents, such as 'alignment plan, particulars of railway land and private land, crossing over existing railway network, duly depicting affected railway assets through Zonal Railway for detailed examination of the project', so as to arrive at a conclusion. .The Court was hearing a batch of petitions challenging the steps taken by the State in relation to the project and seeking to restrain all pre-investment activities including land acquisition. During one of the previous hearings, that State government had submitted that it is complying with the Kerala Survey and Boundaries Act, 1961 (the Act) or the Kerala Survey and Boundaries Rules, 1964 (the Rules).Today, the Court noted that going by the Government Orders passed in the last few months, a DPR and alignment of the project have already been prepared by an Agency.Government Pleader TB Hood explained that this was done based on an 'Aerial Survey' and not a physical survey.However, the Court pointed out that going by the Right to Fair Compensation Act, an action for acquisition will have to follow the mandatory statutory scheme, which, in fact, begins effectively with a notification which the State confirmed has been done in several districts. It, therefore, directed the State Government to file an affidavit with clarifications "particularly as to the manner in which the DPR was prepared; the steps- including for survey - conducted before the DPR was settled; whether a DPR could have been prepared without a proper physical survey; and as to the impact of Sections 4 and 12 of the 'Fair Compensation Act' on the entire process, before finally answering the various contentions regarding the survey being presently being carried on".K- Rail is a joint venture company under the Government of Kerala and Ministry of Railways, Government of India set up for complementing Indian Railways in augmenting the railway infrastructure within the State of Kerala.The Silverline Project was recommended by K- Rail for development of a 529.45 km semi high speed rail corridor connecting the State's northern most and southern most districts (Kasaragod and Thiruvananthapuram). The project is expected to cost the public exchequer over ₹60,000 crores..[Read Order]