Kozhikode: Despite acquiring the land required for widening the 8.4-kilometre stretch from Mananchira to Vellimadukunnu and allocating funds for the project, a last-minute decision to wind up the road development work at Malapparambu has left the public in a state of shock.

Allegations of sabotage are now being raised, particularly over the decision to split the long-awaited Mananchira–Vellimadukunnu road development project, once touted as a major infrastructure initiative in the district headquarters, into two phases at the eleventh hour. What has deepened the suspicion is that this decision came at the final stage of commencing construction, with no such plans declared earlier, either during the project announcement or the land acquisition process.

From the outset, the project was announced as a single-phase development. The land was acquired and the disbursal of compensation to landowners too has been completed.

The issue of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) ownership over the Malapparambu–Vellimadukunnu stretch was never raised at any point during the project's 18-year history. Initially, the explanation offered was that the three-kilometre segment from Malapparambu to Vellimadukunnu was excluded from the scope of the project, as the NHAI had plans to construct NH 766 from Malapparambu onward.

In fact, the project has faced repeated setbacks, with attempts to sabotage it from the time of its announcement. At one stage, even the official files related to the project went missing. These documents surfaced only after local residents formed an action council and launched strong protests. Now, the public fears that a similar sabotage attempt may be underway once again.

Although ₹137.4 crore was allocated for the entire project, the Public Works Department is now moving forward with developing only the Mananchira–Malapparambu stretch. The cost of constructing this portion, which has already been tendered, is fixed at ₹81 crore.

The remaining 3.3-kilometre stretch from Malapparambu to Vellimadukunnu, now pushed to a second phase, is estimated to cost just ₹42 crore. Still, construction has been indefinitely postponed on the grounds that this section falls under the NHAI’s jurisdiction and their permission has not yet received.

As a result, local residents who handed over their houses and commercial establishments for road development and have patiently waited for 18 years, are now left disheartened.