No funds for Wayanad's Padinjarathara–Poozhithode Road in state budget; Action Council to hold protest march from Feb 7

Wayanad: The People's Action Council for the incomplete Padinjarathara–Poozhithode Road, an alternative to the Thamarassery Ghat Road, will organise a protest march (padayatra) and a one-day satyagraha on February 7 against the non-allocation of funds for the project in the recently presented state budget.

The padayatra will be held from Lakkidi to Adivaram, followed by the satyagraha at 10 am. The Action Council said the protest is against the alleged neglect of the project by the LDF government.

Action Council convener Kamal Joseph told Onmanorama that although the state government had earlier sanctioned ₹1.5 crore for investigation and preparation of the alignment, no funds were allocated for the project in the latest budget.

He said the agitation aims to mobilise public opinion against the government's inaction on the road project, which is expected to connect north Wayanad with the Kozhikode district and ease traffic pressure on the Thamarassery Ghat Road.

The Padinjarathara–Poozhithode Road project proposes a 20.9-km stretch with twin tunnels. The Public Works Department (PWD) had earlier approved the alignment submitted for the project. Public Works Minister P A Mohammed Riyas had also said in a Facebook post that steps were being taken to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR).

The Action Council recently observed the 45th anniversary of the project's launch on November 1, 2025, at Kavumandham near Mananthavady.

Administrative sanction for the project was granted in 1994, and about 70 per cent of the work has been completed on both sides of the forest area, with a road width of 12 metres. Only a seven-kilometre stretch passing through forest land remains unfinished.

Of the total length, 6.5 km of the road falls in Kozhikode district, while 16 km lies in Wayanad district.