Eliminating road to extend Mallikatte park opposed.

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Aug 20, 2015: Mallikatta area residents are  disturbed  by the MCC - Mangaluru City Corporation  idea to  renovate a park by allegedly closing an existing road. 

The project will focus on road development from Mallikatta to St Agnes College. The project of Rs 1.40 crore intends to convert the asphalt road into a rigid pavement, apart from improving the Mallikatta Junction.

MCC  consultant Dharmaraj said that the plan is to close the road, leading from Lions Seva Madir towards St Agnes before the Mallikatta Junction and merge that extra area in the existing library land and turn it into a park.

The consultant’s take is  that the road serves little purpose,  a few buses and private vehicles only use it. When the junction is developed, it would be wide enough for all traffic to move without  hindrance. 

Praveen Chandra Shetty, former chairman, Road Safety Sub-Committee, KCCI, is rather suspicious of the proposal.  He points out proposed free left turn at Mallikatta Junction is not practical. Due to space constraints, it will only cause more accidents and traffic grid locks. The existing free left (after Lions Seva Mandir) will be available for use only to residents of an apartment at the corner. This is not tenable.  The original plan is now roughly redrawn to accommodate a park after we raised objections to road closure. There is a vested interest in the idea. 

Assistant commissioner of police (traffic) Uday Nayak, however, is of the view that the closure of the road will not affect traffic if the Mallikatta Junction is widened (improved) as planned. If the junction is improved, the road will not have much of a utilitarian value. 

Local resident Eric Patrao opposes the park plan. Says the road needs  to be in the same position as earlier. A library and a small park exist in that area. They (MCC) cannot extend the park by devouring an existing road. We have objection to the discontinuation of the road.

Regarding their plan of action if the MCC goes ahead with the plan, Patrao said the residents in that area will discuss the issue. And if needed file a PIL in the court against this.  

Area : The existing area of the library park is 21.90 cents. A portion of park area is being surrendered for road widening: 2.72 cents for Kadri Mallikatte Road, 5.28 cents for Mallikatte to Agnes Road, 1.42 cents for proposed U-turn. The additional land released for park from existing U-turn is 10.38cents. So final total extent of park will be 23.93 cents.