Wedoany.com Report on Feb 26th, A crucial milestone has been reached for Kerala's ₹2,134-crore Anakkanpoyil - Kalady - Meppadi Highway Tunnel project, as it has received the Stage-II (Final) environmental clearance, clearing the path for full-scale construction. This clearance, issued by the Bengaluru Regional Office of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, permits the use of 17.263 hectares of forest land for the project.

This 8.73-km highway tunnel is significant as it aims to provide an all-weather alternative to the heavily congested Thamarassery Ghat road. Upon completion, it will greatly enhance connectivity between Wayanad and Kozhikode. The project is being executed by Konkan Railway Corporation Limited, funded by the KIIFB, and is expected to be completed within four years.

Currently, preparatory work for the project is progressing systematically. Tunnel boring work is scheduled to commence from the Kozhikode side in early March, while site preparation work on the Wayanad side is also expected to be completed soon. Notably, the environmental clearance comes with a stringent set of environmental safeguards. These include compensatory afforestation, minimizing tree felling, protecting wildlife corridors, and a prohibition on ground disturbance activities along the tunnel alignment, ensuring the project's ecological impact is minimized.

Once completed, the highway tunnel is projected to significantly boost regional connectivity, making travel across the Western Ghats more convenient and efficient. Furthermore, by enabling more efficient links to coastal areas, it is poised to stimulate economic development in Wayanad, bringing new opportunities to the region.