Nelyadi traders protest highway design; MP Brijesh Chowta assures three additional underpasses

Uppinangady: Dakshina Kannada MP Capt. Brijesh Chowta has assured the Nelyadi-Kowkradi Town Preservation Committee that three additional underpasses will be constructed at Nelyadi town as part of the ongoing National Highway 75 expansion project.

The four-laning work from Addahole to B.C. Road involves elevating the highway through Nelyadi town with retaining walls on both sides, effectively splitting the town in two. This has raised serious concerns among locals and traders, who fear the elevated structure will hinder movement and affect livelihoods. The protesters had earlier demanded a design similar to the one implemented in Kalladka.

The protest had led to a temporary halt in construction, with locals and the town’s traders shutting down shops till noon on April 15 as a mark of protest. Despite previous appeals to both the state and central governments for a flyover through the town, the issue had remained unresolved.

In response, MP Brijesh Chowta visited Nelyadi on the night of April 15 and held discussions with members of the protest committee. He acknowledged the ongoing concerns and confirmed that while two underpasses have already been constructed and work is halfway through, steps will now be taken to add three more underpasses in the town area to address the public’s demands.

The assurance was made during a meeting attended by A.K. Varghese, President of the Protest Committee; Satish K.S. Durga Shree, President of the Nelyadi-Kaukraadi Traders and Industrialists Association; and representatives from both organizations. Also present were Balakrishna Banajalu, President of Nelyadi Primary Cooperative Agricultural Credit Society; Vice President Ravichandra Hosavaklu; PLD Bank President Bhaskar S. Gowda Ichlampady; Nelyadi Panchayat President Salaam Bilal; former Kaukraadi GP President M.K. Ibrahim, and several other dignitaries.