In response to the ongoing highway expansion project, the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) has decided to relocate the statue of Ullal Srinivas Mallya, the first Member of Parliament from Dakshina Kannada, to a new location at Padua Junction, where it will be placed in a dedicated park. The current statue, located in a small park within the 32nd Kadri North Ward, is unaffected directly by the construction, but a portion of the park will be taken over for the highway expansion. Consequently, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has instructed the MCC to move the statue, which the corporation has agreed to do.
The MCC plans to relocate the statue to the rear of the current park, redeveloping the space into a new park. Following discussions and inspections by officials from both MCC and NHAI, the MCC has allocated 0.8 cents of its land for the highway project, with the remainder of the space being used for the statue and park redevelopment. The Ullal Srinivas Mallya Fans’ Association had previously requested the relocation, which the MCC has now acted on.
Mayor Manoj Kumar confirmed that the relocation would be safe for the statue, with the government land adjacent to the park being set aside for the project. While the NHAI will oversee the construction, the Ullal Srinivas Mallya Fans’ Association will handle maintenance.
The NHAI has outlined conditions for the relocation, including installing the statue within the park near the highway, restoring the boundary wall, and developing an additional 3 cents of land for the statue’s accommodation. The relocation will also adhere to strict safety protocols to ensure a smooth and secure process.
Read also;