The recent visit of a central experts committee to assess and consult stakeholders of Hubballi-Ankola rail line (HARL) project in Uttara Kannada and Dharwad districts has revived hopes of the people on the project.
They believe that the BJP government will implement the railway line, the foundation for which was laid by late prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1999.
Politicians and businessmen from the region claim that the track can boost development and economic activities in U-K district, which has highest green cover in the state and ranks low in per capita income.
However, environment activists opposing the project say implementation of the project in the ecologically sensitive Sahyadri Hills would cause irreversible damage to Western Ghats and result in landslides, flooding, fragmentation of forest and animal kill.
