The committee, headed by former Planning Commission Secretary Sudha Pillai and ex‑Union Revenue Secretary Tarun Bajaj, found that KIIFB’s land‑acquisition programme, approved on 25 October 2018, was expanded from 1,037 acres at Rs 1,887 crore to 5,366 acres costing Rs 12,727 crore—an almost eight‑fold jump—without a Detailed Project Report or feasibility study.
Kannur, the former chief‑minister’s home district, now receives 4,900 acres—52.9 % of the total allocation—yet only about 60 acres have been handed over for development; the remaining 3,829 acres still sit under notification, with compensation liabilities that could swell to Rs 15,000 crore if delays continue.
While Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Kochi collectively received 41.6 % of KIIFB’s infrastructure approvals, Idukki, Wayanad, Pathanamthitta and Kasaragod together accounted for less than 10 %. The skewed distribution also meant that the 23,025 crore earmarked for Kannur’s roads, buildings and other works represents nearly a quarter of the agency’s total approved project value.
The state keeps servicing the HUDCO loan that financed the land purchases, even as the acquired sites remain largely idle. Satheesan warned that the lack of a proper project report and the inflated purchase price—Rs 2,489 crore for 1,000 acres in Kannur—could point to unscrupulous land deals.
He called on the media to probe land ownership records and demanded an investigation into potential under‑the‑table favouritism. The committee’s findings are now in the hands of the state’s investigative machinery, with Satheesan pledging to expose any irregularities before the next cabinet meeting.