ALOR STAR: The Kedah Government will disallow development projects to be implemented on the Sungai Batu archaeological site for fear of destruction to treasures thousands of years old.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir said some land owners in Sungai Batu had submitted applications to the local authorities to develop their land but were rejected.
“Indeed, applications have been received from land owners to carry out development projects, for example, housing (in Sungai Batu) and the Sungai Petani Municipal Council did not approve them as we want to discuss with them first,” he told reporters today.
He said the state government endeavoured to the best of its ability to control development on the site in Sungai Batu which was rich in national archaeological treasures and sought funds for excavation works.
Mukhriz said this when commenting on allegations which went viral on the social media that the archaelological site in Sungai Batu was set for destruction, following proposals by land owners in the area to develop commercial projects.-- Bernama