Tough ride

After a lot of hoopla and hype that marked the opening of Adlabs Imagica, media mogul Manmohan Shetty's biggest venture finds itself stymied. The theme park, set up with the capital of Rs 1,650 crore, has come under the Maharashtra government's scrutiny. There have been allegations from state politicians that the land was acquired through illegal means raising serious doubts over compliance with prescribed environment norms and regulations. The land, owned by tribals, was allegedly acquired under duress and through encroachment. Located close to Khopoli, the park currently occupies 110 acre of the 300 acre that was originally acquired. The remainder of the land has been kept aside for further expansion. Shetty had modelled the park on the lines of Universal Studios. The park, which opened in April this year, can accommodate as many as 20,000 visitors. Shetty had set an ambitious target of 3 million visitors in the first year of operations. The plans could well now come to naught.