The Hindu 16.06.2010
Mayor: drainage project will solve water logging
Staff Reporter
| Rs.30-crore project under KSUDP |
Plea to form panel to study ways to prevent flooding
Crematorium project to be resumed soon
Kozhikode: Mayor M. Bhaskaran said here on Tuesday that the multi-crore urban drainage project envisaged under the Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project (KSUDP) would solve water logging in the city during the monsoon.
The Rs.30-crore project drawn up under the Asian Development Bank (ADB)–funded KSUDP programme would be implemented during this fiscal, the Mayor told the city Corporation council meeting.
He was replying to grievances of councillors that various parts of the city had been submerged during the first spell of rain last week.
Clarifying the doubts raised by the councillors, KSUDP project manager K. Narayanan said tenders had been invited for the first phase of the project. Work on a Rs 16-crore project for improvement of the secondary drains and inlets to the Elathur-Kallai canal would begin soon, he said. The second phase would be the construction of the drainage outlets connecting to the Arabian Sea.
Socialist Janata (Democratic) member P. Kishenchand, who raised the issue through a calling attention motion, said several areas, including Jawahar Nagar, Jafer Khan Colony, Rajiv Nagar, Muttappankkavu and Ashokapuram, were flooded after the first spell of rain. Residents were stranded in their homes. If a shower could create so much hardship, the residents stood to face a difficult time in the coming days, he said.
Communist Party of India- Marxist (CPI- M) councillor Kanangot Haridas said water logging was a normal occurrence during the monsoon. Water from Kallai River had flowed into the Canoly canal during high tide leading to flooding in the neighbourhood.
Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) member A.T. Moideen Koya said that flooding had increased after the implementation of the several KSUDP projects in the city while Congress (S) member U.T. Rajan said the National Highways passing through the city had no drains resulting in inundation of low-lying areas.
Congress member P.K. Mamu Koya demanded that the Corporation constitute a technical committee to study flooding in the city during the monsoon. Independent member K.C. Anil Kumar accused the Corporation authorities of their ineptitude in carrying out pre-monsoon activities. This had led to flooding at Vengeri- Kannadikkal locality, he said.
Thomas Mathew of the Socialist Janata (Democratic) said traffic had come to a standstill even on Beach Road during the heavy rain a few days ago.
On another issue, the Mayor said that work on a Rs.24-lakh crematorium project on Mavoor Road, which had been stalled for some time, would resume shortly. P. Divakaran of the CPI(M) said the work had been stopped following protests by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP).
The council also passed a resolution not to repay the amount of Rs.78 lakh to the Railway for land allotted to the civic body for using it as footpath for the residents at West Hill and Nadakkavu. A petition would be submitted to Kozhikode MP M.K. Raghavan and Union Minister of State for Railways E. Ahamed to settle the issue.
