The latest proposal by a UDF sub-committee to elevate Kochi to a metropolitan city appears to have not gone down well with the civic authorities here.
Both the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) and the Kochi Corporation have slammed the proposal, which will soon be submitted for the consideration of the State Cabinet.
“We will be registering our strong opposition to it in the Congress sub-committee meeting next week,” said N. Venugopal, Chairman, GCDA. He said the mere addition of a couple of municipalities such as Maradu and Thrikkakara and adjacent panchayats would not be sufficient to turn Kochi into a metro city. According to him, GCDA’s proposal to form a Metropolitan Regional Development Authority with an urban agglomeration area of 3,260 square kilometre and then declare Kochi as a metropolitan city has been pending with the State government for the past two years. The draft proposal, which envisages covering suburbs as far as Chalakudy, Cherthala and Vaikom, was submitted after conducting a detailed study by the Chief Town Planner.
K.J. Sohan, former Kochi mayor and chairman of the town planning standing committee, said it was just a glory-hunting proposal as the city did not meet the exacting standards of infrastructure and other facilities apart from population. “While the average population of other metros in the country is around 150 lakh, Kochi’s population is just around 6.5 lakh. Add the surrounding panchayats and municipalities and it may only touch the 12-lakh mark, which, in no way, match the other metros,” he said.
Mayor Tony Chammany, meanwhile, emphasised on the need to evolve a consensus between the various stakeholders before finalising the proposal. “There is no use if this proposal is established without the formation of a competent administrative authority like in Mumbai or Kolkata. For this, a meeting of the town planners and representatives of the local bodies should be convened,” he said.
