The UNESCO-supported heritage conservation project for the Fort Kochi and Mattancherry areas is awaiting government support to take off.
Though Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had pledged financial support to the project when a delegation consisting of the representatives of UNESCO and Kochi Corporation met him on June 9 at Thiruvananthapuram, it is still unclear whether funds have been earmarked for the project. The Kochi Corporation, the key stakeholder of the project, is also in the dark about the government support.
The Chief Minister had announced that the State government would allocate Rs.15 crore for the Rs.53-crore project. However, it needed to be found out whether budgetary provisions had been made for the project, said K.J. Sohan, chairman, Town Planning Standing Committee of the City Corporation. The heritage conservation efforts are one of the key mandates of the Town Planning Committee.
The Corporation is all for implementing the project and it will require financial support from the State government for beginning the conservation effort.
MoU
A Memorandum of Understanding involving UNESCO, the State government and the Kochi Corporation needed to be signed for beginning the conservation project, he said.
On its part, the Corporation had written to the State government urging it to draw up the document. The heritage conservation work could begin only after the three agencies signed the document, Mr. Sohan said.
For the project, the UNESCO will provide the required framework and technical support for developing a Kochi plan.
The civic body will have to appoint a special officer, an official not below the rank of Deputy Collector, for monitoring the implementation of the project besides forming a heritage cell and a heritage house. The heritage house, which should be located in the area of the implementation of the project, would act as the nodal agency for ensuring the participation of the local communities in the conservation drive. UNESCO had also developed a draft conservation plan for the area.
Improvement of safety lighting in the Fort Kochi water edge areas; model street improvement and revitalisation for Mattancherry Street; improvement of Fort Kochi boat jetty and bus stand square; improvement of the premises of Mattancherry Palace and jetty square; and environmental improvement and revitalisation of Kalvathy canal are some of the project components identified for the conservation.
