The State budget did not sideline Kochi since a slew of development projects for boosting the city’s public and health infrastructure were announced well before the budget, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said.
Speaking after inaugurating the Ponnurunni overbridge, he termed as outdated the practice of delaying announcement of key projects till the annual budget. “The government believes in swift decision making, as can be seen from the fact that the Cabinet decided on the State government taking over the Cooperative Medical College, Kalamassery, as soon as we got a report from District Collector.”
Similarly, a decision on building a cancer hospital and research centre in the city was taken a few days prior to the budget. Funds were not earmarked since Rs 5 crore was already available. Following this, the Centre announced Rs 35 crore to set up a mini-cancer centres in Kochi and Kozhikode, he said.
Mr Chandy said that flyovers at Edappally, Palarivattom, Vytilla and Kundanoor, which are expected to cost approximately Rs 500 crore, were already included in the PWD’s Rs 10,000-crore SPEED programme. Likewise, work is underway to extend Seaport Airport Road up to the international airport and to widen the existing road. The extension of Kochi Metro up to Tripunithura entails expenses worth Rs 323 crore. Though not mentioned in the budget, the government also announced Rs 238 crore a water supply scheme for Kochi.
Referring to the prohibitive cost of land acquisition, he spoke of how Thammanam-Pullepady Road can be widened into four lane at a cost of Rs 14.82 crore. “But around Rs 300 crore is required for land acquisition.” He said that the Centre has promised help for the city gas supply scheme. On the proposed suburban rail corridor between Thiruvananthapuram and Chenganoor, Mr Chandy spoke of how the speed of trains can be increased if rail overbridges or rail under bridges were built at level crossings. In his address, Chief Administrative Officer of Southern Railway Dani Thomas said that 13 more overbridges in the State have been included in the Railway’s work programme for 2014-’15. Earlier, reacting to residents’ associations, trade bodies, political organisations and others threatening an agitation if toll is collected from motorists using the Ponnurunni bridge, Mr Chandy said that this might have an adverse effect on Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK) building new bridges. In his introductory address, Benny Behanan, MLA, said toll collection was inappropriate since the Railway would bear 50 per cent of the project cost. The Centre’s JNNURM funds too were made available for the project and RBDCK had to spend very little.
He said that the PWD would resurface Vyttila-Thammanam-Palarivattom Road within a month.
New roadMayor Tony Chammany called for urgent steps to widen the Thammanam-Pullepady road since more barricading is expected in Banerjee Road and SA Road for Kochi Metro works. Availability of more funds will help kickstart work for the Pachalam and Atlantis overbridges, he said. Managing director of RBDCK, A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish spoke of how the Rs 20 crore Ponnurunni bridge that was built in two years would decongest NH bypass.
