: The open sewer in front of the pay ward of Government Medical College and Hospital (MCH) here overflowed again on Friday barely 10 days after the leak had been temporarily plugged. The leak had been plugged on July 6 after 10 days of uninterrupted flow.
“Two-wheeler riders and pedestrians were the worst affected as heavy vehicles splashed dirty water. The foul smell was everywhere,” said the owner of a shop opposite the MCH.
Local councillor G.S. Sreekumar, against whom posters surfaced in the medical college area on Saturday, criticising his “inaction,” told The Hindu that the city Corporation had done its work, and now it was for the Medical College authorities to act. The Road Fund Board had promised to relay the sewerage network if the MCH replaced the drinking water supply system from the vicinity, he said. When contacted, Health Minister V.S. Sivakumar said he had convened a meeting last week to discuss the issue. “Necessary instructions have been given to the MCH and the Collector to find a permanent solution to the problem,” he said.
ProtestCadres belonging to the Ulloor unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) staged a protest in front of the pay ward. They also blocked the busy stretch for a brief while and withdrew the agitation after the Medical College police promised to take up the issue with the MCH and the District Collector.
