Kerala will press the Union Railway Ministry for immediate implementation of the Railway Budget proposals announced in the previous years, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said here on Tuesday.
Talking to the media after a special meeting of the Cabinet in the evening, the Chief Minister said the Railway Budget for 2013-14 did not have many announcements and there was nothing much for Kerala this time. What was needed for the coach factory in Palakkad was not discussion with the State but action to implement the project. It is the State’s right that the announcements made earlier are implemented.
Water supply
Mr. Chandy said the Cabinet which reviewed the crisis management undertaken following the bursting of one of the pipelines supplying water to Thiruvananthapuram city found that the situation was handled effectively. Water supply through the damaged pipeline would be restored by 9 p.m. on Tuesday. While three of the cracks had already been welded, work on the fourth, which was a little more complicated, would be completed before 9 p.m.
He said the affected areas had been provided water through inter-connections made operational in two hours. As water would still be reaching only the lower areas, 58 tankers were pressed into service to distribute water. They had supplied 410 tankerloads of water to different parts of the city. About 20 tankers were always waiting to move on call. Regular supply was maintained to the Attukal area. The Attukal temple festival (Pongala) faced no problems
He said the inquiry into the pipe burst would be started soon.