An eco-friendly memorial for poet G. Sankara Kurup will soon come up in Kochi.
The State-level steering committee for Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) projects gave the go-ahead for the proposal last week.
The poet was the first recipient of the Njanapith Award in 1965.
ADVERTISEMENT
Though the memorial had found place in the agenda of the previous civic administrations, it got entangled in a host of issues. Eventually, the Kochi Corporation identified a 25-cent holding next to Mangalavanam. It took a series of negotiations to obtain a passage to the holding. The Greater Cochin Development Authority, Kerala State Housing Board, and the Kochi Corporation joined hands to develop a road to the parcel of land, said Mayor M. Anilkumar.
Though the corporation council lead by Tony Chammany in 2010, which had B. Bhadra, the granddaughter of the poet, as Deputy Mayor, made efforts for setting up the project, it did not materialise.
Initially, the suggestion was to have a one-acre holding for the project. Later, it was trimmed to 25 cents. The efforts of then council to set up the memorial did not succeed owing to a host of reasons, Ms. Bhadra said, adding that the memorial should be one that should reflect the thoughts and literary contributions of the poet.
ADVERTISEMENT
According to the project proposal, an eco-friendly memorial will come up. Construction work will be kept to the minimum possible level. There will be an open stage, an art gallery, a sound museum where the poems of Sankara Kurup could be listened to, a history garden with vertical plaques carrying his story, and a tranquillity space with a replica of a flute hung by steel wires representing his famous poem Odakuzhal , according to the concept note.
The total built-up area will be restricted to one-third of the holding, leaving space for greenery. The firm that prepared the concept note has been asked to come up with a detailed project report. The project is estimated to cost ₹3 crore. The civic body has earmarked funds from its Plan fund. Resources from the AMRUT project will also be utilised.