Pre-monsoon civil work in the Kochi Corporation will begin soon with its contractors calling off their strike after the civic body agreed to partly clear their dues.
The contractors promised to resume work following a conciliatory meeting convened by Mayor Soumini Jain on Monday afternoon.
The civic administration has agreed to pay ₹12 crore in dues to the contractors. Since the contractors have demanded that the payment be made by May 6, efforts are on to disburse the dues before the said date, Ms. Jain said.
Civil work had come to a standstill after the contractors had gone on strike.
They had also refused to participate in the tender process. The agitation had forced the civic body into a crisis as pre-monsoon cleaning work, including de-clogging of drains, have to be completed before the onset of monsoon.
Delayed cleaning work may also lead to flooding in the city.
As the council met on Monday, several councillors raised apprehensions about a possible flooding. They also demanded an early settlement of the issue.
The corporation owes its contractors ₹34 crore, going by the bills submitted for payment, said the Mayor.
Earlier, replying to a debate in the council, Ms. Jain said the contractors were paid around ₹150 crore after the council came to power.
K.J. Antony, Left Democratic Front (LDF) leader in the council, said the civic body had suffered financial loss to the tune of ₹9 crore after the administrators failed to collect taxes from owners of commercial buildings that had come up on the corporation holding that was leased out to the Cochin Port Trust. The lease agreement between the civic body and the trust expired nearly 16 years ago.
However, no efforts were made to renew the lease, he alleged.
Ms. Jain offered to give a reply in the next council meeting after looking into the charges.
