Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac informed the Assembly on Friday that the government would immediately give administrative sanction for putting protective railing along the road abutting the Parvathi Puthanar to prevent recurrence of the tragedy of the kind that had claimed six lives on Thursday.
Responding to a special submission made by Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy, the Finance Minister said the government would act on the matter before the declaration of the election. In case money could not be drawn from the National Waterways Project, special sanction would be given to make sufficient funds available for the purpose, Dr. Isaac said.
The Opposition Leader had earlier pointed out that the reason for the accident was the absence of protective railing along the entire stretch of the road abutting Parvathi Puthanar. From what the Finance Minister had told the House a little earlier, the government itself had admitted that it could not utilise Rs.136 crore sanctioned for the National Waterways Project. There should not be any further delay in ensuring protection in the area. The government should also see to it that school buses and other vehicles carrying children adhered to the norms set by Supreme Court, Mr. Chandy said.
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Earlier, making a submission on the issue, V. Sivankutty (CPI-M) urged the government to provide maximum assistance to the families of the five children and their ayah who had died in the mishap. Replying to the submission, Health Minister P.K. Sreemathy said the next meeting of the Cabinet would take a decision on the matter.
The zero hour began with the House observing a minute's silence as a mark of respect to those who had lost their lives, after Speaker K. Radhakrishnan made a special obituary reference.