The Kerala Road Fund Board will be appointed as a nodal agency to coordinate the various government departments and agencies as part of the ongoing Operation Anantha flood mitigation drive, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has said. He said that the first phase of the operation will conclude on May 31 and a year-long second phase will be launched.
He was speaking at a high-level meeting to review the ongoing drive at the Secretariat on Monday.
“The current operation is as per the Disaster Management Act and it has got immense support from all. The officials appointed by the government have been managing the operations admirably. In the coming days, they have to look into all possibilities to solve the flooding issue and continue the operation in the same vein. An official will be appointed to document the whole operation,” said Mr. Chandy. Health Minister V.S.Sivakumar, who took part in the meeting, said that scientific methods would be adopted to solve the frequent flooding in S.S. Kovil Road. The tender proceedings to build a diversion canal in the area are currently on. Steps are being taken to install pulimuttu (groynes) at Veli. A project to remove weeds and waste and clean up Parvathi Puthanar will begin on Wednesday. An amount of Rs.10 crore has currently been allocated for Operation Anantha. More funds will be allocated as and when required, said Mr. Sivakumar.
Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson, Principal Secretary K.Suresh Kumar, District Collector Biju Prabhakar and other officials were part of the meeting.