Monorail to bypass heritage zone in Trivandrum

DMRC decides to spare centuries-old agraharam

Two-hundred-odd families would have been displaced from the Valiyasala street in the city if DMRC had opted for the original plan. Photo: S. Gopakumar

The 240 families living in the centuries-old ‘agraharam’ at Valiyasala street can now sleep peacefully as it has been decided to spare the homesteads when the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) is laid from Technocity to Karamana in the capital.

The residents had been knocking at the doors of the executing agencies and the government after The Hindu revealed in a report that the elevated MRTS will cut across their homes.

Plea to government

They had petitioned the government and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the consultant for the project, to change the alignment of the MRTS so that the 250-metre Valiyasala Street would be spared from the alignment and retained as a heritage zone.

Following an inspection of the ‘agraharam’ by Principal Advisor, DMRC, E. Sreedharan recently, the DMRC decided to take the monorail through an alternative route. On Saturday, the DMRC communicated the decision to the Vyasa Residents Association (VRA) representing the local community.

NH widening

The DMRC has now asked the government and the Kerala Mono Rail Corporation Ltd., the Special Purpose Vehicle for the project, to get the 700-metre stretch of NH 66 from near the Thycaud Railway Over Bridge (ROB)-Choorakattupalayam to Killipalam junction widened to 21 metres so that the ‘agraharam’ can be bypassed. The DMRC has sought early completion of the widening.

The original alignment that cut across the street was chosen to avoid the ROB.

Official sources said the route now proposed by the DMRC would cut across the shunting neck at Thampanoor through an obligatory span to the end of the ROB’s arm and from there proceed to Choorakattupalayam through the median to come up on the NH 66 at the Killipalam junction.