The construction of a flyover at Mankombu, part of upgrading the Alappuzha- Changanassery (AC) road as a semi-elevated highway, has been stalled due to local protest.
Local residents blocked the piling work on Saturday. They put forth demands, including increasing the width of the proposed service road from 3.5 metres to 6 metres and the height of the flyover.
The protest against the construction of the flyover has also affected the reconstruction of the Mankombu bridge. The bridge, which was demolished earlier this month, is being rebuilt as part of the flyover.
Santhosh Shanthi, convener, Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam, Kuttanad Union, said the organisation would submit a complaint before District Collector A. Alexander raising the demands on Monday. The union will also organise a protest march and dharna.
"A lack of width of the service road and height of flyover will affect the functioning of the SNDP Yogam building, which houses the union office and a shop, along with other commercial establishments in the area. As per the plan, the clearance of the flyover in some places is below 2 metres, which is grossly inadequate. Likewise, the width of the service road is fixed at 3.5 metres. Apart from carrying out protests and filing complaints with authorities concerned, we also filed a complaint before the Kerala High Court," Mr. Shanthi said.
Local residents questioned the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP) decision not to construct a flyover east of Pallikoottumma, where flooding was more frequent.
Meanwhile, the firm entrusted with carrying out the AC road work has submitted a revised plan for the construction of a bridge at Pallathuruthy to the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). The IWAI recently stopped the bridgework citing a violation of criteria regarding the height and width.
The 24.14-km AC road, connecting Alappuzha and Kottayam districts, is being reconstructed at a cost of around ₹650 crore. The project, which is aimed at preventing flooding of the road during the monsoon season, is expected to be completed in 2023. Reconstruction and widening of existing bridges and construction of flyovers at places prone to severe flooding are part of the project. Once completed, the two-lane road and flyovers with footpaths will have a width between 13 and 14 meters.
