Five years in office have helped in shaping a few major projects that would go a long way in serving the Kochiites, claimed Tony Chammany, Kochi Mayor.
When asked to pick five projects, which he considers as his accomplishments while in office, Mr. Chammany chose the road development, refurbishment of the two town halls, animal birth control (ABC) drive, the roll-on-roll-off (RORO) project and urban transport initiatives.
He also had his list of missed opportunities ready as his term as the first citizen of Kochi would come to an end shortly.
During the last five years, around Rs.400 crore was pumped into all the divisions for development of roads. It could also re-lay considerable extent of its roads with bitumen concrete and bitumen macadam for which Rs. 30 crore was spent. The agencies like Kochi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (KMRL) too chipped in for improving the roads, he said.
The renovated town halls are now open to public. The modification of Subash Park and the town halls are two public service facilities that could be completed during the term in the council, he said.
Though the State government had assigned the task of forming the Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority and Rs. 628-crore water transport service for the city to KMRL, the deliberations and preparatory works for the mega urban transport projects took off from the Mayor’s chamber. The work for a modern RORO has also been initiated, he claimed.
The ABC programme and the veterinary care facility launched at Brahmapuram was a significant step towards controlling the street dog population. The city administration had also been effective in managing the urban waste. Huge piles of unprocessed waste and a faulty waste treatment plant greeted the civic authorities when it took over the reigns of administration five years ago. Waste management is no longer an issue in the city, for which civic administration would duly claim credit, he claimed.
