It’s neither rain nor movement of heavy vehicles that’s posing the biggest threat to roads in the city, but the cutting of roads for laying myriad cables.
On Tuesday midnight, agitated local residents forced suspension of cable laying works by the KSEB and Lulu Group in the Pottakuzhy division of the Kochi Corporation. Division councillor C.A. Shakeer had warned of such an agitation at the council meeting earlier in the day citing the low standard of road restoration works on the stretch starting from the Pottakuzhy junction.
“The Mayor had given consent to the road cutting saying its restoration to the original Bitumen Macadam and Bitumen Concrete (BMBC) standard would be completed by March. Despite the agencies depositing Rs. 3.58 crore, only restoration works worth about Rs. 19.40 lakh is being carried out, which would get easily washed away in the rain leading to potholes,” he said.
Now, it has emerged that the corporation has neither adequate money nor time for properly carrying out restoration works, inviting the fury of the local residents. The present council is left with just four months and it is being pointed out that the deposit made by agencies is insufficient for the road restoration under BMBC standards.
“It was for the corporation to ensure that the agencies deposited adequate funds for the restoration of road as per BMBC standards. Under the BMBC standards patchy restoration of the dug up portions alone is not possible and the entire stretch has to be restored. As it is, people can hardly stop the agencies for long for the corporation’s folly and that might leave residents with potholed roads this monsoon,” Mr. Shakeer said.
A stinking ordeal
Waiting at bus shelters in West Kochi has become an ordeal to the public thanks to the faltering waste disposal routine and non availability of lorries for transporting waste.
With the solid waste treatment plant of the Kochi Corporation facing shutdown during this monsoon, waste movement from West Kochi has at best been reduced to a trickle.
Among the places turned into waste heaps are the bus stops such as the ones near the corporation zonal office at Palluruthy.
“Though waste heaps were removed from many areas on Wednesday, things may return to square one unless it’s made a regular exercise,” said councillor Thampi Subramaniam.
M.P. Praveen
