Cabinet okays Rs 52 crore for Pachalam Railway overbridge

The ambiguity about the status of the project would be removed with the Government decision to treat the Pachalam RoB project as “preparatory work to be undertaken by DMRC on the same terms and conditions that were prevalent in the earlier set of preparatory works”.

Administrative sanction given by the Government earlier had failed to state explicitly whether the RoB project was part of the preparatory work for the Kochi Metro project or not. Work on the project had been stalled for the last several months due to the opposition by a section of people against it.

Although the Government has given the final nod for the amount, work on the project is unlikely to resume soon with the People’s Action Council spearheading an agitation rejecting the arguments of the authorities in support of the project.

The main points raised by the council against the project still remained unaddressed by the authorities concerned, said Abiju Suresh, convener of the action council. He had rejected the contention of the DMRC that the proposed project would not have any impact on the Kattunkal Temple. According to Suresh, the proposed landing point of the bridge, just three metres ahead of the entrance of the temple, would hit the annual temple festivals and other celebrations. The issue of rehabilitating traders was also not resolved, he added.

T.G.Varghese, supporting the construction of the RoB said that political factors were behind the opposition to the project. A majority of the people in the region were in support of the venture, he added. Nice Gardens Residents Association in a statement had also urged the Government to resume work on the project with immediate effect.