Protest over non-functioning of Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction

KOLLAM: The public along with the trade unions under the UDF staged a sit-in protest in front of the Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction Academy at Chavara, IIIC - Kollam, on Friday. The Rs. 100-crore academy has not yet started functioning though its construction was completed months back. The building was constructed in 9.5 acres of land at Chavara where Kerala Premo pipe factory was located earlier.

The main multi-storied building has 1.5 lakh square feet of area with 38 classrooms, 10 office rooms, one director's room and a canteen, including the kitchen. The compound also houses a 35,000-square-feet hostel building having 54 rooms to accommodate 108 students, four guest rooms and a canteen. There is also a recreational area for the students within the compound. The construction had started in 2015 after the foundation stone was laid in 2013.

"The protest was organised to bring the issue to the attention of the authorities who have not taken any initiative to start the academy. The trade unions had jointly supported the new initiative as it would be beneficial for the entire population there," Mr Subhash Kalavara, president of the INTUC workers' union of the academy, told DC.

The academy is set up under the Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE) to impart skill development programmes for migrant workers and other labourers in various fields, including construction. The construction was initially proposed by the LDF ministry in 2008 at Chathannoor in Kollam under the name 'Kerala Construction Academy.' It was later shifted to Chavara under its present name by the succeeding government. There were around 700 workers of whom 200 were locally inducted for the construction. It was earlier announced that the institute will have a third party as an operator and that the building will be given to them for lease.