KOCHI: The city corporation has made climate change resilience and mitigation strategies its top priority. In the annual budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year, deputy mayor T.J. Vinod had announced series of canal restoration projects, to address the issue of massive flooding. The civic body made a Rs 38-crore allocation including the Centre’s AMRUT funds for canal restoration projects.
“Various expert agencies which conducted scientific studies in Kochi have stressed the need to conserve the existing canal system to prevent flooding. A good canal system connecting to the backwaters ensures proper drainage and balances the increasing water level. A mega project based on the scientific details submitted by expert agencies will be prepared for the restoration of canals. The Singapore government has offered assistance for the restoration project,” the deputy mayor said.
A comprehensive mapping will be done to fix boundaries of each canal. With no proper data on the length and width of canals in the city, the civic body is unable to conduct restoration works to address the climate change. “With a detailed database of the canals, we will be able to carry out the water logging preventive measures in a much effective manner,” said Mayor Soumini Jain. It had earlier initiated mapping of the longest Thevara – Perandoor Canal and the report has already been submitted by the technical partner SCMS College of Engineering.
Scientific studies have warned that change in rainfall pattern and an increase in temperature will badly impact the city and pose additional pressure on the already fragile urban systems. “The city is highly vulnerable to flooding due to its specific geographical features. A major limitation in carrying out the rejuvenation of canal system is the lack of proper data Without having a proper GIS-based map of the canals, no systematic restoration can be undertaken,” said Dr Sunny George, director of SCMS Water Institute.
