KOCHI: For a city that envisions becoming ‘smart’ with several ambitious projects lined up for the new year promises, it would be prudent for the authorities concerned to start from the basics.
Official indifference is quite evident, despite incidents that should have prompted urgent action. Not many city residents would have forgotten the horrifying moments after a toddler fell into an open drain at Panampilly Nagar.
Recently, a woman’s leg got stuck between the slabs of a footpath at Palarivattom. Some months ago, for instance, a French tourist broke her thigh bone after falling into an open drain near the Customs Jetty in Fort Kochi.
Taking note, High Court judge Devan Ramachandran had termed the incident “disturbing”, and questioned how the city could promote tourism with such lapses.
“To say that pedestrians could not use the road safely is anathema to the principles of urban planning and development. In this century, this is a shame to be noticed in a city like Kochi,” he observed. “A city is worth it only if it is capable of being walked upon.”
Social activist Ranjit Thampy slammed the lack of coordination between the corporation and agencies such as CSML. “The slabs are removed when the drains clog, or while laying cables. Then they are left open. In many places, we can also see slab-laying left incomplete. Often, the officials concerned don’t even care to place barricades or hazard warnings. Such cases smack of a highly irresponsible attitude.”
Will there be a change in the new year?