KOCHI: The great relief that the people of Chellanam living on the northern side of the newly constructed seawall felt has faded away. Though Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the second phase of the Chellanam coastal protection project on March 7, nothing much has happened since then.
General convenor of Chellanam-Kochi Janakeeya Vedi V T Sebastian said only administrative approval has been given for the project.
“There is nothing about the financial or technical approval for the project. Though it is said that financial approval will be given later, technical approval has not been obtained yet.
It is said that Uralungal will be entrusted with the implementation of the project, but no agreement has been reached yet. In this regard, in the current case in the High Court (WP(C)10189/2021), the government has informed that a decision on these matters will be taken only after the election code of conduct is over,” he said.
The people of Chellanam are now very worried. “They are afraid they will have to face severe sea level rise this season as well. People who believed the government’s propaganda and spent a lot of money to repair and maintain their damaged houses are in great distress today. The government deceived the people by inaugurating the second phase of the project with an eye on the elections,” he said.