THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The commissioning of a modern abattoir in Thiruvananthapuram, a long-held dream of the city corporation, continues to face indefinite delays because of financial hurdles.
The Rs 9.58-crore slaughterhouse project at Kunnukuzhy has remained in the finishing stages for the past several years as the corporation keeps delaying the release of funds for the purpose.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board had sealed the slaughterhouse almost 13 years ago citing pollution issues. Since then, the corporation has made several attempts to revamp and reopen the abattoir to ensure safe and quality meat to citizens.
After failed attempts to find a bidder, the civic body brought in the Kerala Electrical and Allied Engineering Company Ltd (KEL) to execute the project in 2019.
The corporation has since announced many deadlines for the reopening of the revamped abattoir but failed miserably to make it operational.
An official with the Thiruvananthapuram corporation told TNIE that the KEL project has undergone minor revisions.
“The project needs approval from the Suchitwa Mission. KEL hasn’t submitted all the bills. We are waiting for that. We will consolidate all the bills and submit them to the Suchitwa Mission. The project is in the finishing stages and only minor works are remaining,” the official said.
According to KEL, the delay occurred because of a slow release of funds. Meanwhile, Kunnukuzhy councillor Mary Pushpam laid the blame on the corporation.
“So many deadlines were announced after a new council took charge and we have now entered the final year of the council’s term. Yet they have failed to open the slaughterhouse. This is nothing but apathy on the part of the authorities. The entire premises is covered with weeds and vegetation. The contractor stalled the project because of a fund crunch,” Mary said.
An official with KEL said the agency will be able to complete the project by May if bills are approved and there are no more delays in the release of funds by the corporation.
“Work on the rendering plant is nearing completion. It’s a specialised work done by the company that supplied the machinery,” the official said.