There is finally some good news for Kochi’s Marine Drive, after years of being marred by issues such as poor maintenance, garbage menace and antisocial activities.
Yes, of course, there have been improvements over the past five years, thanks to legal interventions and court directives. However, sporadic issues keep cropping up, prompting the court to look for a “closure” to public interest litigations regarding Marine Drive’s maintenance.
Now, in a significant step towards ensuring the proper upkeep of the Marine Drive walkway, the Kerala High Court has ordered the formation of a “permanent monitoring committee”.
It has set a deadline of four weeks. As per the court’s directive, the committee is to be chaired by the district collector, and include corporation and Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) secretaries, the city police commissioner, and the chief environmental engineer of the Kerala State Pollution Control Board, Ernakulam. This committee will be mandated to meet and review the maintenance of Marine Drive at least twice a year.
The High Court’s order follows a public interest litigation filed in 2019 by social activist Ranjit Thampy. A regular walker on the Marine Drive walkway for the past 27 years, Ranjith had sought to highlight the deplorable condition of the prime open space in the city.
“There was severe water logging in different parts of the walkway during the rainy season on the edge of backwaters due to improper laying of tiles and lack of proper drainage system. The tiles were unevenly laid making it difficult and dangerous to use the walkway. Most of the garden benches are damaged. Half of the lights in the walkway were not working, resulting in the walkway being used for antisocial activities,” the court noted.
“Waste was being dumped into the backwaters by individuals and residents of the apartment complexes. Sewage from the flats was being let out to the backwaters. The walkway was taken over by small-time vendors, blocking its use by the public. Granite slabs laid by the GCDA were broken and in a pathetic condition. A boat-shaped structure, built in the middle of the walkway, which was supposed to be used as a restaurant, was in a dilapidated state. This was the condition when the petition was filed in the year 2019.”
The court added that several interim orders were passed during proceedings in the writ petition filed in public interest, and that “the situation has now improved from the time when the proceedings were instituted five years ago, and a closure is now required in these petitions”.
“We are, however, of the opinion that a monitoring mechanism is required to be set up to sustain the momentum,” the court said.
In the order, the court highlights that the state government will issue the necessary order/notification constituting the Kochi Marine Drive Monitoring Committee, and this body will designate a nodal officer to coordinate with the officers of different departments concerned.
“A protocol for the functioning and co-ordination will be developed by the Monitoring Committee based on the interim directions issued by this court from time to time,” the court said.
For Ranjit, the petitioner, this court order is the result of sustained efforts over the past five years. “The area was renovated. However, it was not maintained properly. There were issues related to antisocial activities as well,” he says.
“The benches were damaged; many of them were stolen. The place was dirty, with waste accumulated on the banks and littered on the walkway. The streetlights and the CCTV cameras were not functional, and the tiles were broken. Many of these issues have been rectified. But more needs to be done. If there is no monitoring on a regular basis, things will go back to square one.”
Ranjit adds that people, including residents of nearby apartment complexes, have been dumping waste into the backwaters and releasing sewage water from the flats through pipes. “This is another pressing issue that needs to be addressed,” he says.
S Gopakumar, president of the Better Kochi Response Group, welcomes the court order, saying the formation of a monitoring committee will ensure close supervision of the area.
“Most of the time, the authorities come to know about the issues in Marine Drive through news reports and complaints raised by the residents and local people,” he says.
“As the court has directed to constitute a committee, the area will be closely watched. We hope this will curb waste menace and antisocial activities, including drug abuse and trade, in the area. The police should be more proactive, and start utilising technology for better monitoring. First thing that needs to be done is installation of more CCTV units.”
All the way to Cheranalloor?
The ambitious plan to extend Marine Drive from Queen’s Walkway to Cheranalloor, passing through Pachalam, Vaduthala, and Chittoor is gaining momentum, even as feasibility concerns remain.
According to a top civic official, the project implementation committee (PIC) for Marine Drive extension – comprising the district collector, and top officials of Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA), Kochi corporation, and the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) – is preparing to issue a tender to initiate work.
“The project falls under the Urban Sustainable Land Reconstitution Project, and KIIFB is the implementing agency. The committee has prepared a request for proposal and is now set to issue a tender inviting a project management consultancy. The district collector is the implementing officer,” says the GCDA official.
“We have discussed this project. The land for the project has also been identified, and studies on the implementation are going on. Steps to implement the project will be taken on the basis of the study.”
Meanwhile, Ernakulam MLA T J Vinod has expressed concerns regarding the potential displacement of residents in the areas listed. “Vaduthala, Pachalam, and Cheranalloor are densely populated areas. We need to discuss how practical the project is,” he says. “The state government has not discussed this with local representatives and the public. We are not aware of the plan.”
HC directives include:
Designating a nodal officer to coordinate with various departments
A dedicated telephone number and email address to lodge complaints
Establishing a social media presence for the monitoring committee to allow citizens to raise concerns and upload relevant photographs
Ensuring the committee looks into the complaints or grievances received and takes appropriate action