KOCHI: The state cabinet on Wednesday approved the tender for the first phase of the Karumalloor and Kunnukara drinking water project, which aims to resolve the drinking water scarcity and improve water supply in various areas coming under Ernakulam district.
The first phase tender includes pump house construction, restoring wells, and other public activities. A decision on the next two tenders will be taken soon, said Minister P Rajeeve.
“The project will be completed within a year,” he said. To ensure that the project is completed in a time-bound manner the cabinet, which met in Thiruvananthapuram, approved Rs 13.33 crore for the project.
The tender submitted by the Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society Ltd was approved by the cabinet, an official release said here.
Though a tender for the project was called last June, it was cancelled after no companies came up with bids. Uralungal Co-operative Society’s bid was approved in the re-tender.
The project is expected to find a lasting solution to the drinking water woes of the residents of Karumalloor panchayat and Kunnukara in Kalamassery municipality.
The total cost of the project stands at Rs 51.30 crore, up from the initial estimate of Rs 36.50 crore. The land acquisition for the project has already been completed. While 86.5 cents of land were acquired in Kunnukara panchayat, another 12 cents were acquired in Karumalloor. The KIIFB had earlier sanctioned Rs 2.40 crore for land acquisition, and another Rs 57.95 lakh was released after the amount was found insufficient.
The project’s completion will significantly alleviate the shortage of potable water in Karumalloor panchayat and for the residents of Kunnukara in Kalamassery municipality.
The project has been designed to distribute water from the Periyar River after treating it at the Malayikkunnu plant. Furthermore, drinking water will be supplied to residents on the western side of Karumalloor after being treated at the newly constructed plant in Manjali.