KOCHI: Even five months after its inauguration, the Thuruthy twin-tower apartment complex at Fort Kochi is yet to be handed over to beneficiaries.
The delay occurred as the work on the sewage treatment plant (STP) at the much-awaited project is yet to be completed, besides civil works that stretched beyond schedule.
Following allegations and complaints, the Kochi corporation council on Tuesday decided to complete the preparation of the beneficiaries list and hand the flats over to the applicants after March 10. The delay has come at a time when as many as 68 families in the colony are waiting to be shifted to a safe and stable facility.
“The buildings’ civil works were finished only last month. Work on the STP is still going on. A trial run of the plant is also required. In this scenario, we cannot shift the families to the new apartments,” Mayor V K Minimol said.
The Thuruthy flat complex, built at a cost of Rs 77.32 crore, was inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on September 27, 2025. The project was first announced in 2012 and construction began in 2017, with the Cochin Smart Mission Limited (CSML) later joining the Kochi corporation to complete it. The complex features 394 flats in two towers, one with 13 floors and the other with 11.
Meanwhile, the leader of the opposition in the council, V A Sreejith, alleged that the Congress-led UDF is utilising the delay politically.
“There are deserving applicants who have submitted documents under the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY). They continue to live in poor conditions. The flats should be handed over to them immediately. Other issues, including the revision of the beneficiary list after screening the documents, can be carried out parallelly,” he said.
BJP councillor Sudha Dileep demanded that the list of beneficiaries be tabled in the council. “The list of beneficiaries of the project should be presented to the council. The project was inaugurated several months ago. It should be handed over to the public,” she said.
The preparation of the beneficiary list has also been delayed, with the verification yet to be completed. As many as 398 families have submitted applications under the RAY and Life Mission projects. However, only 290 applicants have appeared for the reverification.