After boycotting the Council meeting held last Saturday, the UDF councillors in the City Corporation started an indefinite strike outside the Corporation Office here on Tuesday, raising the same demands that they had placed at the council meeting such as proper maintenance of streetlights, solving garbage issues and bringing stray dog menace and corruption under control.
On the first day, six councillors were part of the strike, including UDF leader Johnson Joseph, Nedumom V Mohanan, Prasanna Vijayan, Leelamma Issac, Patricia and Vijayamma. On Wednesday, five other councillors will take over from them and the pattern will continue in the coming days. The strike is from 10 am to 5 pm on all days.
“Other than blaming the government, the Mayor has not taken any measure to sort out the issues we have raised. Unless she acts now, there will be more action from our side,” said UDF leader Johnson Joseph.
Following the protest by the UDF councillors, Mayor K Chandrika called an all-party meeting on Tuesday from which the UDF councillors stayed away. She termed the protest a ‘political drama’ ahead of the Attipra byelection and demanded that it should be wound up immediately.
Refuting the allegation of the opposition that the waste management was not being carried out well in the city, Chandrika said that several arrangements have been put in place to effectively carry out the process. She said that even after the government had prevented the killing of stray dogs, the dog population was brought under control through the Animal Birth Control (ABC programme). Regarding the complaints raised over piped water supply, the Mayor said that it was the responsibility of the state government and Kerala Water Authority.