THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The efforts of the state government to introduce nightlife in the capital are facing a major setback with many questioning the feasibility of the locations identified. The ambitious project aims to introduce commercial and entertainment activities, which will extend to the early hours of the morning. This will enable tourists and residents to experience the beauty of the city at night.
However, the resident associations in and around the Kuravankonam-Pattom stretch one of the corridors identified for the nightlife project have come out with stiff protests landing the project in a fix.
Pattom-Marappalam, Manaveeyam Veedhi and Technopark-LuLu Mall are the three corridors identified for the nightlife project, a longstanding demand of the IT industry and youngsters.
“Pattom-Marappalam stretch is not at all feasible for the nightlife project,” says Sukumaran Nair, secretary of the Kowdiar Residents’ Association. “It is a thickly populated residential area. And already we are fed up with congestion caused by illegal parking and streetside vending encroaching pedestrian ways,” he says.
“Also,” he points out, “this is an emergency pathway for ambulances and other vehicles coming from Palode and Karmana regions with many speciality hospitals, including the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital,” says Sukumaran.
‘Chaos reigns’
According to him, there are a minimum of 40 flats in the stretch. “And chaos reigns. There are many senior citizens in the area like me. We are unable to even walk or cross the road safely. The nightlife would only worsen the current situation,” he says.
The residents’ association has approached the Mayor and other authorities about the issue. “And they have promised to address our concerns. Anti-social activities are also happening in this stretch. Many other cities have implemented nightlife projects but not in a thickly populated residential area,” Sukumaran says.
‘Will resist at all cost’
There are around 10 residents associations in the locality and the locals are on a warpath against the project. Nadeer Kadayara, president of the Pandits’ Colony Residents’ Association, says the residents will launch a protest if the government doesn’t back out from the project. “We will resist the project at any cost. None of us is against development or nightlife. But the authorities should choose ideal locations,” he says.
“We don’t even have proper streetlights and we already feel unsafe here because of the illegal street vending at Kuravankonam. The traffic is so much that we are struggling to enter our locality because of traffic chaos. We have urged the authorities not to ruin our peace. There are thousands of families residing in this area.”
‘Feasible for nightlife’
The project, which is directly implemented by the Chief Minister’s Office, has been pending for the past two years. The government had engaged the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (NATPAC) to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study.
As per the preliminary study, the project is feasible in the Pattom-Marappalam stretch. An average of 250 to 300 people frequent the Kuravankonam stretch to explore wayside eateries that function between 6pm and 12am.
“The stretch has a mixed land use pattern with residential and commercial establishments. We have given a set of recommendations, including better waste management, more security systems etc. Currently, only a very few commercial establishments have CCTVs installed, and that need to go up. More security personnel and better lighting are required,” says a senior official of NATPAC.
As per NATPAC, the current plan is to exclusively demarcate a 3.5m road on the north side of the stretch for parking and food trucks. A 6.5m road on the south side will be used for two-way traffic. NATPAC has identified the area from Mummy’s Colony Lane to the KSEB Charging Station for accommodating 10 trucks and four hand wash areas.
Breather for Manaveeyam Veedhi
The Smart City Thiruvananthapuram Ltd (SCTL) has engaged Steel Industrials Kerala Ltd (SILK) to resume the abandoned smart road project at Manaveeyam Veedhi. The 280m long byroad connecting LMS-Vellayambalam Road to Althara-Vazhuthacaud Road (CV Raman Pillai Road) is one of the stretches identified for nightlife project. The authorities had scrapped the agreement with the first contractor due to an inordinate delay in the implementation. “Around Rs 2.2-crore work is remaining here. We will be able to complete the project within six to eight months. An art gallery will be set up at Manaveeyam, and there will be designated kiosks for street vendors,” says an official from SILK.
Technopark-Lulu Mall stretch not feasible
The Technopark-Lulu Mall stretch the IT corridor seems to be not feasible for the nightlife project. “No land or space is available in the corridor under the National Highways Authority of India. Hence, we are exploring the possibility of implementing the project at Akkulam,” says a senior official of the Corporation
NATPAC recommendations
(For parking at Kuravankonam-Marappalam stretch)
27 cars Roadside from PR lane to Mummy’s Colony Lane
27 cars Kuravankonam-Ambalamukku Road
150 bikes Upper-Meridian Road
27 cars Pattom-TKD Road
95 bikes and 10 cars 150m near Supreme Bakers
The Salvation Army School ground can be considered for parking
Food truck parking zone
NATPAC has identified the area from Mummy’s Colony Lane to the KSEB Charging Station for accommodating 10 trucks and four hand-wash areas
7 Traffic warden to be deployed for management