THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: To mitigate recurring flash floods faced by the capital, authorities are gearing up to launch a Rs 4-crore city flood project this week. The state government has sanctioned Rs 8 crore for Phases I and II of the project that aims to de-silt and unclog stormwater drains and reconstruct the side walls.
The plan is to remove tonnes of accumulated waste from Pazhavangadi thodu, Upplamoodu canal, Thekkanakkara canal and Ulloor canal, and ensure smooth flow of rainwater during the monsoon. Cleaning activities should be complete by April, ahead of the monsoon.
“The state government has sanctioned `3.98 crore for the cleaning. The work has been tendered and the contractors are ready to start immediately. Work will begin after an official inauguration,” said an official of Minor Irrigation department. The state government has sanctioned an additional `4 crores for the reconstruction of sidewalls along the drains.
“We will start the reconstruction of the sidewalls after the cleaning. The sidewalls at many places are partially or fully destroyed. The priority would be to clean the drains,” said the official. As part of the mitigation measures, the authorities have decided to clean the Thekkanakara canal which incepts Parvathy Puthanar at Karimadom. “We will be cleaning only the uncovered areas of the Thekkanakara canal,” the official added.
However, the district administration and corporation are yet to find suitable land to dump the garbage which will be removed from the drains. During the pre-monsoon cleaning drive, tonnes of garbage removed from the canals were dumped at Putharikandam Maidan. This has still not been removed.
“Unclogging Pazhavangadi thodu is key to addressing the flooding in the city. We have requested the civic body to identify suitable land for dumping the garbage. We cannot launch the drive without a decision on scientific disposal of the waste,” said an official.
Major city canals
Pattom thodu
Ulloor thodu
Thekkanakara thodu
Parvathy Puthanar
Vanchiyoor thodu
Kannamoola thodu
Pazhavangadi thodu
Amayizhanchan thodu