Amid Din, Corporation Council Okays Rs. 140-crore Projects.

Amid stiff criticism, the Corporation council recently okayed funds worth Rs. 139.88 crores for decentralised planning projects for the current fiscal.

A section of councillors alleged that the Plan fund has been allocated 'undemocratically' and criticised the whole exercise as 'inequitable distribution of wealth'.

Councillors from Treasury and Opposition benches criticised the unequal distribution of funds spread across 74 wards. While some wards received a share of funds that is not proportional to their requirements, some others have been completed neglected, they alleged . A four-member committee comprising Mayor Tony Chammany, K J Jacob, development committee chairman T J Vinod Kumar and Opposition councillor K N Sunil Kumar has been formed to look into the anomalies.

The Mayor assured that the complaints will be properly looked into.

While opposition councillor K V Manoj said that the funds for development has been restricted to 10 to 15 wards in the central division which are connected to the Metro rail, Town Planning Standing Committee chairman K J Sohan pointed out that the West Kochi region has been sidelined.

'Out of the Rs. 5.87 cr allocated for road development in the general category, only Rs. 94 lakh has been allocated to wards in West Kochi,' said Sohan.

The allegations are not entirely without merit. Though general funds are restricted to Rs. 30 lakh per division, the divisions that are governed by top political heads has received the lion's share. For instance, Vivekananda Road in Deputy Mayor's Ernakulam South ward received Rs. 9,44,000 to build drains with covering slabs and to re-lay it using interlocking tiles. In opposition leader K J Jacob's ward, who voiced against the discriminatory approach in fund allocation, recieved a total of Rs. 84.85 lakhs for two road works.

An amount of Rs. 33.2 lakh has been allocated for just RSAC Road in Vytilla, which is a one-way road. Meanwhile in Palluruthy, three roads that are not interconnected has been allocated about Rs. 66 lakhs. All this, when only Rs. 25 lakhs has been allocated for the long awaited 40-ft road in Palluruthy which would require at least Rs. 1 crore.

THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS