Facing flak for poor maintenance, KMRL mulls planting shrubs on medians beneath metro viaduct

KMRL considers using biodegradable materials to maintain medians beneath metro viaducts in Kochi for sustainable upkeep.

Having faced considerable flak from members of the public and visitors to the city for ill-maintained and weed-infested medians beneath the metro viaduct, Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) is actively considering a return to the method of planting shrubs atop a planting medium that comprise biodegradable materials such as coconut fronds, husk and wilted leaves.

These medians had over time become eyesores and dumping grounds for waste and construction debris, while they were being occupied by beggars and others at locales like in front of the private bus stand at Kaloor. Effort by the police and others to remove beggars and other occupants from the medians met with stiff resistance, informed sources said.

“The upkeep of medians with the help of sponsors during the past seven years failed, with most firms unwilling to pay the promised amount. Even prominent jewellery shops failed to pay their sponsorship fee. This was apart from incidents like pilferage of saplings, garden mesh and other materials from the medians,” they said.

Vouching for the need to preen up the medians beneath the metro corridor with plants, KMRL managing director Loknath Behera said the metro agency was mulling a change of policy, so that their sustainable upkeep could be ensured using biodegradable/soil-less materials as the planting medium. “This could be done in around 400 medians in the Aluva-Edappally corridor with the National Highways Authority of India’s permission and in rest of the metro corridor that runs all the way up to Thripunithura. Else, the medians would have to be covered using paver blocks and barricades placed atop them, as a one-time solution to prevent dumping of waste and jaywalking.”

The metro agency had handed over 50 medians, including along MG Road, to Pelican Biotech, the firm that sourced biodegradable materials from residential and other areas in the city. The firm is maintaining medians in many other cities, including beneath the Bengaluru metro viaduct.

C.N. Manoj of the firm said that Bengaluru metro had taller medians which helped plants have deeper roots. “The medians beneath Kochi metro viaduct too can be raised using a technology that manufactures median curbs from plastic waste. The State government’s help to promote this technology is expected.”

With KMRL being unable to preen up the medians with plants and the metro pillars with vertical gardens, Girijavallabhan P.M., a lawyer cum campaigner for improving the green cover in Kochi, had suggested that the medians beneath the metro corridor be spruced up with golden bamboo, ornamental areca nut and similar shrubs that do not need much water.