Fresh trouble brewing for Water Metro project
The Hindu
Heritage enthusiasts again oppose construction of jetty near Chinese fishing nets at Fort Kochi
Even as the rolling out of the first Water Metro ferry has overshot its revised deadline by over six months, fresh trouble is brewing for Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL), as heritage enthusiasts have yet again objected to the construction of a jetty near the iconic Chinese fishing nets that dot the Fort Kochi beachfront. A row of three heritage buildings located behind the nets — on land owned by the Cochin Port Trust — had been demolished in December 2020 to create space for the Water Metro’s Fort Kochi jetty, despite fiery opposition from heritage enthusiasts and conservation architects. “KMRL still insists on building a jetty between two Chinese nets at the harbour mouth, despite safety implications,” said former Mayor K.J. Sohan, who is the convener of INTACH - Kerala, a heritage body that recently filed complaints before the Archaeology Department, following which works to commence the Water Metro’s jetty construction were halted.The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.