The Hindu : Lake garden proposed near Vyttila

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 13, 2004

Kerala

Kerala - Kochi

Lake garden proposed near Vyttila

By K.S. Sudhi

KOCHI, JAN.12. The garbage dump near Vyttila Janatha junction and the adjoining water body would soon become one of the tourist attractions of Kochi if the civic body has its way.

The Kochi Corporation has identified the 12-acre lake and the nearby areas as the site for its Padmasarovaram project, which consists of a walkway, cafeteria and a lake garden with water lilies and lotuses. The Kochi Corporation had earmarked Rs. 5 lakhs in the last budget for setting up the project.

The Kochi Mayor, C.M. Dinesh Mani, and the Tourism and Fisheries Minister, K.V. Thomas, had visited the site of the proposed project on Sunday. The Minister has also asked the civic authorities to submit a preliminary report of the project to the Tourism Ministry. According to indications, the State Tourism Department would take up the implementation of the project.

However, the civic authorities are now more worried about unauthorised constructions on the land, which would easily fetch astronomical price considering its proximity to the Sahodaran Ayyappan Road and the upcoming project. Ambiguity regarding the ownership of the land has puzzled the Corporation authorities. It is said that that a few top guns, including a Malayalam film super star, and some developers own land in the area. A few others are said to have obtained title deeds for the property claiming that it was paddy field some time ago. Of late, the site has also been used for dumping clay and refuse from some construction sites, which was mostly used for dumping waste collected from different parts of the city. The civic authorities are of the view that some of the land was originally Government `puramboke' land that was encroached upon by some land-sharks.

Incidentally, some of the landowners have `unauthorisedly' started developing the land and laid the foundation for a compound wall much to the dismay of the civic authorities.

On receiving report of unauthorised construction, the Kochi Mayor has directed the Corporation officials to demolish the construction.

"The construction of the wall and the development of the land was without the consent or clearance of the Corporation. Hence the order for demolishing the construction", Mr. Mani told .

"The Corporation plans to take over the land, both private and puramboke, in the area for setting up the project. This is the ideal site for the project as it is sandwiched between two major roads and has a spacious and picturesque lake", Mr. Mani said.

Mr. Mani, who settled in Kochi way back in the Sixties, also said that he had not seen any paddy cultivation in the area, dismissing the argument that it was a paddy field some time ago. He also added that the Tourism Minister had assured him of the contribution of the Ministry in preparing the project report and its implementation.

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