The Hindu : Kerala News : Expressway not viable now

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 15, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Expressway not viable now

Expressway not viable now

Sir, — Of late, the State Public Works Department (PWD) has become callous about the cost benefit ratio and feasibility of projects, and the expertise has also come down to a low ebb with prohibitive construction costs and even failure of structures like new bridges, dams, buildings against which no proper accountability or vigilance control is exercised. Kerala cannot afford the extravagance of the rich and industrially developed States like Maharashtra, which has double the per capita income of the Keralites. The 94-km Rs.3,000-crore Mumbai-Pune highway along the thinly populated verdant land yielded tax from only 16,000 passenger car units against the 50,000 envisaged in the feasibility studies. Therefore, the 507-km Rs.5,000-crore express highway project of Kerala will in all likelihood end up in 15,000 crores and can expect only about 10,000 P.C.U. if the toll is moderate, indicating that the project is not viable.

Kerala, unlike any other State, has a large network of roads and railway along its habitable land strip of about 50 kms width. Including the National Highways and the MC Road, there are five major arterial roads and a good number of district roads criss-crossing them. All these roads are in bad shape. If the arterial roads running along the full length of the State and the feeder roads are improved making them two lanes and four lanes, depending on the traffic density investing about Rs. 1,000 crores, there would be no road in Kerala with more than 5,000 P.C.U. traffic density even by the year 2050. The electrified double lane railways can carry more than 50 per cent of the total surface transport of Kerala by introducing bullet trains and fast trains at closer intervals with which no road traffic system can successfully compete for fast, cheap and comfortable journey. There will be further relief in road traffic density with the completion of the schemes for inland water transport development, which is the lowest energy consuming mode of transport. The road transport will consume six times and the rail transport two times the energy for the same tonnage of transport. Viewed against these facts and the imminent energy crisis of our country which at present offsets 40 per cent of its total export income for the import of petroleum projects and the envisaged situation by 2020 when the total export earnings will equal the import cost of petroleum projects, the huge investment on this project is likely to be a misadventure. Even in developed countries like the U.S. having huge petroleum reserves, the inter-State highways are spaced only at about 250 km along their virgin lands and the railway network is not so developed as in India.

At present, there is no justification in making massive investment of borrowed money on this fancy project acquiring about 50 sq. km of scarce and costly land displacing about half a lakh of people and irreparably crippling the economy of the State. This ambitious scheme can wait for another 25 years expecting better times. Meanwhile as a prudent measure, the Government can prevent the growth of concrete jungle in the earmarked area for the express highway by notifying the freezing of this area for future acquisition.

- Joy Eapen,

Vennikulam, Pathanamthitta

Arranged hartals continue

Sir, -- Despite the fact that the High Court of Kerala has banned bandhs in the State, the politicians of the State continue to play the cruel game in different names - hartal and strike. Having seen the effects of hartals, the High Court directed the State Government to see that normal life is not affected on hartal days. The court also advised the State Government to take the services of the Army stationed in different parts of the State to maintain law and order, if the State police force alone cannot control the situation. Even now, hartals are `arranged', but the Government does not seem to have taken the court directive seriously. Can't the State Government's inaction be construed as defamation of court?

- S. Paul Dhason,

Thiruvananthapuram

Plight of train passengers

Sir, The Thiruvananthapuram Railway Division may be least concerned about the plight of thousands of rail passengers, who were daily travelling by 6525/6526 Express between Nagercoil and Kottayam, as they could implement the time changes and elimination of some stoppages which the passengers were enjoying for the last 25 years ignoring pleas of elected representatives, including Members of Parliament while there is a change of Government in the State.

Normally, when there is a public demand, the issue is discussed at the Parliamentary Consultative Committee meetings, constituted at the Divisional Level/Zonal Level. However, once a decision is taken for a major reshuffle of timings, which affects vast majority of commuters, then additional services are introduced to cope with the situation as remarked by the Minister of Railways recently in Thiruvananthapuram.

As per press reports, the current changes have adversely affected the entire State of Kerala and agitations are taking place from Neeleswaram to Parassala. Senior MPs have pleaded with the Divisional authorities to review the decision. But, the latter ignored their pleas.

It is high time that the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, intervened. And all the MPs of the State should take up the issue with the Union Railway Minister at the earliest.

- N. Muraleedharan Nair,

Chirayinkeezhu

Cheating by public units

Sir, -- Our public sector undertakings are set up to be role models of socialism and to set examples for private enterprises in the same sector. If major public sector enterprises like the KSRTC, KSEB and the KWA are considered as the doyens among the public sector units, all these white elephants have virtually become what ought not to be, in their respective areas of operations. These public undertakings have also become bane to the consumers. The KSRTC with its `limited' operations fleeces the hapless passengers, levying extra charge for `City Fasts', even as no extra facilities are provided and the city fasts cannot have speed limit more than that of any ordinary bus. The more the passengers, the less buses and less travel facilities.

The KWA collects sewage from the residences and simply discharges it to the rivers and drains all along the city, setting examples for a cheap and easy way of urban waste disposal; and distributes the polluted river water. It even claims charges for the air passing through the distribution system when there is disruption of pumping (which is the order of the day).

The KSEB takes pride in installing an electronic device, which registers energy consumption. It is the same political and executive dispensation that finds justification for these unmindful fraud on the people, that insist on punishing petty traffic offenders, shopkeepers and so on for not adhering to rules and standards. The advocates of the public sector owe a lot of explanations on their irresponsibility and cheating by these public sector units.

- K. Mohandas,

Kovalam.

Vennikulam, Pathanamthitta

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