Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Protest against site for police station

Photo: S. Mahinsha

mired in controversy: The site for the proposed police station at Sanghumughom in the city.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The government move to construct a building for the Valiathura police station on the sprawling ground adjacent to the Sanghumughom beach has evoked strong protest from a section of the local people who feel that it would mar the beauty of the landscape and deprive the city of a meeting ground for mass gatherings. District Collector N. Ayyappan has ordered an investigation into how the Home department came into possession of the land for the project.

The Sanghumughom Beach Tourism Development Society has urged the government to review the proposal and provide an alternate site for the police station building.

Local people became aware of the situation after the builders started earthwork at the site measuring 50 cents. Huge mounds of sand are piled up on the ground on the beach side of the mermaid statue and the traffic park adjacent to the Arattu Mandapam. The ground is preferred for large gatherings and trade fairs marked by a high turnout. It also accommodates a football ground where youngsters from the coastal areas practise their skills

Pannian Ravindran, MP, and V.Surendran Pillai, MLA, visited the site on Friday to assess the location. Mr. Ravindran said the concerns expressed by the local people appeared to be true. “We have been informed that the Revenue department had handed over the land to the Home department. It is the location of the site that has led to protests. We will submit a representation to the Home Minister urging him to review the proposal,” he said.

Kannanthura ward councillor Solomon Vettucaud said the local people were not against the project. “In fact, the demand for a police station near the beach is a long-pending one. But the current location has given rise to fears that the building would turnout to be an eye sore on the vast open space and affect the future development of the beach,” he says.

The District Collector said he had directed the tahsildar to inspect the site and report on how it came to be selected for the project. “I expect to receive the report by Monday,” he said.

Director of the Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS) Dr.M. Baba said the site did not seem to be a violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone norms. “Under the municipal laws, the Corporation can sanction the construction of a new building on the landward side of the existing road or approved structures”, he said.

Mayor C. Jayan Babu said he would look into the matter to find out if the Corporation had issued a building permit for the proposed police station. The site falls within the area earmarked for the Sanghumughom beach development project, which involves beautification of the area with extensive landscaping.

City planners have highlighted the need to develop Sanghumughom as an alternative venue for public functions, trade fairs and exhibitions that cause traffic congestion and mess up the city infrastructure. They also point to the need to enhance the tourism potential of the beach.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

AMMA welfare scheme for more artistes
Rs.360 crore interest on farm loans waived
New range officers deployed
IIITM-K to offer courses in open mode
Welfare schemes for more artistes
BJP takes out march
Modernity seldom reflected in middle class thinking in Kerala, says K.N. Panikkar
Protest against site for police station
Malayalam web site for Kerala Tourism
Demand for costal police station
Coast Guard re-floats fishing trawler
Specialty cadre for government doctors
22,000 families to get new houses
Elected office-bearers
New range officers deployed
KPCC defers stir plan
Doctors reject pay package
Thiruvananthapuram today

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu