Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Highway work likely to be delayed

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The alleged indecision of the Union government in releasing funds is likely to affect the maintenance of the national highways (NHs) in the State.

Following repeated requests of the State government for maintenance grant, the Centre is understood to have agreed in principle to sanction Rs.330 crore to the State.

This is despite the fact that the Centre has not given the grant due to the State during the past one decade.

Official sources told The Hindu that but for expressing its consent, the Centre had not given any official intimation on providing the funds so far. The High Court had directed the State government and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Wednesday to find ways and means for maintaining the National Highway 47 in good condition. The court observed that it was the duty of the NHAI to maintain the highway and the buck had been passed to the State government.

The indecisiveness of the Centre is likely to upset the State government's plans for completing the maintenance work within a time-limit. If the State Election Commission enforces the model code of conduct in connection with the local body elections, the plans for executing the maintenance works may go awry.

Though the State had been regularly requisitioning for its annual grant of Rs.300 crore, the Centre has not responded to the request during the past 10 years. So far the State has lost funds totalling Rs.3,000 crore. When T.M. Thomas Isaac took charge of the portfolio, he took the initiative in securing maximum funds from the Centre. Subsequently, M. Vijayakumar, as Public Works Minister too mounted pressure on the Centre for getting the funds at the earliest. The reluctance of the State in switching over to the build-operate-transfer (BOT) system has been pointed out as the main impediment in sanctioning the funds. Almost all other States have adopted the system. Though the government has not made a policy decision on the BOT system, it will have to arrive at a consensus soon.

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