Master plan for City soon

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A detailed master plan for capital city development will be completed at the earliest and carried out, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy promised on Thursday. The State Government also plans to revive the Capital City Development Committee which existed during the A K Antony-led UDF government, he said. A senior bureaucrat will be appointed to co-ordinate all activities related to the development of Thiruvananthapuram, Chandy said while addressing a preliminary meeting on charting out a road map for city development attended by Ministers, bureaucrats and representatives of civic bodies. Every three months, the Chief Minister himself will review the sector-wise progress of work. ‘’A comprehensive programme was worked out and its implementation launched when A K Antony was Chief Minister in 2001. It’s ten years now, but the achievements we’ve made during this period are limited. That is not enough,’’ Chandy said. ‘’If we cannot display enthusiasm in developing our capital, then it is a shame on the entire State. And financial constraints are not the reason. If that was so, we could have consoled ourselves saying we had no money. But we have money,’’ he said. The State Government will lay special emphasis on the modernisation of the Sewage Farm at Muttathara and addressing the issues connected to the garbage treatment plant at Vilappilsala, Chandy said. The work at the sewage farm will be completed within a fixed time frame, he said. ‘’I will be convening a meeting within a week to discuss and settle the complaints regarding the Vilappilsala plant.’’  Cleaning up the polluted water bodies inside the city limits demanded urgent attention, the Chief Minister said, adding that sincere efforts were called for in this direction. Speakers at the meeting stressed the need for a comprehensive master plan for the capital city. V Sivankutty MLA blamed the lack of it for the piecemeal development of the city. He also called for a special scheme for the renovation of the Karamana and the Killiyar rivers. Mayor K Chandrika said it was true that Central funds were allocated for the city, but it was high time an evaluation was conducted about its utilisation. She also said that an officer in the rank of a gazetted officer should be appointed Plan Co-ordinator for the Corporation. The Corporation would be able to raise Rs 100 crore by way of prompt payment of property tax by government buildings, she said. Transport Minister V S Sivakumar presided over the meeting. Ministers  Aryadan Mohammed, P K Kunhalikutty, K Babu and Adoor Prakash, Deputy Speaker N Shakthan, Deputy Mayor G Happykumar and senior bureaucrats were present.