Hardly a fortnight after it was restored, the sole lift at the Aluva mini civil station was back to its erratic ways, posing problems to visitors, especially the aged and differently-abled.
On Thursday, two differently-abled persons had a narrow escape when the lift stalled just after dropping them on an upper floor, and they had to later fall back on the flight of steps to come down. Many crucial offices such as those of the tahsildar, RTO, Agriculture, Revenue, and employment exchange function at the mini civil station.
Meanwhile, three councillors staged a sit-in near the erratic lift demanding that the equipment be replaced at the earliest. They also took up the matter with the tahsildar.
“Since it was restored 12 days ago, the lift had abruptly stopped thrice. We have asked the tahsildar to place a demand for replacement of the lift as an agenda at the next taluk-level meeting,” said councillor Sebi V. Bastian. Councillors K. Jayakumar, A.C. Santhosh Kumar, and K.V. Sarala also participated in the protest.
After being in disrepair for over a year, the lift was restored last month on the intervention of the District Collector after The Hindu reported the plight of a differently-abled person who turned up for learner’s test on the fourth floor of the mini civil station. He had to be carried up and down by some good Samaritans, much to his discomfort.
At the time of restoration, Revenue officials had shared the concern that the lift might have outlived its life and might need replacement in the long run to avoid interruptions in the future. The lift was installed at the civil station 15 years ago.