Congress councillor Vidya Balakrishnan has alleged that Niravu Vengeri, an NGO, was fooling the Kozhikode Corporation by mixing sand with plastic rejects it was entrusted to dispose of. Niravu is in charge of disposing of plastic rejects accumulated at the Corporation’s plastic recycling plant at West Hill. At the Corporation council meeting on Saturday, Ms.Vidya alleged that the NGO’s labourers were mixing sand with plastic rejects to make it weightier. Niravu is reimbursed for its expense based on the weight of the transferred material.
Mayor Thottathil Raveendran has asked the Corporation Secretary to conduct an inquiry into the allegation.
Low water level
Indian Union Muslim League councillor C. Abdurahman spoke about the low water level at the Kerala Water Authority’s pumping station at Koolimad and warned of a possible water shortage in the peak summer. He added that the ₹22 lakh set aside for water distribution may not be sufficient. However, the Mayor told him that the Water Authority has made alternative arrangements. He added that the election code of conduct was not applicable to water distribution.
Congress councillor M.C. Sudhamani said the Neelichira had not been cleaned since 2003 and that water from the pond was being distributed in the city. The Mayor asked the officials concerned to conduct a quality test of the water.
Later, the council approved the proposal of the District Sports Council for the renovation of the basketball court in Mananchira Square despite protest from opposition councillors. Mr. Abdurahman and BJP councillor Nambidi Narayanan pointed out that raising the basketball court to international standards will create more traffic congestion on the road that surrounds Mananchira and also opposed allotting more space to the court. However, JDU councillor Thomas Mathew and CPI(M) councillor M. Radhakrishnan said the city needed such a basketball court.