Bund built for railway bridge causing flooding: Report

KOCHI: The investigation report by the Water Resources department pertaining to the cause of flooding at Kalamassery, Eloor, Muppathadom and Aluva has identified the temporary bund built for the construction of the Vallarpadom Container Terminal Railway Bridge and the construction debris as the problem.

As per the report, only by removing the bund and the construction waste can the problem of waterlogging and flooding in these areas be resolved. 

The report was prepared by a team led by the Water Resources department executive engineer, as per the direction of the Minister for Industries P Rajeeve.

The minister had directed the department to conduct the study after receiving complaints from various quarters including the Social Welfare Action Society.    

As per the report, the major block in the flow of water is near the ferry at Don Bosco Lane in Vaduthala. This is the junction where the Periyar river meets the Vembanad Lake.

It was in 2009 that a temporary bund was built here to facilitate the construction of the railway bridge. However, even after the construction was completed, the bund was not removed.

In addition, the debris from the construction also accumulated along the bund, further disrupting the flow of water.

At present, waste and silt has accumulated to a distance of 1km on both sides of the pillars of the bridge. As a result, fishing boats can venture out only from between two pillars out of the 20. The rest are all blocked.

As per the report, if the accumulated waste is not removed, over time more will flow into the block, making the situation even worse. Removing the block will even help the Port Trust’s dredging process.

For this, around 15.6 metric tonne silt will have to be removed from the area spanning 780m in width. Also, to depose off the silt, ideal places at the nearby islands need to be identified.  

The report has also advised making DP World and AFCONS company, which was contracted to carry out the construction of the bridge, a part of the clearing up process. Earlier, AFCONS had told the High Court that it would remove the temporary bund. 

Meanwhile, the minister said the district collector will be directed to take further action based on the report. A meeting of stakeholders like Port Trust, DP World, and construction company AFCONS will be called to deal with the problem, he said.