Corp denies misuse of LIFE Mission bricks, says only damaged ones taken by staff

Thiruvananthapuram: City corporation denied reports that bricks intended for LIFE Mission housing scheme for the extremely poor were illegally taken away by its staff.
The bricks in question were damaged ones, used in Pongala last year, and were stored in the corporation garage compound at East Fort, said officials. Those damaged bricks were taken away by temporary staff for their personal gains.
A senior corporation official told TOI that efforts were underway to take action against the temporary workers. He added that the bricks the staff took away were damaged and couldn't be used for construction purposes. "We are not justifying the staff's act. However, it is not meant for LIFE Mission project. The bricks for the project are safe at Putharikandam ground and will be given to the beneficiaries from next week. The final list of the extremely poor category is ready. There was some delay due to technical glitches of the K-Smart portal. Now, it is ready and we expect to give away the bricks from Tuesday or Wednesday," the official said.
CCTV footage from the garage has been collected and appropriate action will be taken against the culprits, including dismissal of workers from service, the official said. The bricks meant for LIFE Mission project collected in 2024 were kept on the corporation's land at Jagathy.
Unlike previous years, corporation arranged vehicles for transporting the bricks, collected after this year's Attukal Pongala, directly to each beneficiary's construction site. The civic body identified 581 persons in the extremely poor category in the city and has been implementing various welfare measures tailored to their needs. Over 3 lakh bricks, collected during the cleaning after Attukal Pongala, will be used to build homes for 24 beneficiaries identified under the LIFE/PMAY housing scheme.
Last year, the leftover bricks were handed over to 22 families with each getting 8,000 bricks. They used the bricks to construct their houses. Volunteers had collected the bricks, segregated them and stored them at the garage and Putharikandam ground. The broken ones were stored at the garage at East Fort.