Govt to give Kerala Water Authority Rs 4 crore to settle dues

KOCHI: The state government will allocate Rs 4 cr to settle the arrears of the Kerala Water Authority contractors.

This was decided at a high level meeting convened by Chief Minister Oomen Chandy in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday to discuss various issues pertaining to the implementation of drinking water projects in Ernakulam district.

The meeting, attended by ministers Aryadan Muhammad, P.J Joseph, K. Babu, Adoor Prakash, decided to allocate the funds from the Revenue Department.

The Chief Minister convened the meeting after legislators from the district submitted a memorandum to him seeking immediate steps to address the issue of frequent pipe bursts and subsequent loss of huge quantity of drinking water at Metro Rail construction sites, while many parts of the city were reeling under water scarcity.  

The MLAs pointed out that due to the ongoing strike by KWA contractors, repair works of damaged pipelines were being delayed causing disruption in water supply in the city and outskirts.

Contractors of both electrical and civil works have been staying away from regular maintenance works in pipelines, pump houses, transformers and substations in Ernakulam and Idukki districts demanding payment of overdue bills.

MLAs Hibi Eden, Benny Behanan, Dominic Presentation, Anwar Sadath, V.D Satheesan and Ludy Louis, Kochi Metro Rail Limited managing director Elias George, district collector MM.G Rajamanickam and officials of Kerala Water Authority attended the meeting.