Crime Today News
Thiruvananthapuram: A political row has erupted in Kerala following the recent collapse of a portion of National Highway-66 in Malappuram and damage to some other sections during heavy rains, with rival parties on Thursday launching a political fight over the incident.
Ruling CPI(M) leader and State Public Works Department (PWD) Minister P A Muhammed Riyas on Thursday accused the opposition Congress-led UDF of using the incident as “a golden opportunity” to attack the government and undermine the major infrastructure project.
Responding sharply, Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan said the state government had done little other than take credit for a national highway built by the central government.
Taking a swipe at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Minister Riyas, the Congress leader said, “Those who once took credit and put up flex boards are now nowhere to be seen.”
Hitting back at the opposition party leaders, Vijayan said the development of the National Highway, which had been stalled due to the severe apathy of the previous UDF government, became possible solely because of the determination of the LDF government.
Addressing a programme in Kollam, he said that it was the LDF government that acquired and handed over the land, which made the construction of national highway possible.
He, however, added that the full responsibility for the construction of the national highway lies with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
“If the LDF had not come to power, the national highway project would not have become a reality,” the chief minister said.
Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister V Muraleedharan criticised the state government on the matter.
He questioned whether an environmental impact assessment had been carried out and asked if concerns raised by local representatives– from panchayat leaders to MLAs– about soil slip-prone areas had been communicated to the NHAI.
The former union minister said that the state government, which acquired and handed over the land, bears the primary responsibility.
The political blame game erupted following the collapse of a section of the under-construction National Highway 66, the appearance of cracks in parts of the road, and soil slips in areas where hills had been levelled for construction in central and northern Kerala after continuous rainfall earlier this week.
The incidents were reported from Thrissur, Malappuram, and Kannur districts.
In a Facebook post, Riyas said the issues will be resolved, and the project will move forward.
“If the UDF, which failed to implement the dream project of the people of Kerala due to its own incompetence during its tenure, now believes it can sabotage the National Highway development at its completion stage by turning the situation into a golden opportunity for putting the project into a crisis, then that is a challenge to the people themselves,” he said.
Talking to reporters here, Satheesan said the opposition had already warned that the highway was being constructed unscientifically.
“At that time, the ruling party mocked us in the Legislative Assembly. They had said that anyone taking a stance against the highway would be exposed. Around a dozen MLAs spoke against me then,” he said.
“The construction is indeed unscientific. There are no bypasses in many areas, and now roads are collapsing when it rains. Pillars were erected without even conducting proper soil testing,” the Congress leader alleged.
He said the opposition will continue to speak out about the project.
“No one is ready to take responsibility for the damage to the road. Those who once took credit and put up flex boards are now nowhere to be seen,” Satheesan said.
Vijayan alleged that when issues arose at some of the construction sites, some people were quick to blame the LDF government.
“One can ask — wasn’t it because the LDF acquired the land that the road construction progressed? In that sense, the state government has a responsibility. However, neither the Public Works Department nor the Kerala government has any role in the actual construction of the national highway. Everything is being carried out under the supervision of the National Highways Authority,” he said.
Vijayan also said that this is why the central government has now moved to take certain actions in response to problems related to the construction.
Meanwhile, alleging corruption in the execution of the project, a meeting of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office bearers demanded a comprehensive inquiry.
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