Need to reintroduce traditional system

KOCHI: The monsoon will hit the Kerala Coast in a week. But the authorities concerned have not taken any steps to prevent waterlogging in the city.   Many projects to prevent waterlogging are still on papers. Though the authorities are trying to find a solution, they are yet to go back to the old remedy, ‘pettiyum parayum’. It is a traditional and effective dewatering mechanism to pump out water from the low-lying areas to the lake. The water is drained out through a canal connected to the lake.The civic body has not taken any steps to proceed with their earlier decision to reintroduce ‘pettiyum parayum,’ an effective system to drain the city canals. “‘Pettiyum parayum’ was installed in my division a decade ago. This system is very effective. With the onset of monsoon, there would be waterlogging. Keeping this in mind, last year we took every step to maintain this mechanism effectively and we were quite successful to an extent,” said Geogy Kurikott, councillor, Palarivattam.“I had demanded the Corporation to reintroduce the system citing its various features almost a month ago. Unfortunately, it has not taken any steps in this regard,” he said.There are almost nine ‘pettiyum parayum’ in the city—two in Mullassery Canal, one near the KSRTC Bus Stand, two in Panampilly Nagar, one near Hotel Gokulam Park, two in Vyttila, and one in Chettichira. If they are not used for a long time they would rust,” said M Anilkumar, councillor, Elamakkara.When contacted, P R Molly, Assistant Executive Engineer, Vyttila, said “Tenders have been invited and the Corporation would resume work soon.”