Protest over delay in pool renovation work

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Nothing much has gone right ever since Kerala was chosen to host the 35th National Games. The construction of a swimming pool in the capital city is just one among the several embarrassments, courtesy the goof-ups on the part of the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) and the organisers of the Games. The result is that the existing swimming pool on the KWA campus at Vellayambalam has been lying defunct and renovation works stalled thus inviting the wrath of those who had been been using the pool regularly.The Kerala Water Authority Swimming Pool Users’ Association has called for an urgent probe into the delay in the renovation work of the pool. A statement issued by B Gopakumar, secretary of the Association, says that it is people’s right to get back the pool which has been nearly demolished as part of renovating it for the Games. "Everyday, more than 500 people were using the pool from 1962 onwards. They were paying Rs 10 each. The pool has also been the venue for several top-level competitions,’’ the statement said.The renovation work of the pool was stopped after the pipeline laid close to it burst. The damage on the pipeline had caused drinking water shortage for several days in various parts of the city, following which the KWA decided to stop the renovation work. It is said that nearly Rs 3 crore has already gone down the drain for the renovation work. Crores are further needed to complete the works.  Meanwhile, the Games officials are considering the swimming pool at Pirappancode as an alternate option."If suitable space was not available on the KWA campus, why was the existing pool demolished, that too at a whopping Rs 3 crore? Also, if there are enough facilities available at Pirappancode, why was the pool planned between the Jimmy George Indoor Stadium and the existing swimming pool at Vellayambalam where there was a drinking water pipeline?” the statement asks. In fact, the Association, in 2009, had submitted a memorandum to Shashi Tharoor MP, suggesting another location for the pool, against the backdrop of the congestion that it would bring in. "The existing pool was constructed in 1961 by Col Godavarma Raja, when the population of the city was only around one lakh. Now the number has gone up. Presently, the pool is in a bad state as amenities in the pool have not been proportionately improved over the years,” the memorandum had cited. The Association had given memoranda to former Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan and former ministers M Vijayakumar and N K Premachandran. "The root cause in demolishing an existing swimming pool is the greed for money from the Games fund. The UDF Government should do something to put everything back on track,” the Association secretary said in the statement.