Kochi Corporation to recommend Vigilance probe into G Memorial, P&T complex construction

The Kochi Corporation will recommend to the State government a Vigilance probe into the alleged lapses in the construction of G Memorial, built in memory of poet G. Sankara Kurup, and the P&T Apartment Complex, which have led to their present squalid condition.

Mayor V.K. Minimol announced this while responding to a discussion at the Corporation council meeting on Thursday, where ruling United Democratic Front councillors launched scathing criticism over alleged corruption, particularly in the case of the G Memorial. The memorial, set up at a cost of nearly ₹6 crore, was inaugurated by former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in February 2024.

Ms. Minimol said the Public Works Department had submitted a report denying that construction activity in the neighbourhood had caused the memorial to tilt, while the consultancy concerned claimed that increased vehicular movement during construction was responsible. “Those accountable for the inferior construction cannot be spared, as it will send a wrong message to future endeavours. They should also be made to bear the cost of the rectifications required,” she said.

V.A. Sreejith, LDF parliamentary party leader, said that while shortcomings must be addressed, the issue should not be reduced to an attempt to blame the previous LDF council and former mayor M. Anilkumar, who had taken the initiative to construct the memorial, as ruling councillors tried to do during the discussion. Earlier, UDF parliamentary party secretary M.G. Aristotle alleged that the memorial had been reduced to a symbol of corruption. He questioned why the original design was altered to include an open-air stage in a State where it rains for nearly six months a year. He further alleged that the memorial had one of the highest construction costs per square foot in the country, at over ₹8,000.

Ms. Minimol also pointed out that the Compressed Biogas (CBG) plant at Brahmapuram has been processing an average of 50 tonnes of waste per day, against its promised optimum capacity of 150 tonnes a day since commissioning. BPCL-KR, which funded the project, has asked the Corporation to ensure waste of 97% purity, free of plastic and other non-biodegradable components. She said the sanitation committee must ensure proper segregation at source by holding meetings with residents’ associations. The tendency to mix food waste with other refuse, such as sanitary napkins, should be identified and traced to the health circles concerned.

“Even then, it will take time before the plant achieves its optimum capacity, as BPCL will have to tackle issues such as arranging land for handling residues and disposing of slurry left behind after treatment,” she added.