Credit row clouds Vazhuthacaud Smart Road launch
Political friction has emerged over the allocation of credit for Smart City road project, despite its joint funding by the Centre and State.
Political friction has emerged over the allocation of credit for Smart City road project, despite its joint funding by the Centre and State.
Political friction has emerged over the allocation of credit for Smart City road project, despite its joint funding by the Centre and State.
Thiruvananthapuram: A controversy has erupted over who deserves credit for the construction of the newly inaugurated Vazhuthacaud Smart Road, developed as part of the Smart City project in Thiruvananthapuram. According to sources, Local Self-Government Minister M B Rajesh is reportedly displeased with the way the road was inaugurated, despite the fact that it was the Local Self-Government Department that spent the state’s share for the project, implemented jointly by the Centre and the State.
The inauguration, which Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan did not attend, was instead carried out by the General Education Minister V Sivankutty at a function presided over by Public Works Minister Mohammed Riyas. Though speculation began doing rounds that the Chief Minister’s absence was prompted by a complaint from Minister Rajesh, the Chief Minister’s Office dismissed such reports as baseless. Minister Rajesh too denied having raised any complaint.
The incident has triggered talk of a tussle between two departments under the state government, even as a political battle is brewing between the CPM and BJP over credit for the project’s funding. Both the Centre and the State have contributed ₹490 crore each to the Smart City project in Thiruvananthapuram. Of this, approximately ₹220 crore has been spent on smart roads alone. At a crucial stage in the project, Public Works Minister Mohammed Riyas intervened and convened a meeting, after which the construction responsibilities were handed over to the Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (ULCCS).
Though the Public Works Department did not directly fund the project, it was Minister Riyas who presided over the inauguration ceremony. Minister Rajesh was included as the Chief Guest. On the day of the inauguration, the Chief Minister attended several events in the morning but cancelled three afternoon engagements, including the road’s inauguration. His office cited a fever as the reason for his absence. However, reports soon came out suggesting the decision was influenced by Minister Rajesh's displeasure over the Local Self-Government Department being sidelined in the ceremony.