Ranni: The Kerala Water Authority (KWA) has come under fire after abruptly pumping water into a pipeline that had remained unused for 17 years, leading to the collapse of a protective wall and severe damage to the approach roads of a newly inaugurated bridge on the Athikkayam–Gurumandiram–Kadumeenchira Road.

Works on the Athikkayam-Kochupalam bridge, which was opened to traffic just this past Sunday, had been completed using ₹5 lakh raised through public contributions, following years of official inaction. The protective wall of the bridge suffered the biggest damage after water gushed through an 8-inch pipeline during a trial run by the KWA.

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According to local residents, the pipeline network at the site had been dismantled during the construction of the bridge. Assuming that the pipeline works were complete, they proceeded to rebuild the protective wall and complete the remaining works on their own. Unaware of this development, the KWA initiated a trial run around 1 pm on Tuesday, pumping water through the pipeline without prior inspection or notice.

The sudden flow of water at high pressure levels damaged the protective wall and caused the newly concreted section to cave in. Cracks have also appeared on the remaining structure, triggering concerns over its stability. The water from the broken section, meanwhile, also began flowing into a canal beneath the bridge.

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Ranni MLA Pramod Narayanan, who visited the site, attributed the damage to a lapse on the part of the KWA. He assured that the agency would bear the responsibility of repairing the affected structure.

KWA officials have admitted to the mistake and have conveyed to the local Action Council their willingness to reconstruct the damaged wall. However, anger among local residents remains high. They have accused the agency of gross negligence and pointed out that the water was not stopped until the officials were alerted about the damage.

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This bridge had earlier suffered structural failures when one side of its protective wall collapsed on July 2 last year, followed by the other side in the weeks that followed. With the government slow to act, traffic along the route was completely shut down, and locals took the initiative to complete the remaining works themselves.

The road, included in the Rebuild Kerala Project, had been sanctioned ₹3.5 crore for resurfacing and for the reconstruction of the Athikkayam–Kochupalam bridge. However, the project contractor abandoned the project after completing only the stretch between Gurumandiram and Kadumeenchira, excluding the bridge’s approach road.

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