THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even after seven months, the new Council has relatively done little to make the panchayat-turned-Corporation wards feel welcomed and part of the biggest Corporation in the State - Thiruvananthapuram. This was voiced by most of the councillors from the former panchayats who said that the Corporation was showing a ‘step-motherly approach’ towards them. Sadanandan Thai, K H Sudhir Khan, Omana and Gladis Alex who are councillors from Kottapuram, Harbour, Mulloor and Vizhinjam (formerly Vizhinjam grama panchayat) lashed out in the Corporation that the development programmes in their wards were at a standstill. Sreekariyam councillor Vijayakumar said that the road work and sanitation in his ward were in limbo. K Mohanan Nair, Chandavila councillor, said that the zonal office in Kazhakkoottam was being manned by a group of officers who have no inclination to development work. According to Gladis, the rough sea, following bad weather, had created flood in her ward last week. She had rung up the Corporation office for JCB to remove the debris, but the JCB had reached there by 1 pm and stopped working by 3 pm. The garbage in the area was another problem, Gladis said. According to Sudhir Khan, the Corporation was usurping all their income, but spending little for them. ‘’Are you ready to spend our income on our place?’’, he asked. Many councillors said that the Mayor and Deputy Mayor have to visit the zonal office there to know the real state of affairs. They said that the newspaper reports that the Corporation was on a sleep mode are absolutely true and the new wards are a testimony to this fact. The Deputy Mayor said that the government had issued an order saying that even after the merger of the panchayats with the Corporation, the functions of the panchayat would continue till March 31. After that the election code of conduct was in place, which was lifted this May 18 only. "Then when do you expect the Corporation to implement new projects or take up development works,’’ he asked. The Mayor could be heard asking "how did you manage when you were panchayats?’’However, the councillors accused the Corporation of hiding behind the argument of the election code of conduct for not performing, especially in the former panchayat areas. ‘’Is it because most of the councillors from the newly-formed wards belong to the UDF that the LDF-led Council is taking such a position?,’’ asked Sadanandan Thai. The Mayor said that the councillors have to attend the working groups and formulate projects for the welfare of their wards which is the best they could do. She then read out the dates when the working groups would be meeting, as if she did not believe a single word of what they all had said.
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