Kerala cabinet sanctions Rs 351 crore for Wayanad Township project

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala cabinet on Thursday approved a budget of Rs 351 crore for the Wayanad Township project, aimed at rehabilitating survivors of the devastating landslides that struck the hill district last year, resulting in over 200 fatalities. The cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, granted administrative sanction for the amount, which includes the initial project costs, pending technical approval from KIIFCON, a subsidiary of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), according to a statement from the Chief Minister’s office.

Additionally, the cabinet ratified the deposit of Rs 17 crore made in the Kerala High Court in connection with a case filed by Elstone Tea Estate Ltd, which sought enhanced compensation for land acquired for the township project. Furthermore, Rs 20 crore was allocated from the Chief Minister’s relief fund to the Wayanad Township Special Officer to advance payments to the Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society (ULCCS) after signing the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract.

The township project was launched in response to the catastrophic landslide on July 30 last year in the Mundakkai and Chooralmala areas of Wayanad, which nearly obliterated both regions, causing hundreds of injuries, over 200 deaths, and leaving 32 people missing. Work on the township began on April 12, following assurances from Chief Minister Vijayan regarding timely completion. The construction commenced shortly after the Kerala High Court allowed the state government to take possession of the Elstone Estate land by depositing an additional Rs 17.77 crore.

In other decisions, the cabinet approved the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation’s (KSIDC) appointment of STUP Consultants Private Limited, Navi Mumbai, as consultant for preparing the detailed project report and related activities for the Sabarimala Greenfield International Airport, with a consultancy fee of Rs 4.366 crore. A committee chaired by the Chief Secretary was also established to address issues related to the airport project’s progress.

Moreover, the cabinet endorsed detailed project documents submitted by the Kerala State Electricity Board under the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM JANMAN) scheme. These documents pertain to the electrification of 261 houses of tribals from the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) across 22 partially electrified tribal areas in the state.

With PTI inputs