Kochi Corporation seeks CRZ clearance for road project on Thanthonni Thuruthu island

Two-member committee appointed to look into Kochi Corporation's plea to construct outer bund road around Thanthonni Thuruthu in Kochi backwaters.

The Kerala Coastal  Zone Management Authority has appointed a two-member committee to look into the plea of the Kochi Corporation to construct a five-metre-wide outer bund road around Thanthonni Thuruthu in the Kochi backwaters.

The civic body has approached the authority to obtain clearance under Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules. The clearance of the authority has to be obtained to construct the road as the island falls within the CRZ regime. The presence of mangroves and the buffer zone of mangroves, and the tidal-influenced waterbody make CRZ clearance mandatory for the project. The committee members, C. Revichandran and Richard Scaria, will visit the proposed project site shortly.

Besides the road, the civic body has proposed to carry out protection works along the island. It has proposed to construct the outer bund road and protection wall around the island by using dredged materials. Later, red earth will be filled up to a height of 60 cm to complete the construction of the road. The project cost is estimated at ₹6 crore.