Southern Railway urges government action to prevent garbage accumulation in canal in its premises

Thiruvananthapuram: Hours after the Kerala government blamed it for non-cooperation in cleaning up of a canal where a sanitation worker drowned recently, the Southern Railway on Monday said steps should be taken by the government agencies to prevent garbage from entering the underground channel in the railway area.

It extended "deepest condolences" to the family of Joy, who lost his life while working for the contractor engaged in the cleaning of Aamayizhanjaan canal passing through Thiruvananthapuram central station premises.

In a statement, the Thiruvananthapuram Division of the Southern Railway claimed that the waste generated during passenger handling is properly cleared from the station.

"Thus, the possibility of dumping of railway waste in the canal is not there," it said.

Noting that all the coaches running on Indian Railways are fitted with bio-toilets, the railway authorities said this prevents the open discharge of waste materials.

This cleaning exercise was carried out by railways earlier also, particularly before the start of the monsoon, to prevent flooding inside railway premises.

"It is clearly understood that cleaning/clearing of the underground area is the toughest, time taking and challenging. All decisions and efforts should be there to prevent garbage/waste from entering the underground channel in the railway area," it said.

Barriers may be erected by concerned authorities upstream in the city corporation area for collecting waste and silt in more accessible areas, the statement said.

"Of course this should be preceded by fining and identifying the polluters. Proper fencing alongside the canal and also installing CCTV monitoring in vulnerable areas will help in identifying the culprits," the railway authorities said.

There should be a designated place in the city for the collection of solid waste, they added.

Earlier in the day, the Kerala government criticised the Southern Railway for refusing to cooperate with the Thiruvananthapuram City Corporation in cleaning a canal where a sanitation worker died on July 13 while engaged in the cleaning operation.

State Minister for Local Administration, M B Rajesh said the railway had refused to cooperate with the city corporation, despite giving several notices to clean up the Amayizhanjan Canal within its premises.

The minister further said if the railway continues with non-cooperation, the provisions of the Disaster Management Act will be invoked to take action.

Joy, a temporary cleaning worker employed by a railway contractor, went missing while clearing the waste-filled canal criss-crossing through the heart of the capital city on Saturday.

His body was found in another area of the canal by sanitation workers of the city corporation on Monday morning.