S Krishnakumar, former Ernakulam Collector and former Union Minister, is one of the chief architects of modern Kochi. On the 10th anniversary of City Express, Krishnakumar pens down the journey of the city in the past 10 years and his vision for its future.The Kochi port is a gift of nature to Kerala. Formed some seven centuries ago when a major flood hit the banks of the Periyar, the Kochi port replaced the Kodungalloor port as a major centre of trade. It was developed at various stages, by the rulers of the Cochin state and later by various governments. Gradually, there was a confluence of connectivity, including roads, shipping and aviation, around the port.Owing to these inherent advantages Kochi naturally emerged as the industrial and commercial capital of Kerala. From then on the development of Kochi became synonymous with the development of the hinterland around itthe Greater Cochin area. There has been several phases in the development of the area.Robert Bristo who developed the Willingdon Island was one. Another stalwart who shaped Kochi’s development was V K Krishna Menon.The list is a long one.These men brought about planned development to the city.But now what is happening is unplanned haphazard growth like the one that is seen in Mattancherry.The GCDA’s developmental plan laid out 30 years ago clearly spells out several components that are required for the city. In the past 10 years a number of these have materialised as per the plan, including the Container Terminal at Vallarpadom, the LNG terminal and the Goshree Island bridges. But many components like drainage, water supply, traffic congestion etc have been ignored. The main failure of these projects is the lack of attention specifically to the Kochi city. There is a failure of town planning at the administrative level.Powers have been taken away from institutions like the GCDA and given to local self-government bodies. The planning for an entire region cannot be handled by a panchayat or a municipality.There is an absolute lack of imagination at the level of town planning.In many bodies associated with city planning, appointments are based on political affiliations, group loyalties or on the basis of community.This should be changed. Thirty years ago we were able to reclaim land from the sea. Later, the land was was given to the corporation. But today the same organisation is selling off land to private parties. The open public places in the city are being transferred to private hands. This could become a grave issue in the future.The main resource in a city like Kochi is the increase in land value. But the government is not able to consolidate the benefits of this addition to land value since a vast portion of land in the city is in the hands of private players.The addition in land value is attained through infrastructural development.But this is given scant attention. Earlier, we had proposed a body to take care of the infrastructure of the entire city. This body must have representatives from both the Central and state governments. Unless something like this comes up, the city can only have haphazard and unplanned growth. Owing to the unplanned growth we are still struggling with problems like poor drainage system which other countries have solved centuries ago.Cover rural POCKETSMany have echoed Mahatma Gandhi’s sentiments that India lives in its villages.The population is more concentrated in villages and any developmental programme must reach rural pockets also, said Justice V R Krishna Iyer.Today the craze is for urban development. Slums, absence of good accommodation and basic needs make towns ugly and fi lthy. Our cities are marred by concrete jungles where human beings live like insects, without the dignity of true development.When I ask Mayors about their plan for the city, they have no meaningful answers. When you enter villages there is nothing civilized there. Our villages must receive more attention. More civilized facilities such as potable water, sports facilities and communication possibilities are needed in villages City has changed A LOTA feel of freshness and sanctity pervaded the air when I set foot in Kochi in 1954. The cool breeze from the river and backwater caressed the city and a pleasant smell wafted. The warmth of the sun spread as it rose, with no high rises to mar the view of the horizon. It was common to see women walking to the temples in clean clothes in the morning and evening. Cycle rickshaws took you around and life moved at a leisurely pace. Uplifting was the ambience.Women were safe, abuse or eve-teasing was unheard of, men did pass trivial comments though, said journalist Leela Menon. But things have changed for the worse since industrialisation. Population explosion, vehicle explosion and pollution are choking Kochi.Make the city LIVEABLEKochi Corporation Town Planning Committee chairman K J Sohan is of the opinion that though the city is being projected as one of the fast growing metros in the country, it is yet to attain the status of a ‘livable’ city. “To make the city livable, we will have to work on the fundamentals. Priority should be given to basic needs of society, including drinking water, healthy environment and better access to the opportunities that a city generates,” Sohan said. Cities are known as angels of growth and to fully utilise the benefi ts of this growth, our priorities should be right. “For instance, a well-planned public transport system is essential to create better access for the public to the opportunities created by the city A film hub in the MAKINGWith its proper geographical positioning and true metro characteristics, Kochi has emerged as a fi lm hub in the past few years, observes fi lmmaker Siddique.“Other than the multiplexes, all other theatres in the city are more than 30 years old and they remained without any refurbishment till 10 years ago. It was during the last ten years that the city theatres got a real facelift. Theatres like Sridar and Padma were renovated and multiplexes were introduced in the city,” he says.Another important change, he says, is the change in theatre culture. “Family audience is returning to the theatres as they can now watch fi lms without any external distractions. Even the spending pattern has changed as they are ready to pay extra money Private investment SHOULD GO UPKochouseph Chittilappilly, Managing Director, V-Guard Industries Ltd, expressed his concern over the disparity between private investment and infrastructural development in the city. In the past ten years, a number of multi-storey buildings have come up across the city and the roads are now fl ooded with expensive cars. But at the same time the infrastructural development in the city has not kept pace with this. In the past ten years there has hardly been any major roads laid down in the city. As such there is an increase in congestion.So what we fi nd is a clear imbalance, he said. The buying power of the people has gone up but the infrastructure has not kept pace with this.Increase in floating POPULATIONThe major change in the city during the past ten years is the increase in the fl oating population. This has acted as a catalyst for the real estate industry.Till 1992, the number of housing complexes was below 10. Now the number is over 100. What attracted people to Kochi is nothing but the fact that it is a growing city. Expectation on mega projects such as Vallarpadam Container Terminal and Smart City have attracted people to Kochi. But the unfortunate fact is that the infrastructure in the city remained the same, though the number of people increased. The construction of Goshree bridges and the linking of Vypeen island with the city is the major achievement on the infrastructure side. It is to be noted that the project was implemented not on a BOT basis.City GROWINGGradually Kochi is becoming alien to its natives. There is no doubt that the city has grown but along with the growth, migrants have pocketed major hubs which had led Kochiities to the suburbs, says former Mayor C M Dinesh Mani. The city has not been scientifi cally planned. This would lead to many issues in the coming years, he said. “Kochi will become a hell for all if the authorities did not have a proper vision,” he said. Kochi has come across many big projects that have pushed the city towards the suburbs, he added. “The city has become a place unfi t for living,” he said. He also feels that the city was losing its rich culture and tradition. Mall culture and fl at culture have carved into the heart of the city, he said Infrastructure woes REMAINRecalling the development that took place in the city in the past ten years, Deepak Ashwani, the chairman of Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that Kochi is the fastest growing city in the state. However, issues like infrastructure have not been addressed all through the years.He expressed concern over the upcoming Metro project that would affect the business community in the city. “One of the major issues with the city is lack of infrastructure for the development of trade and commerce. This has been a major issue with the city during the last decade. Around 200 to 300 vehicles arrive on the roads of Kochi every day. But unfortunately we don’t have any proper roads in the city.” He pointed out that the Metro railway has already done enough damage to the business community in Kochi.City has lost old VALUESThe city has grown much and with the growth it has lost some of the old values, feels Excise Minister K Babu. When Kochi grew, the people and their culture changed that has almost changed the face of the city, he says. “It is quite natural for a city to change itself with its growth. Now we lack the love and the helping mentality that used to be there years back,” Babu said and added that life has become fast now. Even in political life, changes can be felt.Feeling a decline in the political culture, Babu says that the intimacy and love that was felt among the politicians have been lost somewhere. Recapturing the fi rst days when he landed in Kochi along with his grandfather, he says: “I see a great change in the city." More focus on BUSINESSUnion Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies K V Thomas feels the city has lost the age-old love and intimacy. “There was a time when love and intimacy fl ourished in the city. Even politicians belonging to different parties had respect and love for each other,” he said. And this intimacy, love and bondage have been lost somewhere. Remembering the days when the entire city was part of the festival of the Eranakulathappan temple, Thomas says that nowadays there is not much life in these festivals. “Today, everything is looked upon on the basis of business,” he notes. The small hotels that used to sell delicious foods are a lost memory for Thomas.
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