The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) has directed officials to expedite stalled construction of service roads on both sides of the Kovalam-Porode bridge along the Kazhakkoottam-Karode bypass in Thiruvananthapuram, following complaints about hazardous highway crossings and prolonged project delays.
SHRC chairperson Justice Alexander Thomas directed the Thiruvananthapuram district collector to convene a meeting of senior officials to identify measures that can enable construction to resume. The meeting is also expected to include the concerned MP and MLA, according to a report by the Times of India.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has been asked to take steps to complete the service roads while considering the views of the elected representatives. The head of the Public Works Department’s national highway wing has also been directed to participate in the process.
The district collector, NHAI officials and the PWD official have been instructed to submit an action-taken report to the commission within four weeks. The officials have further been asked to appear before the SHRC at its sitting on November 2, when the matter will be considered.
The service roads have reportedly remained incomplete for years. The unfinished stretches near the bypass have become overgrown with bushes, while deep pits have formed on both sides of the highway. The absence of connected service roads has left people attempting to cross the bypass without a safer local access route, according to the complaint considered by the commission.
The complaint also stated that the highway crossing had become hazardous and that several people had reportedly lost their lives while attempting to cross the stretch. The supplied report does not provide details of the incidents or identify the agencies responsible for the earlier delay.
Service roads alongside high-speed bypasses are intended to provide local access without requiring pedestrians and nearby residents to cross the main carriageway. At Kovalam-Porode, the stalled works have instead left an unfinished road environment in which the bypass continues to function as a barrier between adjoining areas.
The SHRC’s direction places responsibility for the immediate administrative response on the district collector, NHAI and the PWD national highway wing. Their action-taken report and appearance before the commission on November 2 will indicate what steps have been identified to restart and complete the service roads.
