Kerala HC appoints Amicus Curie to look into Amayazhinchan canal tragedy
Jul 15, 2024
Ernakulam (Kerala) [India], July 15 : After a sanitation worker slipped into a drainage canal at Amayazhinchan Thodu in Thampanoor Central Railway Station in Thiruvananthapuram, the High Court has said that amicus curiae should visit Amaiyhanchan Thot and asked Railways, Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and the District Collector to submit a report on the accident.
The High Court has said that what steps will be taken to prevent the recurrence of the accident should be reported within ten days. The amicus curiae should visit Amaiyhanchan Thot and submit a report. The HC also directed that the Amicus Curiae should be provided with a railway travel facility and will receive Rs 1.5 lakh from the railways, the corporation and the government.
Railways, Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and the government should submit the report within 10 days, the HC said. The High Court will consider the petition voluntarily on July 26.
The High Court has also observed that the responsibility of removing the garbage from the railway land lies with the railway itself.
The action of the High Court is in a special sitting of the Special Division Bench. The sitting of the special division bench was prefaced with the premise that this is not the time to blame anyone. The High Court asked who was responsible for removing the plastic waste from the canal passing through the railway land.
The division bench also asked whether the Thiruvananthapuram corporation could do anything on the railway land without permission. The High Court also asked whether the waste from other places was joining the railway canal. The HC has also asked the railways to give an affidavit on how it will remove garbage from major stations in the state.
The government should give an explanation on the dumping of waste in Akkulam lake, the HC said. The High Court also asked the government how the waste removed by the contractors is disposed of.
Notably, the body of the worker, N Joy, 42 was spotted on Monday at the canal stretch behind the Sree Chitra Home at Thakarapparambu, the Councilor of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Rajendran said. Two corporation sanitation workers Rajeev and Manoj had confirmed that the body was that of Joy.
Amid heavy rains, Joy disappeared on July 13 while cleaning the drainage canal at Amayazhinchan Thodu and got swept into the canal that ran below the tracks of the platform at the station.
