THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government is not about to give up easily on the artificial reef project at Kovalam, it appears. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy told the Assembly on Tuesday that, ‘’more time is needed to evaluate the Rs 6 crore-project before writing it off as a failure.’’ ‘’The government does not feel that it is a failure. The artificial reef, which has been successfully installed elsewhere in the world, was introduced at Kovalam on a trial basis to protect the coast. The government intended to explore this method so as not to construct seawalls in tourism areas as they adversely affect beaches. More time is required to assess the results,’’ he said in reply to a question from MLAs Thomas Chandy and A K Saseendran. Till now, the state government has spent Rs 6,70,40,469 on the artificial reef project, which promised surfing possibilities, enhanced fish wealth close to the coast and a wider beach area. Twenty-eight geo-tex bags were dropped in the sea to shape the reef. One of the bags was later found on the beach, and was replaced. Recently, there were reports that one more bag was found beached. However, this was not true and the second discovery was in fact of remnants of the first bag, Chandy said. MONORAIL Electricity and Railway Minister Aryadan Mohammed ruled out any possibility of the proposed monorail project being extended to Attingal. He told the Assembly in a written reply that the project would link Balaramapuram and Mangalapuram in the district, but there was no plan to include Attingal. ‘’Now, there is no such proposal,’’ he said in reply to a question from B Sathyan.PADMANABHA SWAMY TEMPLE The state government will not interfere in the rituals and customs of the Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple, the Chief Minister reiterated on Tuesday. He told the Assembly in a written reply that the government would take a final decision on security after the Supreme Court issues its final verdict on the issue.
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