Minister for Public Works P.A.Mohamed Riyas and MLA Linto Joseph taking part in a procession at Koodaranhi in Kozhikode on the occasion of the inauguration of the Kodenchery- Kakkadampoyil reach of the hill highway on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: K. Ragesh
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said Kerala’s landscape was changing rapidly with the completion of highways and waterways connecting the State end to end. Inaugurating the completed Kodenchery-Kakkadampoyil reach and work on the Malappuram-Kodenchery reach of the hill highway at Koodaranhi on Saturday (February 15), he said road development had been key to industrial growth and investor-friendly environment in the State.
“Kerala has made great strides in start-up and industrial development. Earlier, investors hesitated due to mobility issues, but that is changing now,” he said, adding that road development would attract more investments.
The Chief Minister said the State was funding both the Hill Highway and the Coastal Highway, with a combined cost of around ₹10,000 crore. “The waterway from Thiruvananthapuram to Chettuva is also set for completion soon, with a few more canals to be added north of Vadakara,” he added.
Minister for Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas, who presided over the event, said the Hill Highway was once considered an impossible project. “No other State has a highway connecting its hill regions,” he added. MLA Linto Joseph, former MLA George M. Thomas, and the presidents of Koodaranhi, Puthuppadi, Kodenchery, and Thiruvambady grama panchayats were present.
The 34.76-kilometre stretch of the highway from Kodenchery to Kakkadampoyil via Nellipoyil, Pulloorampara, Ponnankayam, Punnakkal, Koodaranhi, Koombara, and Thazhe Kakkad was built by the Uralungal Labour Contractors’ Cooperative Society under the Kerala Road Fund Board’s direction. The stretch includes two bridges, 84 culverts, 42 kilometres of drainage, bus stops, interlocked footpaths in main towns, and streetlights.
Published – February 15, 2025 08:00 pm IST
