KOCHI: Setting an example, the Kerala Water Resources Department is renovating the decades-old pond of the Thirunettoor Mahadeva Temple in Maradu municipality.The Rs 44-lakh project envisages restoring the pond to its old glory with a length of 90 metres and a breadth of 60 metres.On Saturday, Water Resources Minister P J Joseph will inaugurate the project sanctioned by the state government after being included in the 13th Finance Commission, under the scheme to renovate water sources.Excise and Ports Minister K Babu, the MLA of the Tripunithura constituency under which the area falls, will preside over the function. The state government is moving ahead with the pond-renovation under Minor Irrigation Works (MIW). Tripunithura MIW assistant executive engineer A Geetha Devi told ‘City Express’ that, once completed, the pond will be the largest in the district.“Such a project is a novelty in Ernakulam. It is estimated to be completed in nine months and it will be the biggest pond in the district,” she said, and added that the depth of the water body will be increased up to 2.4 metres.Maradu municipal chairman T K Devarajan said it was a long-standing demand of the people to renovate the pond, which had shrunk to less than half its size. “We have received requests from people cutting across all sections to renovate the pond,” he said.“The pond will not just be beneficial for the temple but also for the public. It will help retain the ground water level in the area. We will also consider setting up water purification plants in the future. There is also a proposal to create a parking lot at the northern side of the pond and to build walkways on the other three sides. It will go a long way in raising the stature of this historic temple,” he said.The temple is renowned for the special ‘balitharpan’ offered during the ‘amavasya’ of the month of Karkkidakam, according to the Malayalam calendar.
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