Kerala's three critical issues: Roads, waste and power

The transportation infrastructure in our state is inadequate  to cater to the present traffic density. A good  driver can cover a maximum of 40 km in an hour along the highways  in Kerala. Whereas in developed countries,  Gulf or even in China, it is  100 km per hour, two-and-a-half times  our speed.

The accident rate on our roads is  alarmingly high. In Great Britain, the number of casualties on the roads was  1857 in  2010.  In Kerala, the number  in 2010 was 3950, more than 10 per day.

These facts call for a serious review of our ‘Roads policy,’ if at all there is one, or form a new one without losing time. We need an eight-lane highway from Thalapady in the north to Kaliyikkavila in the south. The alignment has to be along the middle of the state and not through the coast or  the western hill tracts. This highway needs concrete drains on either side and rest areas with stalls at regular intervals. Further, cross- country pipelines and utility corridor must be planned  unlike in other countries.