A Promise Kept: Joey’s Mother Finds a New Home

Thiruvananthapuram: A new home has been built for the mother of Joey, the sanitation worker who lost his life while cleaning the Amayizhanchan canal. The keys to the house, jointly built by the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and the District Panchayat at Chulliyoor Konath Vilakath, were handed over by Minister for Local Self- Governments M B Rajesh and Mayor Arya Rajendran.

The modest house, built on roadside land, has two rooms, a hall, and a kitchen, with a well constructed nearby.

Joey, a native of Marayamuttam, died on July 13, 2024, after being swept away while cleaning part of the Amayizhanchan canal near the railway tunnel. He was employed by a contractor working for the Railways, which later claimed he was not their employee. In the days that followed, the state government, the Corporation, and the District Panchayat came together to support his family.

The government granted 10 lakh rupees in financial aid. Since Joey’s old home had no proper access road, the District Panchayat purchased five cents of land worth five lakh rupees. With special permission, the Corporation included the project under the Life Mission housing scheme, and construction began. Minister M B Rajesh and MLA Melhi laid the foundation stone on March 26, 2025.

“Many make promises and forget them,” said Minister M B Rajesh during the key-handover. “But the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and the District Panchayat acted quickly. The house was completed in about 200 days, just as promised.”