Kochi: With consumerism increasing by the day, products being brought in need to be stored at a place that has good connectivity, thus making distribution efficient. Kochi city and its adjoining area was once such an ideal location but the deluge of 2018 upended the advantage.
The warehouse of electronics company Impex located at Malikampeedika near UC College in Aluva was inundated on Aug 16, 2018. Electronics goods stored there were damaged, and the company pegged the loss at several crores of rupees. Within a week, the company moved its goods to a 20,000sq ft warehouse at Oorakkad near Pukkattupady. The new warehouse was double the size of its previous storage space.
Moving to ‘safe' locations
The floods of 2018 prompted many companies with warehouses in Kochi city and surroundings to relocate to areas with the least chances of inundation. Thus places like Pukkattupady, MalayidomThuruth, Ambunad and Chemmalappady in Kizhakkambalam panchayat and areas in Edathala panchayat gained prominence. Now home to a cluster of more than 50 warehouses within a 4-km radius, Pukkattupady is around 14km away from Edappally.
"Water level had touched 11-ft high in the warehouse at Malikampeedika and we lost several electronics goods stored there. Even before the floods, we were planning to start a warehouse at Oorakkad near Pukkattupady. So, after the huge loss, we moved to the new facility near Pukkattupady within a week," said N Pradeep Kumar, manager of Impex warehouse at Oorakkad.
"Initially, we faced a few difficulties, including labour issues. But now, things are smooth as locals and trade unions are cooperating," he added.
Size does matter
Besides the floods, there were other factors contributing to businesses shifting their warehouses from other places to Pukkattupady and surrounding areas. "As city grew, land constraints forced the warehouse operators to look for other places. Unlike in the past, now we need bigger warehouses as the quantity of goods stored increased and its varieties changed," said Rajkumar Gupta, president, Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) and a pioneer in warehouse industries in Kochi.
"The new warehouses, which came up in the interiors of Kochi, are much bigger compared to those in the city centre. The huge structures, with greater height, facilitate the movement of forklifts and other machines, thus helping directly unload the goods and place it on racks erected at various levels in the warehouses. This helps increase efficiency and safety," Gupta said.
Safety first
Even as the area gained prominence for the many warehouses, caution was thrown to the wind. In 2025, state govt suspended the then secretary of Kizhakkambalam grama panchayat for granting permission to operate a warehouse which lacked no objection certificate (NOC) from the fire and rescue services department.
"Normally local body authorities should check and insist on NOC from the fire and rescue department before allowing warehouse operations. Warehouses with more than 10,000sq ft need fire department's NOC. After the warehouse near Pukkattupady, where rice and floor tiles are stored, was found operating without fire NOC, we served notices on the owners. Now, they have applied for NOC. Though the warehouse owners had made several arrangements to fight fire, we sought explanations from them," said N H Assainar, station officer at Pattimattom fire station.
According to fire and rescue officials, warehouses above 10,000 sqft need facilities to tackle fires. They include underground and overhead water tanks, hydrant points and firefighters. "Unlike warehouses in industrial belts like Eloor, where mostly chemicals are stored, the warehouses in and around Pukkattupady are used for storing goods like electronics items," he said. Still, there should be proper precautions, especially as Salem-Kochi LPG pipeline passes close to some of the warehouses in the area, he added.
Changing social scenario
As the warehouses began operating, social settings in the once sleepy and serene village around Pukkattupady started showing marked differences. Some of the godowns work round the clock and this prompted nightlife in the area. Some hotels in the vicinity now remain open throughout the night. Of late, the village hardly sleeps. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with
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