The Hindu : Local residents on the warpath

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 23, 2004

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Local residents on the warpath

By T. Nandakumar

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, MARCH 22 . For hundreds of families in the Mangalapuram panchayat to the north of the city, the grim battle for water represents their struggle for survival. The region is in the grip of a severe water crisis that has left large parts of the district reeling under its impact. The searing heat has drained water bodies, and public wells and taps are dry.

The local people are on the warpath against the Government apathy in tackling the drinking water situation. The Thonnakkal, Mangalapuram, Karamodu, Mundakkal, Idavilakam and Mullassery areas are the worst-hit.

As many as 32 public wells in these areas have gone dry. Women are forced to walk long distances to collect water. Large parts of the panchayat which used to depend on a water supply scheme sourcing the Thurakode well have been left high and dry. The panchayat has urged the district administration to make arrangements for tanker lorries to supply water.

The local people believe that clay mining in the region has contributed to the depletion of natural water resources. "Until a decade ago, the water table in the region was so high that water shortage was unheard of, even in the peak of summer. Today, the wells are dry and deepening the wells does not yield any water," says Shajahan, who stays near one of the clay mines that blot the landscape.

The panchayat committee had adopted a resolution urging the Government to share the royalty paid by mining companies. It is estimated that the Government coffers receive an amount of Rs.463 lakhs every year as mining royalty from the clay mines in the Mangalapuram panchayat. "Even if we get a part of this sum, we could use it to ensure water supply in the entire region by restoring natural sources such as ponds and canals," says a civic official.

Interestingly, Mangalapuram was one of the few areas in the district that had demonstrated the success of group farming. But over the last four years, the absence of irrigation has forced most of the farmers to leave their land fallow. The Idavilakam panchayat member, Nissar, said that 90 per cent of the farms in the region had been left fallow. All the watersheds in the area have been destroyed. The loss of topsoil and reclamation of paddy fields have aggravated the situation, he points out.

The Mundakkal member, Ajithkumar, observes that the absence of a monitoring mechanism has led to the unchecked reclamation of fields. "It is a vicious cycle. As water scarcity forces farmers to give up cultivation, mining companies buy up the fields at throwaway prices for reclamation. The filling up of wetlands leads to further depletion of groundwater," he observes. The Mangalapuram panchayat secretary, S. Vijayan, admits that the situation is explosive. The panchayat members fear that they would have to face the wrath of the public unless something is done immediately. Civic officials feel that the Rs.50,000 sanctioned by the district administration for deepening wells is too little to make an impact, given the severity of the water scarcity.

Interestingly, despite repeated assurances from the Government, no proper guidelines have been issued to local bodies to take up rainwater harvesting projects.

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