Rampant reclamation of mangroves, backwaters

KOCHI: Close on the heels of Kerala high court ordering the demolition of DLF’s apartment complex in Chilavannoor, authorities have found rampant reclamation of mangrove forest and encroachment of backwaters at Maradu.
A joint inspection by the additional district magistrate (ADM) and Maradu municipal authorities have found that the land mafia has reclaimed around 14 acres of mangroves and encroached on about two acres of backwaters near Maradu.
Following reports that the land was reclaimed illegally, the revenue officials had served stop memos around two months ago but to no avail. “Officials had even seized the equipment used for filling the wetland. But they have resumed encroaching the ecologically fragile land,” said Ernakulam ADM B Ramachandran. “We will initiate legal action against those involved in this illegal activity. Moreover, we will ask them to remove earth used for filling the land and restore the old status. We are also exploring whether penal action can be initiated against the individual responsible for it,” he said.
“We will take measures to get the land surveyed by the survey department and identify the exact area of encroachment. The levelling of land is being carried out during night,” he said.
The Maradu municipal council which met on Tuesday has decided to take every possible action against the reclamation of ecologically fragile land.
“We have complained to the district collector, Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority (KCZMA) and police in this regard. We found illegal mangrove reclamation of around 14 acres and backwater encroachment of about two acres,” said Maradu municipality chairman T K Devarajan.
According to Maradu municipal authorities, the land is owned by a person hailing from Thiruvananthapuram. “As per the records, the land is owned by Thomas Cleofus of Kalluvila, Thiruvananthapuram. In 2013, the landowner had approached us seeking permission to develop the land. But we refused to permit it as developing the land would damage the rivulets passing through it,” Devarajan said.
On Friday, environmentalists and members of district level monitoring committee constituted as part of the Kerala Conservation of Wetland and Paddy Land Act visited the site to take stock of the situation. “Rampant reclamation of mangrove forest is evident,” said environmentalist.