While the Container Terminal road has proved a blessing for thousands of motorists to bypass the traffic clogged city roads, it has become a nightmare for the three panchayats through which it passes.
The unlit road provides the perfect cover for anti-social elements to dump all sorts of waste, including toilet waste, along the road during night. At one point the problem turned so alarming that people of Cheranalloor, Mulavukad, and Kadamakkudy panchayats were forced to act on their own.
In Cheranalloor, panchayat members and residents’ associations joined hands to form squads for night patrolling to put an end to the menace.
They also volunteered to clean the already dumped waste.
“The instances of waste dumping have come down considerably ever since the squads hit the road. In fact, the only effort to dump waste since then was caught red-handed and the party concerned was let off with a warning,” said K.K. Suresh Kumar, president, Cheranalloor panchayat.
While no squads had been formed, one extreme reaction by residents of Mulavukad panchayat served as an effective deterrent. Fed up off repeated dumping of toilet waste in the cover of night, residents remained alert one night and intercepted a van used for pumping out toilet waste.
“The irate people set the van on fire and it seems to have served the purpose. For, the waste dumping incidents have dropped significantly since then,” said V.S. Ansar, president, Mulavukad panchayat. He said the police patrolling was proving ineffective and it required the people’s action to counter the menace.
Kadamakkudy panchayat president Valsa Francis, however, said the menace continued in her panchayat. She said the problem continued to persist with people along the side of the Container Terminal road waking up to packets of dumped waste. “Though police have increased patrolling at our request, they cannot be expected to be present all the time. People are also remaining alert though no night squads have been formed,” she said.
