KOCHI: Kuzhikandam Creek is the artery of Eloor municipality as it carries all the waste from industrial units in and around the area. Many efforts had been made to clean the water body in the past but nearly all of them have hit the wall. In the latest effort to clean up Kuzhikandam Creek, the Central as well as State Pollution Control Boards began a survey for the project. A public consultation in this regard was held in Eloor municipality. It is learnt that it will take four months to carry out the survey and the cleaning will begin after six months of the survey.
Kuzhikandam Creek, which has a length of 1.5 km, begins near Merchem and HIL companies. It joins Varapuzha backwaters which in turn flows into Periyar river and finally to the Vembanad lake.“The survey has just started. It will take at least one year to begin the cleaning process. The officials of Pollution Control Board are concerned about the dumping of waste, which are chemicals and toxic in nature, into the creek. The municipality wants the creek to be cleaned soon,” said P M Ayoob, Chairman, Eloor municipality.
Kuzhikandam Creek is contaminated with huge deposits of heavy metals and organic pollutants. Investigations carried out earlier had revealed that 24.5 hectares of soil and water bodies at four locations in Eloor are contaminated with pesticides and heavy metals. “Kuzhikandam Creek is the major carrier of diseases in Eloor. There are around 40 cancer patients in areas near the creek. It will be a herculean task to clean the creek as it has toxic chemical deposits from over three decades. The people here are concerned about the disposal of the waste from the Kuzhikandam Creek as they are well aware that it will be also toxic in nature,” said Eloor Gopinath, a native of Eloor.