KOCHI: Kerala High Court on Tuesday directed the state government to file a report on the survey conducted to identify illegal constructions and encroachments on the banks of the Chilavannoor lake.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly issued the directive on a petition filed by Cheshire Tarzan of Kadavanathara. The petitioner submitted that the water body had been included in the CRZ I as per the coastal regulation notification 2011. It’s part of the Vembanad backwaters, he said.
"The banks of the Chilavannoor lake were once fertile with Pokkali cultivation and thick mangrove vegetation. However, they have disappeared because of indiscriminate reclamation of the water body. Different species of fish which were present in the lake have also been lost," the petition said.
The government pleader submitted that the survey has been completed.