KOCHI: A walk along the Vembanad Lake on the Queen’s Walkway or the Marine Drive sounds like a good plan until you take a look over the wall towards the lakeside.
Rotting waste, filth and plastic that visitors toss into the water body is now choking the mangroves surrounding the area.
Troubled by the sight, a group of people, including Kochi’s mangrove man T P Murukesan, got together recently to clean up the waste from the lakeside at Queen’s Walkway and Marine Drive.
“We collected 46 sacks full of garbage from near Marine Drive and around 16 sacks from near Queen’s Walkway,” said Ranjit Thampy, an environmental activist.
“These areas are frequented by domestic tourists and city residents who come here to exercise and relax,” said Ranjit.
The lack of proper waste bins and prompt removal of accumulating garbage is an issue at Marine Drive and Queen’s Walkway, he says. “There is not a single waste bin on the entire stretch. We need reasonably large-sized bins installed along the walkway. Where do the authorities expect people to throw the waste? For now, people just throw it on the walkway or into the water,” said Ranjit. Peeved by the sorry sight, Ranjit shot a small video and sent it to T P Murukesan. “He called me up and suggested cleaning the entire stretch,” he added.
So Murukesan, along with his family members and a few fishermen from Vypeen, cleared the waste from between the mangroves along Queen’s Walkway. “It took them nearly five hours to collect the waste. Queens Walkway does have waste bins, but people still throw waste into the mangrove forests and this goes unchecked,” said the environmental activist. The group coordinated with CSML and Kochi Corporation to remove the waste.
The problem gets compounded by the unlicensed eateries functioning along the walkway. “We had raised this issue with the authorities concerned many times. But nothing has been done yet,” he said. He added there is not a single bathroom on the 2.4km walkway. “Three bathrooms under the Kettuvallam bridge is renovated but are still not opened for the public. We need ‘pay and use’ bathrooms. The entire stretch needs at least ten bathrooms since a lot of tourists visit the walkway every day.” said Ranjit.
Meanwhile, replying to a letter sent by Ranjit, the Minister for Public Works Department and Tourism P A Mohammad Riyas said the issue has been brought to the notice of the director of the tourism department.