KOCHI: 68-year-old Joseph, a resident of Kannamaly, lives barely 10 metres from the sea. And for over 30 years, he never had trouble sleeping. He was used to waves leaping over the seawall and hitting against the wall of his house. However, for the past one month, he has only been able to sleep two to four hours per day. For the fear of losing his home to the high waves that rush in through the damaged seawall is worrying him.
Several houses adjacent to his house are flooded following sea erosion. “How can I sleep in such a situation? The sea may engulf our houses any time,” says Joseph, while preparing a sand-filled sack to protect his house from the waves.Not just Joseph but hundreds of people living in Chalakkadavu, Cheriyakadavu, Kandakkadavu, Kannamaly and Manassery of Chellanam panchayat are worried. All they want is the extension of the tetrapod project to Saudi Junction, which they say is the only option to save the coast from raging waves.
“The seawall in the Kannamaly-Manassery area was strengthened more than 25 years ago. After that, no step has been taken to strengthen or repair it. The tetrapod project, which kicked off at Chellanam, has to be extended up to Saudi Junction in the Kochi corporation limit. Otherwise, everything will be washed away in a couple of years,” Joseph says.
Though the tetrapod project from Chellanam harbour to Puthenthodu has helped prevent sea erosion in that particular area, the northern part of the panchayat is yet to be included in the project.Says Rosy, a Kannamaly resident: “We too are human beings. How long can we live here battling fear? Now, the government is focusing more on Chellanam. But people in Kannamaly are also suffering from sea erosion. Whenever our houses are flooded by seawater, we are forced to take shelter in relief camps or our relatives’ houses. At times, we fear we may not wake up the next morning.”
Members of the Janakeeyavedi say the tetrapod project needs to be extended to a minimum of 18km, up from 10km. “The current project only offers a partial solution. Once the work in the Chellanam area is completed, the effect of sea-erosion will be high in the Kannamaly area where the seawall has been damaged completely. The government has undertaken the project at Chellanam only to silence the coastal people,” says a Janakeeyavedi member who did not wish to be named.
Meanwhile, Ernakulam
MP Hibi Eden said the government is wasting crores by installing geotubes in coastal areas.
“For many years, I have been demanding the extension of the tetrapod project up to Saudi Junction from Chellanam but the government is not ready to consider it. If they fail to start strengthening seawalls in other areas, including Kannamaly, more areas will bear the brunt of sea erosion,” Eden said.