KOCHI: The city where the beautiful vessels, the masterpieces of the Yavanas stir white foam on the Periyar, river of Kerala...
Arriving with gold and departing with pepper…
These lines are from the Akanau, a collection of Tamil poems from the Sangam period, describing the ancient port city of Muziris or Muchiri Pattanam. The poem continues: “The city has liquor abounds... bestows wealth to its visitors indiscriminately.”
The port that enriched present-day Kodungallur was blessed by the sea and the majestic Periyar, which also spelled its destruction eventually. “Yavanas refer either to the Greeks or Romans,” notes Bony Thomas, a founding member and now the treasurer of Kochi Biennale Foundation.
“Even at that time, we were trading with the western world. Also, traders from Gujarat frequented Muziris. All came for the enticing spices, especially the black gold (pepper).” The port was the centre of trade. Boats arrived in Muziris carrying pepper, spices, and other products through the Periyar. “Those days, there was no road, only the river and boats,” adds Bony.
This golden age came to an abrupt end in 1341. A natural calamity struck the region. “It was not just a deluge due to incessant rains, the theory goes,” Bony explains. “The Periyar delta saw something like a tsunami, and it completely engulfed the Muziris port. All that was left was the muddy slurry that washed ashore from the Kochi region.”
As the Muziris port vanished, along with the flourishing trade in Kodungallur, another port came to be, the Kochi port. “Kochi was an island then. No road; just the river, lake, and the sea. With Muziris falling to nature, trade concentrated in Kochi,” adds Bony.
Fast-forward to Kochi in the 20th century. Bony remembers his younger days, his hometown surrounded by Periyar. Frolicking in the river was the best pastime those days. “That was once upon a time. Now you cannot think about taking a dip in Periyar. The pollution levels are that horrid,” he laments.
Bony was in college when he came across a report on the factories in Eloor polluting the river. “It was the first time I came across the idea of environmental destruction,” he says. Four decades have passed. The story has only worsened. Pollution and encroachment have gone up; the riverbanks are home to multiple industrial areas, hotels, and apartment complexes.
Just a week ago, along the Eloor-Edayar stretch, Periyer started sporting different hues, from yellow to red and green. Such alarms of discolouration have become a common affair. At some stretches, a constant stench permeates the air around the water.
According to a study, about 2,600 lakh litres of polluted water enters the river daily. Nearly 400 industrial units discharge toxic contaminants into the river. Conservation efforts are on. Even the Union government had stepped in. The Periyar, however, has recieved little respite.
“I have been working towards the conservation of Periyar for about 30 years. Neither the state nor the Union government have taken effective measures,” laments Purushan Eloor, research coordinator, Campaign against Pollution of Periyar.
“There have been promises, action plans and fund allocations. Court orders, too. However, there are no results. As per the court order, Periyar is under zero-discharge policy. The deadline for this is long over. Yet, we live by the polluted water, suffering the health consequences.”
Periyar File
Metals detected in the water: Copper, zink, lead, iron, arsenic, cadmium