THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Illegal waste dumping is turning into a menace at Harbour ward in Kovalam — the iconic international tourist destination — as the community waste management system has gone haywire. The Harbour Road, which offers a remarkable view of the lighthouse and the Arabian sea is frequented by hundreds of visitors every day. However, the accumulating waste on the seacliff has turned away many visitors. It is also causing severe marine pollution as the dumped waste gets washed or blown into the sea.
It’s been more than six months since the Thumboormuzhi aerobic bins have become defunct and the authorities have hardly taken any step to carry out maintenance of the aerobic bins. According to officials, there are around 10 aerobic bins at two community waste management facilities. It is learned that around 700 families reside in the surrounding areas of Harbour Road.
“People, mainly residents, are dumping all kinds of waste here. Unfortunately the community waste management facilities are not operational. We cannot go and enforce or take action right now. We have given a request to the engineering wing to carry out maintenance of the aerobic bin. They will immediately fix the facilities and make it fully operational,” said an official.
The official said a campaign would be launched soon to sensitise the public. “Segregation is not happening. We have plans to deploy Haritha Karma Sena for plastic waste collection but we don’t know how many families would be willing to sign up as there will be a user fee. A survey needs to be launched along with a campaign,” said the official.
Harbour ward councillor Nissamudeen M said the aerobic bins would be fixed soon. “The community waste management facility was set up by Adani Group as part of their CSR initiative. The facilities are in ruin due to a lack of timely maintenance. The issue has been taken up and would be fixed soon,” said Nisamudeen. The lack of CCTVs is cited as another reason for waste accumulation.
Lack of CCTVs
Former councillor and local resident Nisa Beevi says slaughter waste and hotel waste are getting dumped at Harbour Road at night. “There are no CCTVs to keep a tab on such dumping. The area has turned into a hotspot for waste dumping,” said Nisa.