KANNUR: As the sun shone bright after two weeks of continuous rain, the residents of Koralayi island heaved a collective sigh of relief. This year too the rain has washed away some portions of the land into the Valapattanam river.
"Every year, as rain comes pouring down, we lose a considerable stretch of land. The most surprising thing is the shocking indifference of the authorities concerned regarding the erosion, as we have lost around 75 acres since 2007," said TV Asainar, former Irikkur block panchayat vice-president, who lives on the island.
He said whenever the media reports on the matter, some higher officials from the government would visit the island -- located in Mayyil panchayat -- and make some announcements before the hapless people.
"But nothing materialises and rain eats up the land the next monsoon season too. Some 15 years ago, Koralayi island had an area of around 275 acres, which has now been reduced to around 200 acres. The rate of land loss should have opened the eyes of the administrators but, unfortunately, nobody has taken any step to resolve the issue," Asainar pointed out.
He said that 160 families live on the island with a population of around 1,000, of which 45% people belong to the scheduled castes while the others are Muslims. "The islands of Pamburuthi and Theralayi also had similar issues. The authorities solved the problem by building granite walls to stop erosion. But they say it is impractical in Koralayi. Even the river management fund, which could be used for the island, is not being used sufficiently," he alleged.
However, Mayyil panchayat president KK Rishna said the panchayat has been spending enough money to resolve the issue.
"We started an initiative last year, by spending Rs 20 lakh from the asset development fund of former Taliparamba MLA James Mathew. Coconut tree trunks are being placed to build an experimental wall around 200 metres of the island. So far, no land erosion or slips have been reported from the area. We will wait for some more time, and if the experiment proves successful, it will be implemented all around the island," she said.
At the same time, C Mohanan, a local resident, said people have started leaving the island. "We have face problems with getting permits from the panchayat as the land available is shrinking with each spell of rain. Construction can be done only 100 metres away from the riverbank. Even if start construction by keeping the stipulated distance, the shrinking of the land would create problems," he said.
Meanwhile, Taliparamba Tahsildar P Sajeevan said the concerns raised by the people of Koralayi are genuine. "We visited the island a few days ago. Steps are being taken to extend the coconut trunk project to protect the land," he said