A Cooum in the making in Karur?

Effluents from dyeing units and industries are polluting the Amaravathi river to such an extent that it could soon become the second Cooum in the State, activists and farmers fear.
Industrial waste and sewage end up in the Amaravathi river in Karur | Aravind Raj
Industrial waste and sewage end up in the Amaravathi river in Karur | Aravind Raj

KARUR: Effluents from dyeing units and industries are polluting the Amaravathi river to such an extent that it could soon become the second Cooum in the State, activists and farmers fear. Amaravathi is one of the vital sources of water in Karur. The river which originates near the Manjampatti Valley on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border, and the longest tributary of the Cauvery.  

The 282km -long river flows through Tiruppur, Karur and joins the Cauvery near Thirumukkudalur. Of late, Amaravathi has been polluted heavily as dyeing units, textile industries and other industries have allegedly been releasing effluents directly into the river. The municipality’s sewer channels too drain into the river. 

Activists and environmental outfits came down heavily on Karur municipality and PWD officials for failing to fix the problem. A few days ago, people stopped an earthmover which was digging a canal inside the river to channel waste water from the nearby industries. Despite people’s opposition, the digging resumed. “Who gave permission to these people to dig a canal inside the river? Where are the PWD officials? How can they watch it happen,” fumed Shanmugam, an environment activist.

“The river is being destroyed by not only factories and industries but also the municipality. While on one hand, factories are dumping wastes, the municipality for its part has been releasing the district’s sewage into the river. No action has been taken on either of them. We submitted petitions about this to the district administration umpteen number of times, but there is no response. Amaravathi will turn the next Cooum river in Tamil Nadu,” he concluded.

Tamil Rajendran, an advocate, said, “Petitions have become useless nowadays. Officials accept petitions from activists, not to solve the issues, but it’s an opportunity for them to strike a deal with industries citing the complaints. Draining sewage into a fresh water source is atrocious. No one is able to stop them because of political influence.

We have decided to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition before the Madurai bench of Madras High Court. All industrialists and Karur municipality are answerable to the court.” Municipal Commissioner Sudha said,  “We have sent a proposal to the government to divert sewage from the Amaravathi river but are yet to receive funds. As of now, we don’t have any temporary solution.” PWD officials remained tight lipped about the issue and refused to comment on the canal being dug in the river.

‘Both municipality & industries to blame’
Karur: “The river is being destroyed by not only factories and industrial units but also the Karur municipality. While on one hand, factories are dumping waste into the rivers, the municipality has also been releasing sewage into the river. No action has been taken on either of them. We submitted petitions about this to the district administration umpteen number of times, but there is no response,” says environment activist Shanmugam

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com