TIRUNELVELI: Unidentified miscreants had dumped nearly 10 tonnes of plastic, medical and domestic waste brought from Kerala at multiple locations near Nanguneri town panchayat in Tirunelveli district in the dead of the night on Saturday. Based on a complaint from revenue officials, the Nanguneri police late on Saturday registered a CSR against unknown miscreants.
Officials said names and places found on the medical bills and household articles show that the waste could have been brought from Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram. The wastes wrapped in several nylon sacks included used plastic goods, medicines, electronic appliances, old clothes and household wastes.
The anti-socials had dumped a part of the waste on the middle of Shenbagaramanallur road that branches off from Ilaiyarkulam junction, blocking vehicle movement. A few villagers had to burn the waste to clear the road for vehicles to move. In some places, waste was dumped on the roadsides and on farmlands. Alerted by villagers, Nanguneri police and town panchayat staff transported the waste to the panchayat’s waste plant using earthmovers.
According to sources, as Tenkasi police have tightened security along the border after protests by activists, hazardous waste is now being brought from Kerala to Tamil Nadu via Kanniyakumari district. Based on the complaint filed by revenue officials, the Nanguneri police are analysing CCTV footages to find out who transported the wastes and how many vehicles were used for it. When contacted by TNIE, Tirunelveli Collector K P Karthikeyan said officials are working to trace the source of the medical waste.
Kerala waste dumping case pending in HC
Officials are trying to track the name of the hospital with the help of batch numbers found on dumped medicines. “There is a case pending before the Madras HC about dumping of Kerala waste in TN. Such incidents had witnessed a decline in the recent months,” he said.
Irked by the dumping, Nanguneri villagers have sought action against those involved and Chief Minister-level talks between the two states to bring an end to the decades-long scourge.