Chaliyar River Paddle begins from Nilambur
The Hindu
Kayaking expedition, Chaliyar River Paddle, begins from Nilambur. 80 kayakers, incl. 5 women & 2 children, paddle 68-km downstream. Rayan Kodithodika leads the journey. 4-yr-old Kiara Sreenivas is youngest.
The Chaliyar River Paddle, one of the long kayaking expeditions in the country, began from Nilambur on Friday. The Jellyfish Water Sports Club, Kozhikode, which organises the event, claimed that it would be the second-longest kayaking journey in Asia. It is the ninth edition of the Chaliyar River Paddle being held with the objective of creating awareness to conserve the River Chaliyar and to promote adventure water sports.
Nilambur Municipal Chairman Mattummal Saleem flagged off the expedition at a bathing ghat near Government Manavedan Higher Secondary School, Nilambur. Tourism Department Deputy Director Thomas Antony, District Tourism Promotion Council secretary Vipin V.P., Jellyfish Water Sports founder Koushik Kodithodika, managing director Rinsy Ikbal, trainer Prasad Thumpani, Nilambur Tourism Club president Mujeeb Devassary, secretary Muzammil U.P., MES Mampad College tourism faculty members Sajeer E.K., and Arshad Babu P.T. spoke.
Eighty kayaking enthusiasts from different parts are taking part in the three-day river expedition. Among them are five women and two children. They are kayaking 68-km downstream along the Chaliyar using different types of canoes, including sail kayaks and stand-up paddles.
Rayan Kodithodika, 18, is leading the journey. Four-year-old Kiara Sreenivas from Bengaluru is the youngest member of the paddling team. She is paddling along with her father Sreenivas Krishnappa and her mother J. Ramya. Rajat Mathur, 53, from Bengaluru is the oldest in the group.
The Kerala Tourism Department, the Kerala Adventure Tourism Promotion Society, Paragon Restaurant, and Kayakesia Paddlesports are supporting the expedition.
The kayaking team expects to collect about two tonnes of floating waste from the Chaliyar in three days. The organisers said that they would segregate the waste collected and send it for recycling. They said that they would convince the local people and the local bodies about the ecological impact of the waste collected.