Flood mitigation works in Meenachil river get go-ahead, but conditions apply

NGT notes that the region is evidently facing a threat of floods

In a significant development, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has accorded its consent to proceed with flood-risk management works in the Meenachil river by the Irrigation department, although in line with the suggestions by a joint committee appointed by it and the Biodiversity Board.

Pronouncing its judgment on a petition by the Kottayam Nature Society (KNS) and others recently, Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, judicial member, Southern Zone Bench of the NGT, noted that the region was evidently facing a threat of floods and it could not be helped but to proceed with the mitigating steps warranted to avoid calamities. “However, the same may be done taking utmost care and following the suggestions given by the joint committee and the Biodiversity Board,” read the order.

Earlier, the Bench had appointed a joint committee comprising experts and the Kottayam District Collector to inspect the area in question and submit a report. Based on site inspection and reports and opinions of various authorities, the committee concluded that no major environmental damage had been caused due to the desilting of the river.

It, however, noted that no specific scientific study had been conducted prior to the work, which was initiated as part of disaster management mitigation measures. Besides recommending clearance of the obstructions along the river course, it called for long-term measures for future flood control and mitigation in the entire Meenachil river basin based on a scientific study.

Though the petitioner had raised objections to these findings, the committee, in its final report, stated that desilting activities in the river be taken up on a priority basis as regions along its banks were prone to floods as witnessed during the 2018-2019 period. It also adopted a set of recommendations by the Biodiversity Board which varied from conducting a scientific study for desilting and effective management of the riverbank through the biodiversity management committees and so on.

The Major Irrigation department has initiated works to widen the river and remove obstructions for its normal flow for mitigating the impact of floods. The KNS, in its petition, pointed out that attempts had been made to “destroy the riparian vegetation and desilt the riverbed in the guise of disaster management.”