Kottayam: Alappuzha district collector T.V. Anupama will hold a meeting of the officials and the stakeholders on Friday to discuss the reopening of the Thannermukkam bund which has remained closed since December last to facilitate paddy cultivation. She told DC that the agriculture department had not given permission to open the bund as the harvesting had not been completed. The meeting will be attended by the irrigation department’s engineers concerned, principal agricultural officer of Alappuzha, fisheries director and representatives of the people and fishermen.
The continued closure of the bund which was scheduled to be opened in March has posed a threat to the biodiversity and ecosystem of Kuttanad region and also fish production. The unscientific operational schedule of the bund over the years has affected the fish production in Kuttanad, which has come down from 16,000 tonnes before the bund came into existence in 1976. The present fish yield is hardly 4,000 tonnes per annum. The black clamp (kakka) production which is the means of livelihood for 35,000 fisherfolks has also been affected badly. The annual black clamp production has come down from 75,000 tonnes to 25,000 tonnes.
The closure of the bund will also cause serious pollution and health problems due to the absence of the flushing of the waste materials accumulated in the lake, including the waste emanating from house boats. Dr K.G. Padmakumar, head of the institute for below sea-level farming in Kuttanad, told DC that a proper crop calendar was needed for the timely completion of rice farming in the region. According to a review of the operational schedule of the bund since 1976, it was kept closed for over 122 days on an average and on some occasions up to 182 days till the onset of monsoon. The bund was constructed to increase the cropping intensity by 200 percent and produce two crops per year. The project was conceived by the then irrigation engineer P.H. Vaidyanathan.
