Palakkad, Kerala | Oct 14, 2015: The recent order of the Kerala High Court staying all mining operations by a major granite quarry functioning so far without mandatory environmental clearance at Chammanampathi in Muthalamada grama panchayat has rekindled hopes of the people of the border area for a life free of quarrying activities and the resultant pollution.
Unable to withstand the air and water pollution caused by the quarry at Anna Nagar in Chammanampathi, 63-year-old local resident M. Mathayi approached the High Court seeking an end to the enormous environmental damage caused by the unit for quite a long time. The local grama panchayats and district administration were allowing the functioning of the unit so far though it had no environmental clearance from the Union government.
In his order on October 8, Justice A. Muhammed Mushtaq had directed chief geologist of the Mining and Geology Department in Palakkad to ensure that the order was not violated by the quarry owners.
Known as Kerala’s mango hub, Muthalamada has over four lakh mango trees producing fine varieties such as Alphonso, Neelam, Mallika, Malgoa, and Sendura. For the past five years, the village has been facing a serious threat from four large quarries and 20 small ones, which have considerably damaged its topography.
Now, the villagers have decided to continue their legal battle to stop functioning of all the remaining quarries which clearly violate applicable laws. Apart from causing severe air pollution and destabilising houses, the quarries in the grama panchayat have caused alarming depletion of drinking water.
“Almost all the wells in our panchayat became dry after the quarries started functioning. Water was available earlier at a depth of 125 ft. Now, we depend on borewells that go 600 ft to 700 ft deep,” says K G Kannadas, a local green activist. Apart from the quarries, Muthalamada also faces pollution from four metal crusher units that are dependent on the quarries.
B. Suman, another villager, says all the quarries are located close to the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve in violation of the directive of the Ministry of Environment and Forests that no quarry can be operated within 10 km of any tiger reserve. The Anna Nagar quarry is just 3.5 km away from the Parambikulam reserve.
(Source: http://www.thehindu.com/)