Green tribunal order brings hope to Muthalamada

Village faces threat from granite quarrying

A granite quarry that poses a threat to Muthalamada in Palakkad district. Photo: K.K. Mustafah.

The latest directive of the National Green Tribunal to the State government to close down granite quarries which got licences illegally and functioned in violation of norms has rekindled hopes of the people of Muthalamada in the district for a life free from quarries and the resultant pollution.

Muthalamada has over four lakh mango trees producing 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.

Though the four large quarries stopped functioning recently following the intervention of the local grama panchayat, villagers remained apprehensive, reportedly owing to efforts to clear the hurdles by influencing political leaders and bureaucrats at the top levels.

Water scarcity

Apart from causing severe air pollution and destabilising houses, the quarries have caused alarming depletion of drinking water. “Almost all the wells in our panchayat turned dry after the quarries started functioning. Water was available earlier at a depth of 125 ft. Now, we depend on bore wells that go 600 ft to 700 ft deep,” says Arumugan Pathikkara, who heads a local protest against the quarries.

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 Poochamund quarry is within 7.5 km of the Parambikulam reserve, and the Mechira quarry 9 km. The Anna Nagar quarry is just 3.5 km away from the reserve. The Centre for Earth Science Studies has given a report to the government that the quarries are located in a seismic zone and hence, they pose an imminent threat to Muthalamada,” he said.

The relay hunger fast demanding permanent closure of the quarries has completed 120 days. The agitation, first begun by the tribal people of Moochikund village after their lives were severely affected by the quarries, later turned into a mass movement, though all mainstream political parties took a stand against it.

The agitators used NOTA (None of the Above) provision in the last Lok Sabha elections.