The plan of the Department of Fisheries to construct a massive fish farm on the marshland near Gymkhana Club, one of the prime catchments of Kodaikanal lake, on an outlay of Rs. 9.30 crore will not only stop inflow into the lake but also have adverse impact on ecology, activists here say.
Approval and funds had been sanctioned for construction of 21 commercial fish tanks, each 18 metres long, four metres wide and one metre high, and guest houses and staff quarters. Preliminary work using heavy drillers and earthmovers started, activists say, adding such construction activities will wipe out the last marshland from Kodaikanal.
Of the three marshlands in Kodaikanal, two marsh lands near Bryant Park and Sleep Hollow areas are already dead, owing to massive construction activities. The last marshland maintains water supply to the lake.
“Its destruction will mean a slow death for the lake. Moreover, this marshland is the prime source to maintain groundwater in Moonjikal and nearby areas and ensure water supply to downhill areas such as Pethuparai and Anju Veedu. Excess water will reach dams and tanks in Palani block,” says N. Arun Shankar, activist from Tamil Nadu Green Movement. Destruction of marshlands will affect drinking water supply to Tirupur and Dindigul districts. Several dams and tanks in Palani and parts of Tirupur districts depend on the water flowing from Kodaikanal hills, he adds.
How Kodaikanal Municipality will meet the ever-growing drinking water needs of the town after destructing its water sources, question environmentalists.
Marshlands act as sponge to store rainwater in the ground and release it during summer, ensuring good inflow into the lake, the prime attraction of the hill station. Destruction of this marshland would eliminate the last chance of reviving groundwater table under municipal limits, they caution.
The Department of Fisheries can shift the site to outer areas of Kodaikanal, where hundreds of acres of wasteland are available. Already there is ban on construction activity within a 200-metre radius of the lake, they add.
When contacted, Municipal Commissioner (in-charge) Kalimuthu said the department informed that it had dug pits only to construct tanks for fish farming. “They will submit a plan in a day or two. We will forward it to the Collector for approval and sanction,” Mr. Kalimuthu said.
