The State Level Monitoring Committee (SLMC) on Solid Waste Management will submit a detailed report to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on the worsening pollution levels in the Periyar by May 10.
The decision comes close on the heels of the discolouration and declining water quality levels in the river even during the lockdown period.
“An updated report on the ecological condition of the Periyar river will be filed before the tribunal after the lockdown is lifted,” said A.V. Ramakrishna Pillai, chairman of the committee constituted by the tribunal, on Wednesday.
Mr. Pillai said foolproof investigations were required to spot those behind the pollution of the river, which remained a major drinking water source for lakhs of people.
“The State Pollution Control Board should find out whether industrial discharge into the waters had taken place during the lockdown period,” he said. He did not fully subscribe to the board’s findings that septage and failure of the Irrigation Department to maintain lean flow might be the reasons for the recent discolouration and pollution of the river. “The board should find out whether any unauthorised units are functioning in the lockdown period,” he added.
The report to be filed before the NGT will have recommendations for the rejuvenation of the Periyar. The tribunal had entrusted the committee to initiate measures to ensure the lifeline of waterbodies in the State.
The panel had recommended that surveillance along the river be improved to check the dumping of domestic and industrial effluents into the waterbody. The district administration has been asked to clear up the thick undergrowth along the banks of the river at Pathalam.
Vegetation must be cleared to ensure that no one sets up pipelines to discharge waste water and other materials into the river. The removal of the thick vegetation will also ensure proper watch over possible incidents of waste dumping, the committee said.
