A thick white substance was spotted floating along a stretch of the Periyar near the Pathalam regulator-cum-bund in the Edayar industrial area on Saturday.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has collected samples from the water to determine the source of the substance. “Since there are several industries in the vicinity, the samples will have to be studied. If the final report confirms it to be an unauthorised discharge, legal action can be taken,” said P.B. Sreelakshmy, environmental engineer, KSPCB surveillance centre, Eloor.
Since the shutters of the regulator were closed, reverse flow of water from the downstream areas could have also deposited substances near the bund, Ms. Sreelakshmy said.
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The surveillance centre was alerted by Ibrahim P.S., an Edayar resident who was fishing in the river when he spotted a thick white substance along a stretch of the water, sticking to the sides of the bund on Saturday evening.
“The water had appeared clean for a few days but after the shutters of the regulator were closed yesterday, there were no fish in the water,” he said.