: In yet another bid to breathe new life into the dying Bharthapuzha, which turns into almost a trickle during the hot summer months and has flash floods during the monsoon,
a revival mission will be initiated soon by the Rural Development Department with an initial outlay of Rs 76.79 crore.
Rajasthan’s celebrated ‘waterman’ Rajendra Singh, who revived seven rivers in his home State, will monitor the process to be implemented in the Bharthapuzha basin spread over Palakkad, Thrissur and Malappuram districts.
The Union government will meet 75 per cent of the expense and the rest will be borne by the Rural Development Department, which is keen on initiating the conservation activities with the active involvement of the local communities. Experts will travel across the river before finalising the project next month and implementing it from September.
According to department sources, the revival mission will be implemented by focussing on block panchayats through which the river and its tributaries pass. Encroachments on the river will be cleared and steps will be taken to prevent discharge of industrial and chemical waste into the river. Garbage dumping also will be prevented.. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGA) will be utilised to strengthen the banks of the river and prevent soil erosion. The departments of Agriculture, Water Resources, Forest, Soil Conservation, Ground Water and Revenue will be involved in various conservation initiatives.
A major portion of the revival efforts will be concentrated on strengthening the watershed areas of the river, which are facing constant threat and abuse from encroachment. Efforts to replenish ground water level also will be undertaken as draining of ground water constitutes a major threat to the river.
All the initiatives will be pro-environmental and aimed at sustainable and inclusive growth, which takes into account the concerns of local communities.
Illegal sand-mining will be curtailed fully. Creation of check-dams, digging of rain pits, revival of contour bunds, implementation of pesticide-free farming practices and prevention of sudden change in land use patterns also form part of the project, which is being implemented under the leadership of Rural Development Commissioner K V. Mohan Kumar, who addressed concerns of Bharathapuzha protection effectively during his early stint as Palakkad District Collector.
