A group of 150-odd people, who cared for the sensitive ecology of Kadalundi, carried out a massive clean-up at Kadalundi-Vallikkunnu Community Reserve (KVCR) on Sunday.
The Kadalundi estuary is the most significant sanctuary for migrant birds along the south-west coast of India.
Bagfuls of waste of different kind dumped into the reserve wetlands were removed by the team led by a North India-based social service organisation called Nirdesh.
Use of funds
Using the funds allocated by the Mazagon Dock Ltd, Mumbai, the Nirdesh roped in the NCC cadets of Feroke College, Feroke, students of Umbichi Haji Higher Secondary School, Chaliyam, forest officials, local clubs, civic body members, community reserve officials, and local people to clean up the estuary.
Ceaseless dumping of waste into the Kadalundi river had posed a threat to the survival of the KVCR, the first notified community reserve in the country. The number of migrant birds reaching Kadalundi had fallen drastically over the last several years largely owing to the dumping of waste.
Amandeep Kaur, Divisional Forest Officer, Kozhikode, inaugurated the clean-up drive. Capt. Ramesh Babu, Nirdesh project director, block panchayat president Reena Mundengat, Kadalundi grama panchayat president T.K. Shylaja, KVCR chairman T.P. Vijayan, and former chairman Anil Marath led the clean-up.
NCC cadets led by Taha Rahman were surprised to see the extent of degradation inflicted on the sensitive mangroves, sandbanks, and mudflats in the estuary. They said they would monitor the maintenance of the bird sanctuary.
