‘Perumbakkam wetland is part of the Marsh’

When the garbage pile-up at the Pallikaranai marsh caught fire, the news about it raged on for a period outlasting the duration of the fire itself. It was obviously a major fire, one entailing significant health implications for residents of neighbourhoods nearby.

The fire at the Perumbakkam wetland might be light-years behind it in terms of impact. Yet, it certainly required the attention of the wider world. But the mishap at the Perumbakkam wetland went largely unregistered beyond the immediate stakeholders.

KVRK Thirunaranan, founder of The Nature Trust, which is associated with the Conservation Authority of the Pallikaranai Marshland, says: “Seeing the Perumbakkam wetland in isolation is erroneous, an error that can have implications for the level of attention extended to it. The Perumbakkam wetland is integral to the Pallikaranai marsh, not only ecologically but also administratively, and proclaiming this link would help expedite processes that can reduce the risk of such occurences. If the revenue department marks the boundaries on this section, and include the kuccha road in the Perumbakkam wetland, and a bund is raised soon, these problems can be reduced. Even last year, there was a fire at Perumbakkam wetland. There is no alternative to securing this side of the wetland with a raised bund.”

"It is part of the seven hundred hectares of the Pallikaranai Marsh."