Artificial bund at Thiruvallam removed

Thiruvananthapuram: The Department of Coastal Shipping and Inland Navigation, on Wednesday, began demolition of an artificial bund at Moonnattumukku that had led to tension between people of the Poonthura fishing village on the one hand and those on the Edayar island and the mainland at Thiruvallam on the other.

The demolition work was taken up following a meeting convened by Minister for Water Resources N.K. Premachandran last week to settle the dispute that was threatening to spin out of control.

While the people on the island and the mainland were demanding the demolition of the temporary bund, those at Poonthura wanted it to be retained as an access route to the island. The structure made of packed earth was hindering the natural tidal flushing process and aggravating the pollution of the downstream stretches of the Karamana river. It was built by a contractor entrusted with the job of desilting the waters on the western side of the island.