Despite recurring incidents of sea erosion and damage to houses, the construction of seawalls along the most vulnerable stretches of the Kozhikode coastal area remains a non-starter. Though funds were sanctioned at various intervals following protests by coastal residents, the project execution is moving at a snail’s pace.
The recent series of swell surges have doubled the concerns of many families that are living in fear along the unprotected coast. Many are not ready to accept the promises of people’s representatives who visited affected locations to assess the situation.
In Kozhikode city, the residents of Santhi Nagar colony have been waiting for the intervention of the State government for many months. In the recent sea swell, several houses in the unprotected residential area were hit by the tide. Over 200 families will be in crisis if the seawall construction is not completed in the most vulnerable areas.
“M.K. Raghavan, MP, who visited the area recently has requested the help of all officials concerned and the Chief Minister. We have been after the local authorities to address this issue for over a year,” said T. Sreedharan, a local resident. He said relocation to relief camps during the monsoon was troubling many underprivileged families in the area.
The height of the existing seawalls is reportedly insufficient to prevent the impact of high tides along the coastal areas at Nainamvalappu, Mukhadar, and Kothi. The local residents said their request might not get priority as there were many other areas having no seawall at all for basic protection. Meanwhile, officials have claimed that they have already submitted proposals to the government departments concerned for action.
The construction of seawall is yet to begin along Vadakara, Payyoli and Koyilandi coastal areas too. Fishermen families from Kuriyadi near Vadakara are the worst-hit due to the negligence.
“As many of the fishermen families are reluctant to accept the resettlement plan for the coastal people, the State government is seemingly disinterested in the strengthening of the seawall,” said Abdul Mujeeb, a fisherman.
The reconstruction of seawalls destroyed during the last monsoon was also pending in several locations. Though the State government recently sanctioned ₹2.54 crore for the reconstruction of one of the damaged stretches near Mukachery, the work is not likely to be completed before the onset of monsoon.
