How a Kerala panchayat brought a dying river back to life

How a Kerala panchayat brought a dying river back to life - Indian Express

For over two decades, the Kuttamperoor lay neglected and abused and, by 2005, it had been reduced to a marshy, polluted cesspool perhaps 10-15 feet wide, with patchy water and almost no flow.

The Kuttamperoor stream in Kerala, connecting the Pampa and Achankovil rivers, had been a nearly stagnant, shrunken cesspool of dumped waste and weeds for more than a decade. Some weeks ago, it was resuscitated as a flowing river, thanks to the will of the Budhanur gram panchayat in Alappuzha district, and the commitment of 700 local men and women who worked to bring the river back to life under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The Kuttamperoor was once a full 12 kilometres long and, at places, over 100 feet wide. The river originates from Achankovil at Ulunthi, near Mavelikkara, and flows through Ennackad, Budhanur, Kuttamperoor, Mannar, and Pandanad before merging with the Pampa at Nakkida near Parumala in Pathanamthitta district.

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Some Newspaper cuttings regarding Kuttamperoor River

Mathurbhumi - 20 March 2017 The Hindu - 23 March 2017 Malayala Manorama - 19 March 2017 Deshabhmani - 20 March 2017 Mathurbhumi - 22 March 2017 Mathurbhumi - 19 May 2017 Mathurbhumi - 18 March 2017

A river reborn: How 700 workers cleaned a once-still river in Kerala’s Alappuzha - The News Minute

700 people in 70 days gave life to the dead river. Kuttemperoor river in Kerala was dead for 10 long years. But not any more. A tributary of Pampa and Achankovil rivers, Kuttemperoor has now had a rebirth, thanks to the efforts of 700 workers for 70 days. Environmentalists have always said that any water body can be given a rebirth despite how severe its pollution problems are, or how near it is to death, and Kuttemperoor will go down in history as an example for this. Labourers cleaning the river Kuttemperoor before it died At one point, Kuttemperoor was Budhanoor’s lifeline. The residents of the village never experienced drinking water crisis, nor did they have a shortage of water for irrigation. In fact, the river was a source for irrigation for about 25,000 acres of paddy fields. Back then, the river was also used by local traders to transport their goods. It also helped control the flood in many places, because when Pamba and Achankovil overflowed, Ku

German team to take part in revival of Kuttanperoor river - Mathrubhumi News

A German team arrived here to know for themselves how Budhanoor panchayath in Alappuzha made the revival of Kuttanperoor river possible. The team congratulated the local body for the excellent model they have come up with and expressed their willingness in taking part in the other activities connected to the revival of the river. Watch Video Mathrubhumi News

Kuttamperoor River

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