Sinking island Munroe Thuruthu to get experimental houses

Kollam: Much to the relief of the sinking Munroe Thuruthu residents, the directorate of the environment and climate change is relocating five lightweight houses on an experimental basis from the Games Village in Thiruvananthapuram. These affordable synthetic houses, is inhabitants expect, will protect them from the saline waters of Ashtamudi Lake inundating the islands. “We are experiencing a phenomenon of houses getting sunk on the land mostly covered by water. We had requested the chief minister to provide us with these houses made of gypsum boards,” Munroe Thuruthu panchayat president Binu Karunakaran told DC.

Of some 1500 families living on the islands, nearly 400 homes face a threat due to the phenomenon and many have left for safer places in the mainland Kollam. The government sanctioned 201 weightless bio-toilets worth Rs 1.30 crore for them. “The installation of 100 such toilets is over, and the residents are satisfied with them,” he said. The eight islets spread over ecologically fragile 13.4 square km area has a crisscross network of canals and watersheds.

The filling of land resulted in the sinking of low lying areas during high tide. The district administration had in 2016 banned filling of land and the village office warned penal action against violators under Kerala Minor Mineral Concession Rules  and Criminal Procedures Act. The makeshift houses built for the 2015 National Games in the state capital will abide by these rules supporting an eco-friendly habitat.