Munnar: It has been a collective failure of the entire government machinery that has brought Munnar, iconic hill tourism destination of Kerala, to a sorry pass. The law prohibits constructions other than for agriculture and residential purposes in most part of the region while in some, small shops are allowed. The Land Assignment Rules, passed in 1964 and 1993, were aimed at minimising the damage to the topography, given its ecological fragility.
Rains are no breaks for the construction works
But the emergence of Kerala as a global tourism destination last decade has brought Munnar into focus for its cool climatic conditions and picturesque tea gardens. It has become a must-see spot on the list of most visitors to Kerala. But the government failed to come up with a plan for the sustainable development of the fragile region, which led to its haphazard growth.
Some multi-storeys are an eye-sore on the picturesque Munnar landscape
The government failed, again, when its arms never objected to the structures. The revenue department, which is the legal custodian of the land, turned a blind eye when multi-storey buildings came up in the Munnar landscape. The panchayat department which issued building permits never bothered to verify whether the buildings were indeed legal.
A building that has been issued a stop memo
It also never thought it fit if the resorts which sprang up even on tiny lands had the necessary infrastructure including those of septage and waste
treatment. Now, the revenue department, armed with enabling High Court verdicts, has moved in to halt the constructions that have no no-objection certificate it had issued.
The builders, however, contend that say they have valid permits issued by the respective panchayats and question the motive of the government action at a time when construction is either complete or half-way through. “Several of them have taken loans from banks and completed the construction,” pointed out Biju Joseph, president, Munnar Builders and Contractors Association.
DC photographer Arunchandra Bose clicked the shots of the Munnar landscape dotted with structures, some have been issued with the stop-memo.
