Thiruvananthapuram, Keralam Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday assured in the state assembly that the government will take time bound steps, including formulating a project, to protect the region around the Vembanad lake from being flooded during the rains.
Satheesan was responding to a query posed to him by Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on whether he would frame a comprehensive project, in consultation with other ministers, to save the region around the Vembanad lake which frequently overflows as it is unable to contain the water of the five rivers that flow into it.
Radhakrishnan said that since the lake does not have the capacity to hold that much water, it overflows and as there is no place for the water to go, the nearby areas get completely flooded.
The CM said that it was an issue which affects most of south-central Kerala and not just Kottayam district.
"It affects Kottayam, Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts and parts of Ernakulam district. He said that the problem is due to the reason that water is not properly flowing into the sea from the lake. It gets collected in many places," he said.
As a result, Kuttanad and Upper Kuttanad areas of the state are badly flooded, agriculture there is destroyed and residents are starting to move out.
"It is a serious environmental issue and I assure the House that the government will address it on a priority basis by holding discussions to formulate a well-planned project, with a long term view, for renovation of the Vembanad lake and protect the region around it from flooding during the rains," Satheesan said in the assembly.
He further said that all this will be carried out in a time bound manner.
Meanwhile, Revenue Minister A P Anilkumar and Water Resources Minister Mons Joseph told the assembly that the government was taking steps to undertake mining of sand from rivers and lakes in the state and the process is expected to be completed soon.
"So, the removal of sand will commence by December this year or January 2027," Anilkumar said.
They were responding to several queries by various MLAs regarding the steps the government proposes to take to address the issue of extensive flooding in their constituencies due to overflowing rivers during the rains.
The ministers said that removal of sediments from river beds had not been carried out in the state for the last several years, leading to their carrying capacity being reduced and causing them to overflow during rains.
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