By Anoopa Mathews | Project Assistant
Cloudburst and associated flash floods at Pathanamthitta and Kottayam Districts in Kerala resulted in water level rise at Pamba, Manimala, Meenachil Rivers, etc. This has affected the river hydrology extensively and fractured the riverine ecosystems of the Manimala River. Incidentally, soon after the flood, within a period of 4-5 weeks, the river almost dried up and the water quality changed. This has negatively affected the aquatic ecosystem and riverine ecosystem. A team of TIES officials and research scholars inspected the upstream areas (50km) of the Manimala River to collect water samples in order to study the extent of pollution. The team also surveyed the river bank features and pollution aspects that are pertaining to the area. The study shows that plastic and sewage are the major pollutants and it comes from nearby residential areas, hotels, and markets. Most of the wastewater outlets of the river bank hotels and factories end up at the river. Pollution and riverine survey were also conducted among the riverbank community. People say that many of their wells are dried up at the beginning of the summer season itself and the condition of water in the river is extremely poor over the entire stretch of the river. Among the four sites from which water samples were collected, Mundakayam is the most polluted area. People also have an opinion that in some areas the water is stinky and extremely polluted.
The four major sites include: Kuruvamozhi, Koratti, Mundakayam and Koottikkal. The water samples were analyzed for microbiological and phsyiochemical parameters.
Research revealed that all the collected samples were contaminated with potential bacterial pathogens. Salmonella sp. was found in all the collected samples. Pseudomonas sp. and Vibrio sp. were found in the samples collected from Kuruvamozhi and Koratti regions. The samples from Mundakkayam region were contaminated with Pseudomonas sp. and the samples from Koottickal region were contaminated with Pseudomonas sp. and Vibrio sp.
An awareness campaign will be conducted among the riverbank community with the participation of local bodies, in order to curb the outbreak of serious water-borne diseases.
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