Problems

The Periyar River is the water source and dump yard for chemical industries of Eloor. Around 60 illegal pipes spew effluents into the river from the industries, releasing more than 20 lakh litres of highly contaminated waste per day!

Hindustan Insecticides Limited [HIL], a public sector undertaking, was constructed in 1954 at the Udyogamandal Industrial Estate. Today it is the sole manufacturer of technical grade DDT in India, and has the capacity to produce an estimated 9,000 metric tons of DDT per year. The continuing production of DDT at the HIL factory in Eloor has resulted in severe pollution of the already endangered Periyar due to the unabated release of toxins and persistent organic pollutants from this obsolete facility.

The Periyar is today a water body of toxic tea- brown waste. It is no longer a home to the 500 species of fish that villagers once found in it. Sand mining is another threat to the river. Deep trenches are dug in the riverbed, and the sand carried away by trucks, placing the Periyar and the creatures in it at greater peril.

Eloor was once a storehouse of many medicinal herbs. But now nearly 18 of these have become extinct. Many of the butterflies, birds and animals, which inhabited this locality, have disappeared.

Scientific studies conducted by many voluntary organizations (Mannuthy Agricultural Research Laboratory and the Veterinary Department), revealed high levels of acids and other chemicals, far beyond the permissable levels, in the milk, blood, flesh and dung of the cattle of Eloor. Chemical pollutants were also detected in the leaves and other parts of plants of this area.

Eroded Livelihoods
The local community once depended on fishing and farming for their survival and livelihood. But today, the effluents make the river unfit for the fishes to thrive, and the farmlands have become barren from the slow toxic assault on the soil over the years. Agriculture is no longer possible.

Poisoned Air
Smoke stacks and chimneys fill the air with poisonous gases. Acidic mists can often be seen hanging over the area. Emissions consist of sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, HCCP (Hexa Chloro Cyclo Pentadiene), ammonia, and chlorine. It is no surprise that inhabitants of Eloor, of any age, whether literate or illiterate, can immediately recognise which toxic chemical is filling the air. Having been exposed to these fumes regularly for decades now, they can differentiate between sulphur dioxide, chlorine, HCCP, Hydrogen Sulphide and DDT.

People's Health at Risk
It's easy to see that for the 40,000 inhabitants of this island life has turned into a nightmare. It's impossible to pinpoint a pollution free area in Eloor. Not only is there no clean air to breathe, but there is also no access to safe drinking water. Drinking the local polluted waters and subsisting on the fish of the toxic Periyar, the people are prey to a huge number and variety of health problems. In 2003-2004 Greenpeace conducted an epidemiological health study at Eloor, which showed that Eloor residents suffer all kinds of maladies thanks to the contamination of the land, air and water by these cocktail of poisons. Every organ in the body seemed affected.

Not in My Backyard?
There is growing awareness that life in Eloor is being poisoned at alarming proportions. In which case how safe are the people of Cochin, living barely 14 kms north of Eloor? The Periyar is the water source for the entire city. The cocktail of poisons in the Periyar, threatening the health of the Eloor people, is not likely to be restricted to them alone! Surely this is Cochin's wake up call to stall a major disaster that's shaping up in their neighborhood.

Irresponsible Industrialisation
For decades now, the Periyar and her people, have suffered silently. The present toxic crisis at the Eloor-Edayar Industrial belt is the result of decades of shortsighted planning. The industries, businesses and government bodies are still reluctant to address the real problem of pollution. They continue to sacrifice the viability of life-supporting ecosystems for the sake of profits. This is growth without counting the costs!

Clean up or Close Down!
No aspect of life in Eloor and Edayar remains unaffected by the industrial pollution. But there are no magic technologies to clean up the emissions, make them disappear. The key to setting right the unfolding environmental catastrophe at Eloor and Edayar is to invest in clean production processes that eliminate the use of toxic chemical inputs. The task is clear. Industrial planning policies have to be reassessed and changed. Irresponsible and reckless functioning of industrial units must be stopped. Clean production technologies, environmentally sound containment of hazardous wastes and zero discharge must be the conditions for the continued functioning of the factories in Eloor.