Editor’s Note: This is the fourth of a five-part text & video story series, exploring in depth the coastal erosion in Chellanam. Read the first part here, second part here and third part here.
On May 13, 2021, hundreds of families living close to the sea in Chellanam were forced to find refuge at the St Mary’s Higher Secondary School in the village when monster waves, formed under the influence of Cyclone Tauktae, damaged their homes.
A few days later, ministers, politicians and high level officials visited the school and assured them of emergency measures to save the village.
On May 20, the government announced Rs 2 crore for emergency measures to prevent coastal erosion.
A week later, on May 26, Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian and Industries Minister P Rajeev announced a package of Rs 18 crore for fighting seashore erosion. They also promised a Rs 5,000-crore development package for the coastal village in the next five years.
On July 30, the government gave administrative sanction to works worth Rs 344.2 crore for coastal protection.
The state government’s promises, however, have not struck a chord with the Chellanam residents. Because they had heard many such announcements in the past. Most of them remain on paper even now.
Sample this. The government had sanctioned Rs 8.6 crore to install 132 geotubes (tubes filled with sand which are considered to be an alternative to the sea wall) in 2020. However, the contractors could lay just 11 tubes because of their inexperience.
Fr Antonyto Paul, Vicar, Our Lady of Health Church at Saude on the erosion-affected coastal stretch and Director of the Coastal Area Development Agency for Liberation (CADAL), had watched the geotube installation closely.
“The government sanctioned Rs 8.6 crore for installing geotubes in the wake of people’s protests after severe sea erosion in 2020. But soon people realised that it was a huge failure. Because the contractors installed them on the coast instead of laying it in the sea. This resulted in the quick destruction of the installed tubes. Government’s coastal protection measures were a complete failure,” he said.
Such failures have eroded Chellanam residents’ faith in government projects. Many think that the latest announcement (of Rs 344.2 crore) will meet the same fate of geotube installation.
‘Punargeham’ Aversion
Another major offer from the government is a financial package of Rs 10 lakh to those willing to relocate from Chellanam under the ‘Punargeham’ project.
The project was launched in 2019 to relocate close to 20,000 families from coastal villages across the state. Under this, the government would provide Rs 6 lakh to buy land and Rs 4 lakh to build homes.
Official figures show that Chellanam residents are averse to accepting the offer.
Only 26 families have been relocated under the scheme so far, said Gram Panchayat president K D Prasad.
He said more than 100 families have submitted applications for relocation recently. “The fisheries department is verifying their applications,” he said.
Reasons for Reluctance
People feel that the government’s relocation package is inadequate to buy land and build houses.
Monster waves powered by Cyclone Tauktae had brought down 57-year-old Thankamma’s house on May 14, 2021. With nowhere to go, she has been living in a classroom at the St Mary’s Higher Secondary Secondary School since then along with her 60-year-old husband and 26-year-old son.
“Considering the price of raw materials, we have to spend Rs 7 to Rs 8 lakh to build a 500 square feet house. We have to buy land before building a house. Government will give only Rs 4 lakh to build the house. We can construct only the basement and the wall with the amount. I don’t know what to do next. People are reluctant to relocate from Chellanam because of the inadequate compensation package,” she said.
Two prominent organisations – Care Chellanam and Chellanam-Kochi Janakeeya Vedi – that have been demanding coastal protection in Chellanam too have raised concerns about the Punargeham project.
Fr John Kandathil Parambil, coordinator of Care Chellanam, termed Punargeham as an ‘inhumane’ project. “We are not opposing the project because the government can decide the development projects in a particular area. But the project should be implemented judiciously,” he said.
“What the government offers is a flat package of Rs 10 lakh. It does not matter if you own just 2 cents of land or 10 cents or 25 cents. It is gross injustice. The project is inhumane,” he said.
Contentious Clauses
VT Sebastien, patron of Chellanam-Kochi Janakeeya Vedi, said the project is replete with many clauses to trap the beneficiaries.
“The government will allot a maximum of Rs 6 lakh to buy land. The Rs 4 lakh for house construction will be distributed in instalments as and when the construction progresses.”
But the real danger, said Sebastian, is that the owner of the land does not have the right to sell or mortgage the property for 12 years. “If the beneficiaries fail to complete the house construction within a year after availing the first instalment, they will have to repay the entire amount and an additional 18% interest rate. It is a trap,” he said.
Fr Antonyto Paul demanded that the government should withdraw Punargeham project. “The government is treating these people as criminals. It should realise that these people had a long beach when they settled here many years ago. The beach was lost because of the government's shoddy development projects. Erosion caused by the Cochin Port’s activities is just an example,”
“Hence the government should withdraw Punargeham project. It should prepare a decent relocation scheme for those who wish to relocate from Chellanam,” he said.
