Kalpetta: Aimed  at curbing the growing instances of human-wildlife conflict, forest officials in the Kalpetta range have restored the Kattukunnil Keni, a natural water body nestled in the valley of the Banasura Hills. The initiative was undertaken to ensure a steady supply of drinking water for wild animals in the region.

The water conservation efforts began with a massive clean-up drive around the Banasura Hill–Meenmutty waterfalls area, including clearing plastic waste from the surroundings of nearby shops. Following this, a forest team led by the Kalpetta Range Office, in association with members of the Varambatta Vana Samrakshana Samithi and the Totem resource centre at Chennalodu, successfully restored the old keni that had long remained in disrepair.

The restoration was spearheaded by Kalpetta Range Forest Officer K Hashif, Padinjarethara Section Forest Officer V Surendran and Beat Forest Officers K A Abhijith, Jishnaya Chandran and Jerin Joy. Members of the Totem Resource Centre, Chennalode, including organiser Neehu Saji, D Deepika Das, secretary Jey Sreekumar and others, also actively participated in the initiative.