Alanalloor: More than 100 families residing at Ambalapara in Kottopadam panchayat have resorted to protests as the authorities refuse to offer solutions to the problems they have been facing for ages. The families rely on the small streams originating from the nearby mountains to meet their daily water requirements during the summer. Water from the mountains is directed to the homes through pipes. Besides, women often get trapped in front of wild tuskers when they go looking for water in the mountains through the dense forest paths.

Although they have raised the issue multiple times with the elected representatives, nothing has changed. Meanwhile, Sudheer Parokodan, a resident, says that not even a single drop of water has been supplied through the public tap that was inaugurated by the MLA in March 2023. The tap was installed as a solution to the severe drinking water shortage in the area. During the monsoon, the water from the mountain gushes with great force through the narrow stream between the houses.

As a result, the houses in the area get flooded. So, the residents have been urging the authorities to widen the stream and to build protective walls to safeguard the houses. They complain that the authorities have turned their backs on their demands, even though their lives have become difficult here. More than 100 families have been suffering due to extreme drought in the summer and flooding in the monsoon.

Although the temple on the other side of the Velliyar River was renovated around nine years ago, a hanging bridge built by the local residents using areca nut wood is the only way for the pilgrims to reach the temple. So, people have also been urging to build a sturdy footbridge here. Vattathodi Riyasuddin says that even though they have been regularly imploring the authorities to find solutions for the problems faced by the residents, the authorities have nothing but apathy towards them.