Kozhikode: The wastewater disposal system at the Kozhikode Beach Food Street has broken down, leading to recurring sewage overflows and foul odours due to the lack of a proper, scientific treatment facility.

Amid the deadlock, a section of trade union leaders is reportedly attempting to raise funds from vendors to purchase a motor pump and discharge the untreated water directly into the sea.

The crisis is primarily driven by the frequent overflowing of the central collection tank, which receives effluent from the 90 food carts operating in the designated zone. Following the implementation of the formal Food Street initiative, several small kiosks expanded their operations to the scale of full-fledged restaurants, leading to a substantial increase in wastewater volume.

However, the holding tank lacks the capacity to accommodate the surge. Vendors allege that while the Kozhikode Municipal Corporation previously deployed suction tankers to clear the waste, the service has become increasingly irregular.

The civic body collects a monthly fee of ₹2,000 per cart, totalling around ₹1.80 lakh, yet traders point out that apart from clearing plastic waste, the corporation has failed to implement a sustainable solution for liquid waste management.

In the past, when the tank reached capacity, sewage was pumped directly into the sea to mitigate the stench. Union representatives are now attempting to reinstate this practice by collecting contributions from stall owners to buy a new pump. Discharging untreated wastewater onto the shoreline, into the sea, or into open stormwater drains is an environmental violation. The attempt has drawn pushback from vendors, who argue that the civic body is shifting its statutory obligations onto them.

Additionally, small-scale vendors have voiced concerns over the uniform fee structure, pointing out that larger establishments with extensive cooking operations generate the bulk of the effluent and should not be billed at the same rate.

Traders have urged the Corporation to intervene directly and resolve the crisis by establishing a scientific effluent treatment plant.