Garbage piles up around Chelavara waterfalls

Garbage menace is increasing in and around Chelavara waterfalls in Nariyandada Gram Panchayat jurisdiction here. 

Visitors, who come to visit the famed waterfalls, throw plastic covers and other waste materials here and there. As a result, garbage is piling up with each passing day.

The Gram Panchayat administration had earlier constructed a gate to collect toll from tourist vehicles going to the waterfalls. A time schedule was also fixed for tourist visits.

But the system was cancelled following objections sometime ago. Since then, the tourists have been visiting the place as and when they like and are throwing waster materials. The Tourism Department has not prescribed any fee for the visitors and the area continues to be deprived basic facilities.

Many locals said the department has not initiated steps to neither repair the road leading to the waterfalls nor provide tourist-friendly facilities here. An amount of Rs 3.2 crore, sanctioned for maintenance of roads from Cheyyande to Chelavara waterfalls, remains unused the condition of the road from the parking area up to the waterfalls is pathetic as well as dangerous.

The visitors and locals said the Tourism Department should construct steps up to the waterfalls from the parking lot and also place dustbins in the area for proper disposal of waste. Also, it should put up boards to provide information on the tourist spot to the visitors. Warning signboards, suggesting tourists not to get into deep waters must be erected, they said.

The villagers complained that some miscreants, who are visiting the spot for fun, are polluting the surroundings. There is no proper monitoring, collection of waste, including discarded bottles, they claimed and urged the officials to act immediately.

They also said cooking food on rocks above the waterfalls should also be stopped. The
local administration and the Tourism Department should take steps to stop the pollution in the area, the villagers added.