Students, Fire and Rescue Services personnel and members of the public try to pull out a huge tree branch from the Conolly Canal in Kozhikode on Tuesday. | Photo Credit: S_RAMESHKURUP more-in The first phase of Operation Conolly Canal, which involved a massive clean-up drive, concluded on Tuesday, while the second phase that calls for community participation in the upkeep of the canal has been launched. In Karapparamba The clean-up drive concluded with a ‘mega operation’ at Karapparamba, which was the toughest area to clean due to the presence of thick bushes and trees along the banks besides reptiles. The volunteers led by the trained volunteers of Niravu Vengeri unearthed around 500 bags of non-biodegradable waste from the area in a single day. They were supported by the Fire and Rescue Services Department, the Kerala State Electricity Board and the Forest Department. However, no reptiles were found under the bridge where they were usually spotted. Sector-wise panels Launching the second phase, A. Pradeep Kumar, MLA, installed the first sector board at Karapparamba, indicating that it was part of Sector 4 of the canal. The canal has been divided into eight sectors for ease of management. Sector-wise committees have been formed led by corporation councillors in the respective regions and including representatives from environmental organisations, local residents associations and merchant bodies. “We have cleaned up Sector 1, Elathur as a model. You cannot spot even a toffee-wrapper along the canal in that part. The sector committees have to follow that model to undertake the sector-wise operation in the coming days,” said Babu Parambath, project coordinator of Niravu Vengeri. A meeting of the sector committees will be held at the corporation office at 3 p.m. on Wednesday. After the sector-wise clean-up drive, the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management would test the water and submit a report based on which the Kerala State Pollution Control Board would take action against the polluters identified in each sector, said Mr. Babu. KSSP plays Meanwhile, the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (KSSP) has taken up the task of creating awareness among the local people on preventing pollution of the canal. The campaigns that include KSSP’s capsule plays will be held along the 30 drains that open into the canal, contributing to its pollution. Plastic waste Niravu plans to cover the mouths of the drains with mesh to stop more plastic from flowing into the canal.

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