Thiruvananthapuram: The ambitious project to clean and desilt the heavily polluted Thettiyar stream in the city has hit a major hurdle, with authorities struggling to remove widespread encroachments along the waterbody.Minor irrigation department officials said several stretches of the stream have virtually disappeared due to illegal constructions, concrete slabs and unchecked waste dumping, severely affecting the proposed rejuvenation work.Thettiyar stream, which originates from Kaniyapuram and merges with Akkulam Lake, passes through major urban stretches, including Kulathoor, Kazhakkoottam, Technopark Phase I and II and parts of VSSC campus. During monsoon, low-lying areas such as Kulathoor, Thampuranmukku and Kazhakkoottam witness severe waterlogging due to the clogged stream.A senior minor irrigation department official said the first step towards rejuvenation was removal of encroachments. “In many areas, the original width of the stream has reduced drastically. There are buildings constructed close to the banks, and on some stretches, the stream is covered with slabs. Without clearing these obstructions, large-scale desilting cannot be carried out,” he said.“A proposal seeking Rs 1.5 crore from National Disaster Management Authority for cleaning and desilting works is still pending. The department alone cannot execute the project as coordinated action is needed from the district administration, city corporation and revenue authorities to remove encroachments,” he added.The irrigation department faces limitations in monitoring stretches passing through VSSC and Technopark campuses. Sources said inspections and maintenance activities inside these campuses require separate permissions, delaying coordinated restoration efforts.Residents living near the stream said flooding had become a recurring nightmare. “Even a few hours of heavy rain is enough to flood our homes and roads. Dirty water mixed with waste enters residential areas and remains stagnant for days,” said P Suresh Kumar, a Thampuranmukku resident.Kulathoor-resident S Chitralekha said the foul smell from the stagnant stream had become unbearable. “The stream used to flow freely years ago. Now waste is dumped everywhere, and many stretches have narrowed due to encroachments. Authorities wake up only during floods,” she said.Meanwhile, a senior corporation official said, “The corporation has been conducting periodic waste removal drives, but a permanent solution requires joint action involving multiple departments. Encroachments and sewage discharge are the biggest challenges.”Officials warned that unless urgent restoration measures are implemented before the peak monsoon, flooding in Kazhakkoottam-Technopark corridor could worsen further this year.After the massive flooding during 2023 monsoon in Technopark and nearby residential areas, authorities acknowledged that overflow of Thettiyar stream was one of the key reasons for it. Technopark later introduced an IoT-based flood monitoring system with automated sensors along the stream to track water levels and rainfall.Earlier, Technopark initiated embankment protection works and measures to prevent waste dumping into the stream. However, experts and activists pointed out that isolated cleaning inside the campus wouldn’t solve the issue unless sewage inflow and upstream encroachments were addressed.
