Allapad, a coastal village in Kollam district in Kerala is situated on a narrow strip of land sandwiched between the Arabian Sea and the TS Canal. For the residents of Allapad, sea erosion are a fact of life as the village land is disappearing fast as every year the sea swallows another chunk of land.
In the year 2004, Alappad faced an Indian Ocean tsunami and another attack of cyclonic storm Ockhi hit the area badly last year. Yet again another set of an unforeseen incident has come as a rude awakening to the residents of Alappad.
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According to the lithographic maps prepared in 1955, Alappad had covered an area of 89.5 square kilometers, but the total area has shrunk to just 8.9 square kilometers now. Over the past few years in around a period of 63 years, 80 sq km of land has been eaten up by ever-rising tides and is now out at sea under several feet of water.
The phenomenon continues, despite coastal defences that include concrete seawalls and timber groynes – long structures sticking into the sea to prevent the beach being washed away by tidal waves.
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Sea washing is the triggering factor for the erosion. The breadth of the panchayat, which previously was around 2.5-3.0 sq kms, is only 20 metres at places like Kakkathuruthu. Efforts should be initiated to reclaim the lost land along the lines of the schemes implemented in Willingdon Island to prevent Alappad’s remaining land from falling prey to the advancing sea.
