Wed Feb 12 20:20:35 UTC 2025: ## Kerala Allocates ₹100 Crore for Coastal Protection, Offering Hope to Erosion-Hit Chellanam

**Kochi, February 13, 2025** – The Kerala State Budget has allocated ₹100 crore for a coastal protection package, sparking hope in Chellanam, a village severely impacted by sea erosion. While the budget doesn’t specifically mention Chellanam, the Fort Kochi-Chellanam Janakiya Vedi, a local advocacy group, views the allocation as a potential pilot program for the implementation of geotube offshore breakwaters.

The ₹100 crore will be used to combat coastal erosion across Kerala, focusing on the construction of geotube breakwaters. V.T. Sebastian, convener of the Janakiya Vedi, highlighted the longevity of these underwater sand barriers, emphasizing their vulnerability to deterioration when exposed to sunlight. He contrasted this new initiative with the previously completed ₹470 crore project constructing a tetrapod wall and walkway along a section of the Chellanam coast, which has, so far, withstood the harsh sea conditions.

However, the Janakiya Vedi believes that a lasting solution requires addressing the depth of the sea near the shore. They propose using dredged material from the Cochin Port Authority’s shipping channel to help with beach accretion. This is supported by a recent Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) study which showed an increase in sea surge events, highlighting Chellanam’s vulnerability. The study recorded 684 sea surge events along the 600-km Kerala coastline between 2012 and 2023.

The Janakiya Vedi strongly opposes any solutions that involve the eviction or rehabilitation of residents, emphasizing that only proper coastal protection measures can provide a permanent solution to the ongoing erosion problem. The completed tetrapod wall project covers 7.36 km, a portion of the originally planned 12 km, with six groynes erected instead of the planned fifteen.

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