In the wake of concerns over the inclusion of Vizhinjam port limit in the draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) prepared for Thiruvananthapuram district based on the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification 2019, Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority has begun reassessing the shape file (a geospatial vector data format in GIS) which was superimposed on the CZMP.
KCZMA officials said the map related to the port areas was received from the VISL (Vizhinjam International Seaport Limited) which was incorporated in the CZMP.
KCZMA is now verifying whether the drawing was made accurately. Besides, a government order is also being scrutinized based on which the map was sanctioned.
“The drawing needs to be rechecked. We will address the public concerns about the port limit on CZMP. Besides, it needs to be checked if the government order regarding the map is still in effect,” said an official.
During a public hearing in May to discuss the suggestions and objections regarding CZMP, residents and stakeholders expressed apprehensions and raised questions as to why the port limit was marked in the CZMP. It is learnt that no other port limit is demarcated on CZMP published for other districts.
A significant portion around the CRZ area is marked as port limit in the maps published as per CRZ notification 2019. The participants in the public hearing asked why such a demarcation was done and raised concerns whether it would lead to further hindrances in constructions within the area.
The main concern was whether they would need any kind of clearance from the port authorities in future for constructions in area marked as port limit.
Suneel Pamidi, ex-officio member secretary, KCZMA, who was present at the meeting, had said that no such clearance would be required.
However the residents couldn’t be convinced over the inclusion of port limit on the CZMP when no such limits were marked for any other harbours and constructions in the district.
One of the main concerns was that the areas shown as port limit included places which were exempted from acquisition for the port. The residents posed questions like whether it would lead to creation of a buffer zone where the public won’t be able to undertake any kind of land transactions.
