Rs 300 cr investment for Kerala lake

Vattakayal Lake in Kollam may soon be a swimming training facility for para-military personnel; the transformation will benefit the state’s tourism industry

A sleepy hamlet around a fresh-water lake in Kollam will soon be on the defence as well as the responsible tourism map of India, thanks to the efforts of an an environmental protection body in the district. The lake might soon see para-military personnel undergo swimming lessons.

The Vattakayal Lake, which takes is name for its circular shape, is at the forefront of a unique initiative spearheaded by the Vattakayal Samrakshana Pradeshika Vikasana Samithi, the environment protection body here. The Samithi leads an eco club that strives to protect and spur development around the fresh water lake.

Speaking to Business Standard Jayan Pongada, secretary, Vattakayal Samrakshana Pradeshika Vikasana Samithi, said: “The Samithi’s efforts are starting to bear fruit with a proposal to develop and convert the Vattakayal Lake into a swimming pool to train the country’s para-military forces under consideration of defence ministry.” The proposal is likely to get the nod soon and the Vattakayal Lake will never be the same old sleepy water body in this part of Kollam district, Jayan said.

The defence ministry nod will mean that Rs 300 crore would be invested to transform the Vattakayal Lake into a swimming pool to train para-military personnel. The lake, which spans a circumference of 40 acres, plus the 100-acre wasteland adjacent to it, will benefit from the investment, Jayan added. The southern part of the lake will house the swimming training facility. Vattakayal was picked from among five locations in Kerala, including the Veli Lake in Thiruvananthapuram, he added.

Explaining the rationale behind the swimming training facility, a source in the para-military forces said this probably would be a common training centre aimed at training the National Disaster Response Force, which would include the CRPF, BSF, ITBP and the CISF. Members of rescue missions, which get into the act when national calamities strike, are expected to complete their training at the Vatakayal Lake facility when the work on it is over.

Efforts taken by the Vattakayal Samrakshana Pradeshika Vikasana Samithi had attracted intervention from the local MLA and Kerala’s Minister for Water Resources N K Premachandran. He, along with the Minister for Labour and the Minister for Revenue , took the idea forward. The Samithi, with support from the Kollam District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC), felt that there was a need to develop the lake into a responsible tourism destination too. When the approval for the swimming training facility comes up, it is expected that tourism around Vattakayal would also blossom.

The Samithi and the DTPC are now in efforts to introduce sustainable initiatives in tourism that would help tourists, the local community and the fisher folk depend ent on the Lake for a living. “We would also launch efforts to help the fisher folk play a role in sustainable tourism, by helping them find buyers for their catch,” Jayan added.