In a major relief to 45 families in Ayyankuzhi, Vadavukode-Puthencruz panchayat, who have been demanding acquisition of their land after living under polluted conditions for over four decades, the Local Self Government Department (LSGD) has released ₹16 crore for acquisition.
About 9.30 acres will be designated as a scientific landfill. Vice-president Kunnathunadu MLA Sajendran said that the acquisition arrangements will be initiated soon. The district procurement committee, chaired by district collector G Priyanka, will consult with land owners and take follow-up action, he added.
Saji Kumar, convener of Ayankuzhi Janakiya Samiti, welcomed the development and hoped that further measures such as fixing the price of land and actual acquisition would follow without delay.
Families fled their homes after a section of 220 kV electrical cables passing through the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited-Kochi refinery campus in their area caught fire on July 8, 2025. Families sandwiched on a 9.4-acre strip between two major public sector undertakings – Hindustan Organic Chemicals Limited and BPCL-KR – were already protesting, demanding acquisition of their land after the Kerala State Pollution Control Board certified the area as a ‘red zone’ uninhabitable when the accident occurred.
The families were initially shifted to a lodge in Chottanikkara and then to rented houses after refusing to return to their homes. Subsequently, the then LDF government decided to directly acquire the land to set up a solid waste treatment plant under the Kerala Solid Waste Management Project with support from the World Bank. The direct purchase method was preferred to avoid delays and cost overruns in completing the project, and to minimize litigation over compensation through negotiations with affected families. However, a final decision on whether to proceed with direct purchase or acquisition under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act has not yet been made.
Published – September 17, 2026 6:52 pm EST.
