Relief for 45 Ayyankuzhi families as ₹16 crore allocated to acquire land

In a major relief to 45 families in Ayyankuzhi, Vadavucode-Puthencruz panchayat, who have been demanding the acquisition of their land after living amid pollution for over four decades, the Local Self-Government department (LSGD) has allocated ₹16 crore for the acquisition.

Around 9.30 acres will be acquired for a scientific landfill. Kunnathunadu MLA V.P. Sajeendran said acquisition measures would be initiated shortly. The district-level purchase committee, chaired by District Collector G. Priyanka, will hold consultations with landowners and undertake follow-up measures, he added.

Saji Kumar, an office-bearer of the Ayyankuzhi Janakeeya Samithi, welcomed the development and expressed hope that further measures, such as fixation of the land price and the actual acquisition, would follow without delay.

Families had vacated their homes after a section of 220-kV electric cables running through the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited-Kochi Refinery (BPCL-KR) campus in their neighbourhood caught fire on July 8, 2025. The families, who were sandwiched on a 9.4-acre strip between two major public sector units —Hindustan Organic Chemicals Limited and BPCL-KR— had already been protesting, demanding the acquisition of their land after the Kerala State Pollution Control Board certified the area as a ‘red zone’ unfit for habitation when the accident occurred.

Initially, the families were shifted to a lodge in Chottanikkara and later to rented houses after refusing to return to their homes. Subsequently, the then LDF government decided to directly purchase the land to establish a solid waste treatment facility under the Kerala Solid Waste Management Project, aided by the World Bank. The direct purchase method was preferred to avoid delays and cost overruns in project completion and to minimise litigation over compensation by negotiating with the 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 remained pending.