Kerala’s 'zero-waste' Alappuzha among top five cities in UN list to successfully manage solid waste

The waste management system that is being implemented in Kerala's coastal town of Alappuzha has been recognized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as one of the 5 models across the world for fighting the pollution menace.

Alappuzha has been listed in the UNEP environment report entitled, 'Solid approach to waste: how five cities are beating pollution' alongside cities like Osaka in Japan, Ljubljana in Slovenia, Penang in Malaysia and Cajica in Colombia.

The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) had also lauded the unique initiative and the town that attracts tourists from all over the world emerged as the cleanest city in the country in the survey conducted by them in 2015-16. It was also presented as a zero-waste model at the Paris Climate Conference in 2015.


Kerala Suchitwa Mission officials said that the parameters considered for the survey were based on the centralized system of waste management involving the door-to-door collection and centralized waste processing. However, Alappuzha followed a decentralized system under which the waste is managed at the source itself.



Door-to-door and centralized treatment of waste is not practical in a state like Kerala with a very high-density population. It may not be sustainable too in the long run. It is debatable whether Swacch Bharat Mission should change their approach or not.



Alappuzha addressed the problem by introducing a decentralized waste management system. In fact, many civic bodies in the country have started looking at the Alappuzha model seriously. Some local bodies in Tamil Nadu have already sought the assistance of the Suchitwa Mission in setting up the decentralized waste management system, the mission official said.


Biogas plants, both portable and fixed, were installed in households, with 50 percent subsidy from government agencies. Hotels, vegetable markets, wedding halls were asked to have their own plants or make arrangements to entrust their waste to recognized private service providers. Within a month, the scheme was rolled out in 12 more wards. The urban body has so far established 5,000 kitchen bins, 3,000 biogas plants, 2,800 pipe composting units, and 218 aerobic composting units to manage 58-60 tonnes of waste the town generates daily.


Plastic and other non-degradable wastes are segregated at the source and delivered to the respective units. While the kitchen waste can be deposited in public aerobic bins, the plastic waste is separately collected once a month by the municipality officials from the units or households and handed over to private parties for recycling. Plastic waste can also be given to the state government's Clean Kerala Company which sells it to factories in other states.


The waste deposited at the aerobic compost plants in public places is converted into organic fertilizers and distributed to the public free of cost. Each unit, comprising two bins, processes 2,000 kilograms of waste and converted it into fertilizer within 90 days. The municipality has plans to sell it at subsidized rates in the coming months.

Suchitwa Mission officials said that the success of the model had encouraged several civic bodies in the state to switch over to decentralized waste management. While 20 municipalities and 300 village panchayats have already launched the project, the others have started the process. A senior official said their target was to cover the entire state within the next two years.


The municipality also encountered resistance when aerobic plants were set up in the public places. The municipality solved this problem by beautifying the area around the aerobic units. The walls of the units were decorated with attractive paintings and converted some as parks and meeting places. One such park has now become a tourist attraction in the town.

However, the municipality officials are hopeful that they will be able to sustain the project since they have been able to bring about a behavioral change in the people. This will not only help maintain the city but also attract more tourists to the city.


Source: http://www.firstpost.com/india/keralas-zero-waste-alappuzha-among-top-five-cities-in-un-list-to-successfully-manage-solid-waste-4236667.html

Why We Love Travelling to Alappuzha

Alappuzha is one of the most popular tourist places in south India and is also known as the "Venice of the East". Alappuzha has a lot of potential in terms of tourism, and is one of the major income generating tourist places in Kerala. Unlike other places in Kerala, Alappuzha is blessed with a unique beauty and geographical features that attracts a lot of tourists throughout the year. The number of people visiting Alappuzha is on a rapid increase by each passing years and this is the major evidence why this place has a prominent spot in the tourism map of Kerala.

There are a lot of factors that attracts people towards this place and people of all age group love travelling to Alappuzha for a various number of reasons. Here are 5 important reasons in my opinion, that makes people love to visit this beautiful place in Kerala again and again.

1) Amazing and Beautiful Stretches of Backwaters
Backwaters are the trademark of Alappuzha and if you are on a trip to this place, you will never miss out the view of the amazing and beautiful stretches of backwaters. Most of the places in Alappuzha are influenced by the backwaters and this is mainly due to its low altitude from the sea level. Travelers love watching and taking snaps of the backwaters so that they can cherish its beauty for a longer time period. The beauty of the backwaters of Alappuzha is something that keeps travellers from visiting this place again and again.

2) Facility to Enjoy a Houseboat Trip Along the Backwaters
The beautiful backwaters of Alappuzha are stretched too long and is one of the major ingredients that boosts the overall tourism industry in Kerala. One of the best ways to explore the majestic beauty of the backwaters of Aleppey is to take a ride on the specially designed houseboats that are seen in this part of Kerala. The houseboats or kettuvallams are boats specially designed for taking a ride along the backwaters and spending a day in middle. The houseboats are like  a small house with all the facilities and amenities that will make your stay comfortable. You can also enjoy special food that are prepared inside the houseboats and overall the houseboat trips are the most enjoyable thing during your trip to Alappuzha.

3) An Opportunity to Enjoy Toddy and Delicious Food from Toddy Shop
Have you heard about Toddy? It is not a food, rather it is a drink that is taken from various type of palm trees such as palmyra, date palms, and coconut palms. Also known as "Palm Wine", the toddy is an alcoholic beverage that are available in toddy shops across Kerala. Enjoying toddy and delicious food from a toddy shop in Alappuzha is something that can bring special enjoyment to your trip. The food will be traditional spicy Kerala dishes and enjoying them with palm wine is something that everyone loves to do. If you have enjoyed toddy and food from a toddy shop in Alappuzha, then it is without doubt that the delicious taste will prompt you to visit this place again and again.

4) Presence of Beaches to Make Your Trip More Enjoyable
Alappuzha is not all about backwaters and there are also other travel places of interest that you can enjoy while visiting this place. The beaches and other places that are present in Alappuzha is something that you can really enjoy while on your trip. The Alappuzha beach is a popular tourist destination where you can enjoy some good time with family and friends. You might also get a chance to enjoy a ride on the camel top, as there are guys with camels specially meant for tourism activities. You can enjoy a walk along the beaches and enjoy a nice sunset to recharge your mind and body.

5) Adorable Traditional Villages and Paddy Fields
If you are tired of watching the backwaters, houseboat rides and walking along the beaches of Alappuzha, then there is another option that can really provide you fresh travel experiences. Taking a trip through the traditional villages and paddy fields of Alappuzha can bring about a fresh feeling that you have never experienced before. The amazing beauty of the local villages and the green paddy fields are a real treat to the eyes. Meanwhile you can also have a tea and snacks from a local tea shop that can provide you a different taste.

Make Your Travel to Alappuzha Before June 2012

If you are an avid traveller and plans to visit Alappuzha in Kerala, then better you plan your travel package before June 2012, otherwise you would be wasting your money after that. The main reason is that the monsoon season hits Kerala on the first week of June and from there onwards it would be in full strength till September. Since Alappuzha is a low lying plain land, the rainy season would make a mess of it and it would be really unworthy of planning a tour travel package to Alappuzha during that time.

Once the monsoon arrives in Alappuzha, most of the areas in Alappuzha would be experiencing water logging and you would not be able to enjoy the beauty of Alappuzha at its best. More over many epidemics breaks out in Alleppey during the monsoon season leading to serious health issues. Taking all these factors into consideration, most of the travellers dare to make a trip to Alappuzha between June to September of every year.

Due to the heavy monsoon rainfalls in Alappuzha during the months between June - September, the tourism industry in Alappuzha comes to a halt and majority of the houseboats that takes travellers for a backwater ride would be seen empty. Most of the houseboats offers backwater ride at really low rates as they really becomes hit by the off tourism season. Even though it is a wonderful experience to cruise along the backwaters of Alappuzha in a houseboat during the monsoon season, the number of tourist taking a backwater ride during this time is negligible due to many other factors.

But once the monsoon is over by Septembers, travellers start coming to Alappuzha to explore it amazing beauty and charm. The houseboats will start raising their tariffs and would be in full flow by mid-November. So if you are planning to travel Alappuzha in the near future, then make it before June. Otherwise you would have to wait another 4 or 5 months which would be a big time gap as far as your professional and personal life is concerned.

Alappuzha City Needs to Have a Planned Traffic System

Alappuzha is one of the major travel destinations in Kerala and is well known for its amazing back waters and panoramic beauty. I have travelled through Alappuzha on a large number of occasions for various reasons. Even though Alappuzha as a whole is a beautiful travel destination, the one thing that’s needs to be changed immediately is the traffic system inside the city of Alappuzha.

Alappuzha town is somewhat old fashioned with old buildings and roads which make it look like an old city. Due to the old fashioned architecture of the city, the traffic inside the city becomes unbearable at some times. During the peak hours the traffic becomes so congested that we would never think of coming to Alappuzha ever again. The authorities have to think about a better plan which makes the traffic inside Alappuzha town smoother. Otherwise it would leave a bad impact on the tourists coming to Alappuzha from different parts of the World.

The outer areas of Alappuzha town do not experience this traffic congestion but the main city is a traffic hell. If the traffic system in Alappuzha is improved, it would certainly enhance the tourism potential of the city. Along with a good traffic system, cleanliness should also be improved as the city is below par in cleanliness and hygiene.

25 Hitech Ambulances for Alappuzha

In a move to strengthen the health zone of Alappuzha, the authorities have sanction 25 hitech ambulances which includes facilities such as ICU, ventilator, oxygen cylinders, automatic trolleys, stretchers and other life saving equipments. The services of these hitech ambulances can be availed 24 x 7 by dialing 108.

There had been a huge shortage of ambulances in Alappuzha town and the introduction of hi tech ambulances are seen as a measure to solve the shortages of the ambulances. Once 108 is dialed, the hitech ambulances would rush to the accident spot or any other destination to offer their help. There would always be a ambulance driver and a technician inside the ambulance and this makes things more easy.

The hitech ambulance is also expected to be much helpful for patients suffering from heart stroke as the ambulance has the most advanced equipments which can  serve the patients in a much better way. An hitech ambulance was allowed for alappuzha district one year back, but unfortunately the ambulance was later offered to some other districts, which led to huge protests.   

A new agency would be appointed to manage the operations of these hitech ambulances in Alappuzha and the health department authorities would be conducting a meeting in Trivandrum regarding the finalization of this. Hope that more hitech ambulances would be allotted to other districts in Kerala, which really needs such services.

Alappuzha All Set for the Traditional Boat Races

Alappuzha is well known for the array of boat races it conducts during a year and the boat races in Alappuzha are so famous that people from different regions comes here to view the amazing boat race. A wide variety of boats would be assembled on various backwater section in Alappuzha making an entire festive atmosphere. The boat races in Alappuzha has been there since a long time and it is a matter of pride for the locals to conduct these boat races successfully.

Some of the major boat race competition in Alappuzha include the Champakulam boat race, the Nehru Trophy Boat race at Punnamada lake, the Rajiv Gandhi Boat race at Pulinkunnu and the Kayamkulam boat race. Besides these there are many other small boat races in Alappuzha and most of these boat races are centered around the period of the traditional festival Onam.

The participants of the boat race spends months of valuable time in practicing and they consider it as a matter of pride to win these prestigious trophy. The "Vanchi Pattu", a peculiar folk song related to the boat races are also being practiced during the prepratory section. There are various boat clubs, who participate in these tournaments and they usually spend around 80 lakhs to 1 crore rupees as a part of the preparation and participation in these boat races.

Of all these boat races the Champakulam boat race is the oldest one and a number of well known boat clubs take part in this race. The second most popular is the Nehru Trophy boat race which takes place at the Punnamada lake and is very much popular in the international arena. This occurs during the second Saturday of August every year. The next Saturday Pulinkunnu would be hosting the Rajiv Gandhi boat race which is also a popular one. The fourth saturday of August would be the time for Kayamkulam boat race after that there is the Mamman Mappila boat race at Neerettupuram. The boat race season in Alappuzha comes to an end with the Pallana Kumarakodi boat race.

The boat races marks the arrival of the new tourist season in Alappuzha and as a results a lot of foreigners would be present there to watch this amazing boat races. The boat races in Alappuzha are a real treat to the eyes and the mood and spirit during these times would be electrifying.

Pathiramanal Island in Alappuzha

Pathiramanal is an amazing tourist spot in Alappuzha and is around 1.5 hours drive by a motor boat from Alappuzha. If you are taking a speed boat, then it would take only around 30 minutes to reach Pathiramanal. Pathiramanal is actually a small island on the backwaters of Alappuzha and is visited by a large number of tourist throughout the year.  A large number of rare and unique birds which migrate from other parts of the world are found at Pathiramanal.

The island is pretty beautiful in its appearance and is surrounded by the famous Vembanad lake, and the only mode of transport which helps you in getting to Pathiramanal is the boat services. The island is greenish in nature and is a perfect destination for those who wants to take a cool break and also for those who are interested in bird watching and similar activities.  Some of the major bird species that is found in Pathiramanal are e Pintail Ducks, Common Teal, Night Heron, Cormorant, Darter, Indian Shag, Purple Heron, gulls, terns, large egrets, Intermediate Egret, Cattle Egret, Indian Pond Heron, Little Egret etc.

The Pathiramanal island is actually situated between Kumarakom and Thaneermukkom and is located on the border of Kottayam and Alappuzha district. Since the island is surrounded by backwaters, you would be getting cool breeze throughout the day. The atmosphere here at Pathiramanal is very much calm and quiet and helps you to get relaxed and be free from the hassles of city life.

There are many resorts and hotels in and around Alappuzha where you can get a decent accommodation. The nearest railhead is at Alappuzha and the nearest airport is at Cochin.

Alappuzha Set to Celebrate its 250 th anniversary

Alappuzha is a little town in Kerala and is one of the most popular tourist destination in India, due to its unique landscape and scenic beauty. Alappuzha is also known as the 'Venice of the East' and tourist across the world visit this place to enjoy its amazing natural beauty.  This beautiful town will turn 250 next year  and the officials are planning to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Alappuzha town with some comprehensive makeover.

As a part of this the municipal authorities are planning to tackle the problems caused by monsoon in Alappuzha. As per the Alappuzha Municipality authorities various task forces have been constituted to make reports based on suggestions they get from the public, trade and business representatives, political parties and residents associations. These report would help them to tackle issues related to health, drinking water, sanitation and traffic.

The main agenda would be to make a "clean Alappuzha" by 2012 and this would mainly be based around a 6 point action plan. This would include the cleaning of the canals in the town, strengthening the solid waste disposal system in Alappuzha with the introduction of a method for waste segregation at the source itself, implementation of a special health package, total revamp of the drainage and sewage system with help from the IIT, Kharagpur, conservation of the Vembanad lake ecosystem and finally the completion of Alappuzha drinking water project.

The town of Alappuzha was found in 1762 by  Diwan Raja Kesavadas  and was also known as the commercial capital of the erstwhile State of Travancore. But in the course of time the city became more congested and the lack of proper planning made the matter more worse. Hope that 250th anniversary celebration of Alappuzha town, would help to solve most of the problems that is being faced by the beautiful town of Alappuzha.

Alappuzha District Police Turns Health Conscious

In a recent move by the Alappuzha district police, they have decided to give high priority to their health. Taking a leaf out of the recent reports on the health issues being caused by the over use of mobile phones, the Alappuzha district police have decided to reduce the usage of mobile phones among the police personnel in the district.

Alappuzha Superintendent of Police C H Nagaraju has instructed all his subordinates to avoid use of cell phones except in emergencies. He also instructed to use the facility of SMS to inform importance matters, rather than making a call on the mobile phone.  As per C H Nagaraju the police personnel were facing various health issues due to the over usage of mobile phones and this can be brought under control only by avoiding the usage of mobile phone for calling. Sending SMS does not do that much harm when compared to making a call on a mobile phone.

Hope that this move would improve the health conditions of the Alappuzha district police personnel and make them equipped to serve in a better health. This should not be just confined to the police personnel, rather everyone should try to learn to avoid using mobile phone every often. Even the common people can take this step by reducing the use of mobile phones and using only SMS in case of information transfer.

Police - Student Clash Leaves 31 Injured in Alappuzha

In a protest march taken out to the district collectorate of Alappuzha by the Students Federation of India (SFI) on Monday, a clash between the police and the students occured leaving 31 injured. The protest was done demanding the issues in the self-financing education sector be settled. Once the protest got aggressive police had to start lathi charge which was the main cause of the injuries. Both students and the police got injured during the fierce violence that erupted during the protest.

As per the Police the students started throwing stones at them when they tried to disperse the students. The students also attacked the police with sticks and in the course the violence 5 Police officials and 26 students got injured. SFI Alappuzha district joint secretary Sibi Varghese and SFI area secretary Mohammed Ashiq were among the students who got injured during the violence.

The police have arrested 25 students and produced them before the court,  while cases have been registered against 150 persons. The protest march, which started at 12 noon, turned violent when a group of  students tried to barge into the collectorate overcoming the police barricades. When they were stopped by the police, some of the students used sticks to attack the policemen. Once the police started the lathi charge, most of the students got canned and some of the students also tried to escape by entering the nearby shops. The fierce situation was lightened only after District Superintendent of Police C.H. Nagaraju reached the spot.

Welcome to the Blog on Alappuzha, Kerala

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I would like to welcome all to this blog on Alappuzha. Stay tuned for more updates.