Tracing the course of River Noyyal from purity to pollution

Wildlife Institute of India and Centre for Urban Biodiversity Conservation and Education organise ‘River Walk’ as part of the nationwide ‘Nadi Utsav’ initiated by the Ministry of Jal Shakti

A total of 30 persons, including college students and nature enthusiasts, were part of a 40-km-long journey on Sunday that traced the course of River Noyyal from its pristine origins at the foothills of the Western Ghats to its polluted state as it reaches the city of Coimbatore.

Conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in collaboration with Coimbatore-based Centre for Urban Biodiversity Conservation and Education (CUBE), the ‘River Walk’ was organised as part of the nationwide ‘Nadi Utsav’ (Festival of Rivers) initiated by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.

According to Historian C.R. Elangovan, who guided the participants in the journey from Siruvani Hills to Singanallur Tank in Coimbatore, the participants were first made to witness the confluence of several streams at Kooduthurai near Madhvarayapuram to form Noyyal and how pure its water was, he said.