Inland island group in Kollam
Munroe Island
(Malayalam : ????????????????) or
Mundrothuruthu
is an
inland
island group
located at the
confluence
of
Ashtamudi Lake
and the
Kallada River
, in
Kollam district
,
Kerala
,
South India
. It is a group of eight small islets comprising a total area of about 13.4 km
2
.
[1]
The island, accessible by road, rail and inland water navigation, is about 25 kilometres (16 mi) from
Kollam
by road, 38 kilometres (24 mi) north from
Paravur
, 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) west from
Kundara
and about 25 kilometres (16 mi) from
Karunagapally
. As of the 2011 Indian census
[update]
, the administrative village of Mundrothuruth (which includes nearby small villages as well) has a total population of 9599, consisting of 4636 males and 4963 females. This island is also known as "Sinking Island of Kerala"
The place is named in honour of
Resident
Colonel
John Munro
of the former Princely State of
Travancore
. The islands measure 13.4 square kilometres (5.2 sq mi) in area.
History
[
edit
]
In 1795 the British established their supremacy in South India and the princely state of
Travancore
came under their governance. From 1800 onwards, a
Resident
was appointed by East India Company as administrative head of
Travancore
. The first Resident was Colonel
Colin Macaulay
, followed by
Colonel John Munro
. During his tenure Munro oversaw the land reclamation efforts in the delta where Kallada River joins Ashtamudi Lake and the reclaimed island was named after him as Munroe Island. The
Dutch Church
here in Munroe Island is one of the ancient churches in
Kerala
. It was built by
the Dutch
in 1878. The red brick church is a blend of
Dutch
-
Kerala
architecture on the scenic banks of
Lake Ashtamudi
.
[2]
The villagers depended on coconut coir manufacturing as livelihood, however, post Indian Ocean tsunami, things have changed.
[
citation needed
]
Tourism
[
edit
]
The island village is a tourism destination where one can see the
coir
retting process, coir weaving, fishing, prawns feeding, migratory bird watch, narrow canals and waterways, coconut farms on the lake shore, lagoons,
mangrove
plants and the beautiful tiny islands of Pathupara.
Kallada Boat Race
, which is one of the famous boat races in Kerala, is at Karuvathrakadavu- Muthiraparambu nettayam in Munroe Island.
[
citation needed
]
Threat of submergence
[
edit
]
Low-lying areas of the Island are reportedly under a threat of submerging in high tides. In 2016, an expert team from the
Thangal Kunju Musaliar College of Engineering, Kollam
had started a study into the phenomena at the request of the Munroethuruthu
grama panchayat
. The team headed by Prof. Gouri Antharjanam, Head, Department of Civil Engineering, visited the Island.
[3]
Subsequently, geo-scientists from the
National Centre for Earth Science Studies
(NCESS) conducted a 2-year study from 2017 to 2019. They used observations from the
satellite microwave interferometric technique
and from an array of local
GPS
stations. They tentatively concluded that the Island is not subsiding. They found that only very heavy buildings that do not follow proper design standards have subsided up to 1.5 ft (0.46 m). The double railway line, with up to 150 trains per day, and station platforms are also subsiding. The NCESS scientists found that a tide of 1 m (3.3 ft) at the coast translates to less than 0.5 m (1.6 ft) at Munroe Island. Hence,
global warming
is also not a key problem.
[4]
The island's population has been steadily declining due to an exodus of people unable to cope up with the living conditions. The death of
Lance Naik
B. Sudheesh of this island in the Border area at
Siachen Glacier
spurred interest of the outer world in the problems of this place.
[5]
Villagers fear subsiding of the land, and they suffer due to the lack of transport and other amenities. Land prices have fallen as they migrate elsewhere for better opportunities. The problems may have been exacerbated by the
Indian Ocean tsunami
in 2004 that changed the backwater system and resulted in increased salinity of the soil.
[4]
[6]
Gallery
[
edit
]
-
Munroe island in
Ashtamudi Lake
-
Boating through the canals of Munroe Island
-
Cruise on country boat through inland canals of Munroe Island
-
A houseboat moves through Ashtamudi Lake. Munroe island in the background.
-
-
Express train passing through Munroe Island, Mar 2022
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
City corporations
| | |
---|
Municipalities
| |
---|
Revenue divisional office
| |
---|
Talukas
and
villages
| |
---|
|
---|
Organisations
| |
---|
Informative articles
| |
---|
Airports
| |
---|
Amusement parks
| |
---|
Archaeological sites
| |
---|
Beaches
| |
---|
Boat races
| |
---|
Caves
| |
---|
Dams
| |
---|
Festivals
| |
---|
Forts
| |
---|
Islands
| |
---|
Lakes
| |
---|
Lighthouses
| |
---|
Mountains
| |
---|
Museums
| |
---|
Palaces
| |
---|
Ancient residences
| |
---|
Waterfalls
| |
---|
Wildlife sanctuaries
| |
---|
Zoos
| |
---|
|