Thiruvananthapuram, July 24 -- The Uttarappalliyar river, once a lifeline for the agrarian communities of five panchayats in the Chengannur Assembly constituency and a serene, sacred tributary of the holy Pamba, has now become a stark symbol of river death, choked by encroachments, garbage, and political neglect. Its natural flow has been blocked and its ecological role destroyed, not by nature, but by human greed, illegal encroachments, and state inaction, locals told UNI. "In a blatant case of environmental destruction, a residential house has reportedly been built in the middle of the riverbed, fully obstructing the flow, while the local MLA, who is now a minister in the Kerala government continues to remains indifferent," they alleged....