For the past couple of days, social media in Kerala has been abuzz with some stunning pictures of a river that has quite literally turned into a pink colour.

While the water has not changed colour, the river in Kozhikode’s Avala Pandi near Perambra turned pink with millions of Forked Fanwort flowers.

As the word spread, it has become the latest tourist attraction in the area, with many visiting there to witness the spectacular view. And many of those visiting the river is going back with some Forked Fanwort plants they plucked from the water. This, biologists, say is a matter of concern as it can do a lot of damage to the local ecology. That is because Forked Fanwort (Cabomba furcata) known locally as ‘mullan payal’ is not a native species found in the waters of Kerala.