Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 15 The LDF members on Thursday staged a walkout from the Keralam Assembly after their demand for an adjournment debate on the removal of protective fences in Idukki district was rejected, triggering a heated exchange between the ruling and Opposition benches.
The motion sought a discussion on the concerns of farmers and residents of the high-range region after Forest Department officials dismantled fences and walls erected in Panthalikkalam, Santhanpara and Chinnakanal, following an order issued by the Idukki District Collector on September 23.
Moving the motion during the zero hour, CPI(M) MLA K U Jenish Kumar alleged that the Forest Department was using the order to remove barriers indiscriminately, potentially making it easier for wild elephants to enter human settlements.
Questioning the rationale behind the department’s exercise, he said Chinnakanal did not have even a single declared elephant corridor.
Responding to the allegations, Forest Minister Shibu Baby John said the decision had been taken against the backdrop of repeated fatal human animal conflicts involving humans and elephants. Three people had died in Chinnakanal alone within a month, he said.
The minister said the administration had been compelled to act after residents refused to bury the body of a man killed by a wild elephant until the fences were removed.
While acknowledging that Chinnakanal did not have a formally notified elephant corridor, John said the movement of elephants through the area had to be facilitated.
The absence of a formally designated corridor should not negate the need to preserve a passage for the animals, he said.
The minister also cited a past recommendation made by a committee comprising then Left ministers A K Balan, K P Rajendran and Binoy Viswam to develop Chinnakanal as an elephant reserve.
Taking aim at the previous LDF government, John alleged that two major resorts in the area were obstructing elephant movement and questioned the failure to act against the structures despite a 2022 High Court ruling permitting their removal.
Referring to a resort owned by a prominent business group, he said the previous government had three years to act against it but had failed to do so. He questioned whether the government had hesitated to remove the resort’s fences.
Chief Minister V D Satheesan intervened in the debate, rejecting Janeesh’s allegation that there was a conspiracy behind the district collector’s order to dismantle the protective barriers.
He accused the previous LDF government of taking contradictory positions before courts in cases relating to the Cardamom Hill Reserve (CHR) in Idukki.
Satheesan said the Supreme Court’s direction restricting construction in CHR land was a consequence of the previous government’s stand before the court and its alleged failure to submit a list distinguishing encroachers from legitimate settlers.
Alleging that Chinnakanal had witnessed extensive encroachment, he described it as one of the areas with the highest levels of land encroachment.
The chief minister said the UDF government’s position was that CHR land was revenue land and not forest land.
Accordingly, the government believed that permissions should be granted for construction and other activities there, he said.
Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, however, accused the Congress-led UDF government of creating widespread anxiety among residents of Idukki through the district collector’s order on fence removal.
He said the authorities should have clarified the provisions of the order to prevent uncertainty among local people. Questioning the government’s position, he also asked why reports of any studies conducted on traditional elephant corridors passing through areas where residents had erected fences had not been made public.
Vijayan said the lack of clarity in the order had left farmers and other residents deeply concerned about its implications.
The opposition staged a walked out in the House after the Speaker disallowed the adjournment motion.
(PTI News)
