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| Leelakumari Amma, Periya, Kasaragod |
When Leelakumari Amma, an employee of Agriculture Department, came on transfer to Periya in Kasaragod in 1983, she had come to a veritable Kaaliya-land. In this poison-land every household had a sad story to tell. Premature deaths, deformed births, dying birds and beasts, contaminated wells etc symbolized the trauma that was the result of pesticide ‘Endosulphan’ sprayed from helicopter in the 5000-hectare cashew plantation.
The tragedy touched her personally. Her brother, who had come to supervise her house under construction, was killed by the poison. And being a field worker she was aware of the damage everywhere. And in the survey conducted by students and health activists, the root cause of the malady was becoming clear.
Leelakumari Amma petitioned authorities against the effects of Endosulphan. When that did not invoke even an acknowledgement, she started uniting neighbours and villagers. They filed a petition before the Muncif Court of Kanhangad. And in 2000, the Court stayed the spraying of the pesticide.
Though the Corporation appealed against the judgment, the final verdict was in favour of the people. That did not go well with a few. They started threatening her with dire consequences. She almost thought they would finish her off.
Although the poison fangs of Endosulphan spared her, she was in for another shock exactly one year after the judgment. An autorickshaw she was traveling in, collided with a truck and she sustained serious injuries in head and leg. Three years of treatment later, she is now coming back to normal life.
“For the court case and the treatment, we spent lakhs of rupees. But we never felt that as a loss. It is heartening that the people of this land can still live here,” she says.
Courtesy:
Vijeesh Gopinath (text), Vanitha, May 1-14, 2008
Contributed by: Administrator
