DOES KERALA REALLY DESERVE THIS CROWN?

A well-known poet, an eminent environmentalist of national repute, but for her initiative in mobilizing public opinion and outcry against the proposed construction of Silent Valley Hydro-electric project, the valley would have been non-existent by now. It would have brought about ecological plunder and destruction of invaluable flora and fauna, lush greenery, the rivulets, streams and the total extinction of rare species like lion-tailed monkeys and birds only found in Silent Valley. A well-known social-activist, champion of hapless women and orphans- her tireless- efforts brought about a sort of protective covering or shelter to them ie those in the lower strata of society. Her father, a great poet and freedom fighter and her sister a great educationist. Her area of activities is confined to the State of Kerala, unlike a Medha Patker, but kept abreast of all the goings on around national level.

I am prompted to pen this piece as I happened to go through a letter appeared in a regional daily of national stature last week.

She laments: What has gone wrong with our State, Kerala? (Remember this is God’s own country).

She goes on: Everyone is sad and apprehensive. The situation is getting worser and worser day by day. Thefts, looting, robbery, attacks, murders, women trafficking, molestation and rape, the law and order machinery remaining helpless, while the anti-social elements go on the rampage, even daring to take on the law enforcers, ministers and even court orders to rein on the restive elements fall on deaf ears.

Sugatha Kumari, reminding me of a helpless and hapless mother witnessing her children going astray and fight among themselves shedding much blood continues unabated remain a mute witness with a turbulent sea in the inner recesses of her heart .

The long patient, polite queing up of the drunkards infront of government beverage shops saddens her. Almost all bar-attached five-star hotels lavishly illuminated with colourful bulbs through out the night ( at the same time the State electricity board complaining always about power shortage and frequent raising of tariffs putting much burden on the heads of average customers) and embellished  with festoons and the large crowd rushing to occupy seats in the air-conditioned moonlit ambience with Pop music blaring out in the background compels the poet to reach a conclusion- Kerala has claimed the credit for the land of the greatest drunkards. Though with pangs in her heart she has already ‘crowned’ our land for winning this ‘coveted’ prize.

Her observation though with sorrow and frustration touches each and every aspect of our accursed society.

Communalism- both minority and majority- and related squabbles, clashes, attacks, blood-chilling murders, terrorism taking deep roots everywhere, even the recent incarnation of Dalit militancy and murders of innocent pedestrians by its followers have shaken the serene, peaceful foundations of our State – once acclaimed as a land peace, blessed with a natural landscape, rivers, verdant hills, lakes, streams, rivulets and near cent-percent literacy. Whether all these blessings will fade into oblivion in course of time with the greenery vanishing gradually due to ecological destruction, rivers getting polluted by effluents being pumped by chemical factories on the river-banks destroying in the process the rich diversity of fish and other habitat and the illegal sand-mining leading to rivers getting dried-up, poor infrastructure facilities like crater-filled roads, lack of drainage system, sanitation facilities, shortage of safe drinking water, poor transport facilities, sorry state of irrigation system and the toiling farmers remain a nightmare to the well-wishers across the State.

So what? Thanks to some national news channels, our state has come out on top on several positive factors in flying colours according to a survey conducted by them.

Now we can very well imagine the plight of other States of our “blessed nation” ie. India.

Cheer up our great poet.