Endosulfan misery: Daya Bai to resume protest as govt fails to keep word

Palakkad: Social activist Daya Bai has warned she would resume her agitation in support of the victims of the endosulfan poisoning in Kasaragod if the Kerala government fails to fulfill its promises based on which she had called off her previous stir.

This time around, the protest will be staged either in Kasaragod or Kochi.

Bai told Manorama that she was planning to approach the Supreme Court with a petition on the issue of providing justice to the victims.

The endosulfan poisoning of residents of 15 villages in Kasaragod district was caused by prolonged aerial spraying of the pesticide since 1976 in cashew plantations owned by the Plantation Corporation of Kerala.

Several people developed mental and physical disorders as a result.

“They gave us a slew of promises but none of them were implemented. I know only methods of protest such as hunger strike. It is painful that such neglect is shown towards the victims of the endosulfan tragedy in Kasaragod,” she said.

The 18-day-long protest under the leadership of Bai was called off on October 19, 2022 on the basis of the promises given by the government.

She said the government had promised that medical camps would be organised for the victims. A total of 29,000 applications were received for attending the camps but no follow-up action was taken.

She had demanded the proposed All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) should be established in Kasaragod where sufficient land is available for acquisition.

The government had requested then that this demand should not be made as a decision on it had already been taken.

Bai claimed decisions such as choosing the site for AIIMS are influenced by the land mafia.