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THERE IS NO JUSTICE

  • 14/04/2004

THERE IS NO JUSTICE At Padpu, Padre village, Kasargod district, Kerala, there is a ritual every November to honour the snake god. Many in the area also believe that the ritual celebrates the origin of the Kodenkeri thodu (stream) in a patch of sacred forests near Padre, right beneath the cashew plantation-rich hills of Kasargod. The association between the venomous snake god and the stream is perhaps a part of the village's centuries old folklore. But since 1976, the people of Padre link the stream with a different sort of poison: endosulfan. That year, the Plantation Corporation of Kerala (PCK) decided to get rid of pests on its cashew plantations by aerially spraying this lethal pesticide. Endosulfan was absorbed in the soil and the stream carried it along, severely scarring the lives of many along their banks. The waters of Swarga, Pathadka and Badiyaru

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