Meena Menon is the owner of Santhivanam, a 200-year-old mini forest in Kerala with sacred groves and ponds. It is a highly biodiverse area with many species of animals and some very old trees.
Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), however, wants to cut down trees in the area to facilitate the laying of a transmission tower under the 110-kV project.
On 19 June, board officials arrived on the land to prune some branches but the owner and several volunteers of Santhivanam Samrakshana Samiti protested against it. Then they came back with the police to complete their task.
Earlier, Meena took legal recourse to stop the work but The Kerala High Court decided against her. She alleges that KSEB wants to fell 8 trees by saying they are trimming branches.
Now she has decided to cut off her hair as a sign of protest. She says, “I have fought using all possible ways democratically. I don’t need permission to cut my hair and I am doing it. I have been waiting for the chief minister to intervene. This is how the government is planning to make the state green. When they want the land, they will just wipe out all biodiversity.”
The Times of India also quoted her saying,
“My action is an example of what will happen when an ordinary citizen tries to protect the environment. I have raised a lot of slogans for the party. Comrade, this is for the common man and what is happening is a violation of human rights.”
Electricity board officials, however, claim that it is a safety precaution.
“We will prune only the branches that are likely to come in contact with the power line.”
According to The Hindu, the state’s Electricity Minister M.M. Mani stated that the tower will help 40,000 families and hence the work can’t be stopped.
Do you think the government should be allowed to cut down trees in the name of development? If they do, should they be liable to add to the green cover to compensate?