Ration not enough to make both ends meet; tribals families in Nilambur starving

MALAPPURAM: 'There is not even a handful of rice here. We had some leftover cooked rice from the night before and made it into a porridge for breakfast. There is no money in hand.'- Sundaran (30) of Vettilakoli Adivasi Nagar in Nilambur inner forest said with a broken heart. 'Sometimes, there is tomato curry or green chillies with rice. Now, I eat just rice'- Sundaran's words, opening his heart and holding his wife and 13-year-old son close.

The lives of 90 people in 28 families belonging to the Kattunayakan and Muthuvans communities in the ooru are no different. They get 30 kg of rice as a monthly ration, but since they eat rice three times a day, the rice runs out by the middle of the month. They sell the forest resources they occasionally get and buy rice. Otherwise, they starve completely.

The other day, 30 out of 40 people who attended a medical camp conducted in the ooru by a doctors' association were found to have severe anaemia due to malnutrition. Some women need emergency hospitalisation.

The government has allocated six lakh for the construction of houses in the inner forest, including four lakh from the LIFE project and two lakh from the Scheduled Tribes Department. High transport charges have to be paid to bring construction materials. Due to the high construction cost, there are no contractors to take over. In many cases, construction has been abandoned halfway through.

Sundaran needs help

Sundaran, who fell from a tree while picking jackfruit, has injured his spine. He cannot go to work. He has to go to Manjeri Medical College once a month for further treatment. Sundaran has to travel three kilometers through a difficult dirt road in the inner forest to reach his Ooru. Since there is wildlife, only one jeep is operating. It costs ₹1,600 to get out of the forest. Treatment has been delayed due to this. Sundaran said that he has not received any financial assistance from the authorities. Sundaran has also been found to have heart disease symptoms at the medical camp.