Trees cut and walls filled with vines; lock on Vazhuvelil Tharavadu; Archaeological Department ignoring Sugathakumari

PATHANAMTHITTA: The ancestral home of poet Sugathakumari, who loved the soil, trees and people, has become a monument to neglect. Although Sugathakumari handed over Vazhuvelil Tharavadu, her ancestral home in Aranmula, to the Archaeological Department, the process to preserve it as a memorial is delayed.

This is also the land full of memories of Bodheswaran, Sugathakumari's father, a freedom fighter and poet. The Archaeological Department, which initially carried out some renovation work, has not conducted further checks since. Many trees were cut down. The wall are filled with vines. The courtyard got filled with dry leaves and mud. The ancestral home is closed.

The ancestral home was damaged in the 2018 floods. After Sugathakumari handed over the ancestral home, Aranmula Vastuvidya Gurukulam prepared a plan for the restoration of the sarpakkavu (abode of snakes), recovery of the pond, and construction of the traditional arched gateway (Padippura). The work, which began in January 2019, was completed by January 2020. More than Rs. 64 lakh was spent, but the renovation work was abandoned halfway.

Although Sugathakumari had instructed not to cut down trees and vines, the private agency entrusted by the Archaeological Department for renovation cut down many of the trees. The cutting down and destruction of the sarppakavu and the painting of the idols were controversial. No further work was done. There were also plans to turn this place into a literary museum. Sugathakumari wanted the ancestral home to be opened to the public in memory of her love for the environment and her poetic life.