A village in Keralam which has been included in the draft ESA notification.
| Photo Credit: File photo
A joint front of Left farmer groups have announced a dawn-to-dusk hill-region hartal on October 27 in protest against the inclusion of eight villages in Kollam district under the Union government’s Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) draft notification. The shutdown, scheduled from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., is also in protest against the State government’s alleged sidelining of these eight villages while recommending the exclusion of 33 other villages across Keralam from the contentious draft.
“The Union government’s draft notification has unjustly incorporated nearly 76,000 hectares across the eight villages in Kollam without properly considering the severe livelihood concerns of local farmers and highland residents. Vital commercial and residential towns such as Kulathupuzha and Channappetta are being adversely affected by this sweeping designation, which threatens the daily existence of thousands of families who have cultivated these lands for generations,” said the organisers.
The farmers’ body strongly criticised the State government for failing to consult farming organisations or local representatives before submitting its exclusion list to the Centre. They termed it highly undemocratic and an act of political double-dealing that the government neither convened a special session of the Legislative Assembly to discuss the matter nor published the official map submitted to the Central government, leaving the public in the dark.
As part of the intensive protest, widespread torchlight processions will be staged across all affected wards on October 24 and 25. On the day of the hartal, comprehensive day-long satyagraha protests will be organised across all the affected villages to press for the demands and mark their protest against the persistent apathy of both Central and State administrations towards the vulnerable hill-region population.
Published – October 09, 2026 07:55 pm IST
