King seeks implementation of Gadgil report

Kochi: A tribal community chief in Idukki has come out strongly in support of the Madhav Gadgil committee report, though mainstream political parties like the Congress and the CPM have criticized it.
Raman Raja Mannan, the king of Mannan community, who rules over 46 hamlets, comprising 3,000 families in the forests of Idukki district, said "The forest cover in the state is shrinking and the only way to save it is by implementing the Gadgil report."
The Raja said the tribal people knew what was good for them."They protected the forest land for four or five decades. But with others encroaching into forest areas our natural resources are getting destroyed," he said.
He felt that the need of the hour is to protect the remaining forest areas from encroachments.
"We know the importance of forest. We plan to bring together all tribal communities under an umbrella and raise our voice for implementing the Gadgil committee report. But the problem is that the communities are distributed in various parts of the state and the condition of many are pathetic," he said.
He did not mince words about the approach of government towards the protection of forest and welfare measures. "The condition of Muthuvan community residing in Munnar and Marayoor areas is pathetic".
"It is high time the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe department is revamped since the welfare measures initiated by the government failed to reach the intended community," he said.
Meanwhile, the king expressed apprehension over the unwillingness of new generation to take up traditional art forms. "We have an integral language, a mixture of Malayalam and Tamil. Koothupattu is an art form being performed in dance and song. But new generation children are not interested in any of these."
Raman Raja ascended the throne in 2012 following the death of his uncle Thevan Raja Mannan as the community follows matrilineal inheritance system.
After ascending the throne he worked with the forest department for some time, but now is into farming as a full-time career.
Clad in a white kurta and traditional headgear, the 31-year-old Raja reached the city to attend an event organized by the BJP without any entourage.