Alleging apathy on the part of successive governments and failure in implementing various promised rehabilitation schemes, endosulfan victims in Muthalamada grama panchayat have sought intervention of the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC).
Half a dozen victims met commission member K. Mohan Kumar in Palakkad on Saturday and demanded measures to alleviate their continuing miseries. Environmentalist S. Guruvayurappan, who initiated the meeting, told The Hindu that Mr. Mohan Kumar had promised to raise the issue with the State government.
The victims apprised the commission member that even children born three years after the global ban on the pesticide had swollen heads and physical illnesses, which stood testimony to the residuary harm the pesticide.
Unmet promises
“The whole grama panchayat is waiting in vain for the promised help from the State government, which included a detailed medical survey and a financial package ensuring proper rehabilitation of affected families. But nothing happened so far,” said Mr. Guruvayurappan.
Though six years have passed since the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) directed the State government to conduct a health survey and economically empower the victims of the pesticide.
NHRC directive
The NHRC had directed the government to pay at least Rs.5 lakh to the kin of those who had died because of the spraying of the pesticide.
The same amount was promised to those who became permanently bedridden and suffered severe deformities. The NHRC also ordered payment of at least Rs.3 lakh to the living victims of the pesticide.
Now the families of the victims are demanding an expert study at Muthalamada and surrounding Elavanchery, Kozhinjampara, Velanthavalam, Vadakarapathi, Eruthempathy, Nenmara, and Nelliyampathy grama panchayats with immediate effect.
As per an unofficial survey by the Chittur Taluk Endosulfan Virudha Samara Samithi, 613 children below 14 years continued to suffer from diseases caused by the pesticide.
