LDF hartal in Kerala peaceful, complete; For whom has hartal been conducted, asks HC

Thiruvananthapuram/Kochi: The dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the CPI(M)-led LDF in Kerala on Monday to protest the Centre's move to implement key recommendations of the Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats conservation, hit normal life but passed off peacefully.

In a related event, Kerala High Court wanted to know if those who had called for the hartal against the implementation of the Kasturirangan report had in fact read the report. The query was raised by Justice S Srijagan while the court was hearing a petition on quarrying.

"Who all have read the report, for whom has the hartal been conducted", the court orally asked.

Pointing that the hartal had affected the state, the court asked if the government has taken any steps to create awareness about the report.

Resistance groups backed by the Catholic Church provided momentum to the protest in Idukki and Wayanad districts, where thousands eke out a living by farming small piece of lands.

The LDF had rejected Chief Minister Oommen Chandy's plea to desist from the shutdown in view of the Centre's clarification that it had only issued a draft notification and a final call on the report was yet to be made.

Chandy accused CPI(M) of double standards on the issue, saying it had earlier favoured implementation of the report after allaying people's apprehensions.The party owed an explanation for reversing its stand and calling for the protest which caused a loss of Rs 900 crore to Kerala,he said.

Charging Chandy with 'distorting facts', CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said his party had never said it entirely backed the Kasturirangan report.

CPI-M's position had been that it was an improvement on Madhav Gadgil report and that people's concerns should be addressed before implementing the conservation measures and this was not a signal for the Centre to unilaterally go ahead, Vijayan said.

Barring isolated incidents of stoning vehicles, the protest passed off peacefully but mobility of people was affected with buses,taxis and autos keeping off the roads.

Shops remained closed and educational institutions went without classes and attendance was thin in government offices.

The state-run KSRTC operated its services for Sabarimala pilgrims from here and other centres.In Idukki, the 'High Range Samrakshna Samithi' blocked roads as part of a 48-hour-long campaign started last midnight.

Pastoral letters had been read out in churches in Idukki and Thamarassery since early this month, expressing anxiety over the report, fearing its implementation might lead to large-scale eviction of farmers.

As per the Environment Ministry's draft notification, ecologically damaging activities like mining, quarrying and building of thermal power plants and big building complexes would be banned in ecologically sensitive areas of the Western Ghat ranges, running through six states.

The committee has identified that 123 villages in Kerala have ESA spots, which require protection from further human assault. Barring BJP, most mainstream parties, including some partners in Congress-led UDF, have come out in protest over the issue.

Protesters in Idukki burnt effigy of Congress MP P T Thomas for criticising the stand of the Catholic church on the issue.

Thomas, who represents Idukki in the Lok Sabha, accused the Church in Kerala of acting with 'political motives' in the matter.

Meanwhile, reports from Sabarimala, where the annual pilgrimage began two days ago, said the hartal did not affect the flow of pilgrims to the hill-shrine.