Tense moments were witnessed in Sasthamkotta on Monday, as the police arrested the Lake Protection Council convener S Babuji, who had been on an indefinite hunger strike for the past five days, and shifted him to Taluk Hospital.

Immediately after the arrest of Babuji, SNDP Kunnathoor Taluk Union president and Joint Protest Council member P Kamalsanan took over the hunger strike.

KSU Kunnathoor Taluk Union committee staged a road blockade in support of the strike on the day.

Earlier in the day, Kunnathoor Tehsildar Baby Sudheera met the Protest Council leaders and requested them to end the strike, but the talks failed.

Hundreds of people and environmental activities came in support of the hunger strike.

Meanwhile, a medical team examined the health condition of Babuji. The team suggested shifting Babuji to hospital as he required medical assistance. Accordingly, the Sasthamkotta CI Anil Kumar and team tried to arrest and shift Babuji to hospital. But the attempt failed following objection from protestors.

Later, more police force was brought in and only then they were able to arrest Babuji. He was admitted to the Kunnathoor Taluk Hospital.

Threat to Disrupt Pumping

The Protest Council members at a press meet here announced the second stage of protests, as a ‘reply to the insensitivity of authorities towards the protests’.

Council chairman K Karunakaran Pillai said that continuous road blockades would be launched in Sasthamkotta.

In the next stage of protests, the pumping from the Lake to Kollam City and Chavara-Panmana areas will be disrupted through a human resistance.

The authorities will be responsible for all the issues as a result of this protest, he said.

The demands of the council include reintroduction of water supply in Sasthamkotta, by either regulating the water supply to Kollam city and Chavara-Panmana or by putting an end to pumping to Chavara.

He said that if unregulated pumping continued the lake would have a speedy death.

“Another alternative before the authorities is utilising the water from Kallada River.

The water from Kallada River can be drawn to the Water Treatment Plant for the drinking water supply to Kollam.

It should be noted that it is the water drawn from the rivers and not from lakes that is used for major drinking water projects in the state,” Pillai said.

Apart from long term measures to protect the lake, the protestors’ immediate demands include implementation of the Rs 15-crore-worth Management Action Plan submitted to govt by the Irrigation Department, putting an end to rampant sand mining at West Kallada, renovation of the dysfunctional minor drinking water schemes and water sources in Kollam and Chavara and to revitalise the springs in the lake by removing the sand and accumulated silt.