THIS LAKE SHOULD NOT DIE Dr C.V ANANDA BOSE

 11. THIS LAKE SHOULD NOT DIE

 

Reach the bank of the lake with a handful of rice. Sprinkle the rice in the water, calling out aloud ‘Come on, Etta. ’ The moment the rice falls into the water, shoals of etta fish flutter up to the surface to eat the grains. This is not an imaginary tale. In Sasthamcotta lake this was a regular phenomenon.

Was. Not now. Sasthamcottah lake was once reputed as the largest fresh water lake in Kerala. Now that lake does not have potable water. In it there is an abundance of bacteria at levels that are never permissible in potable water. The lake is on a sick bed. Nay, it is in the death bed.

How did it happen? It is not nature that readied the death bed for the lake. It is man himself who is responsible for it.

The Sasthamcottah lake, the Sasthamcottah temple and the famed monkeys in the temple premises have all been mentioned in. The lake, which was a perennial source of clear, clean, drinking water was surrounded by hills that appeared like sentinels of nature. A special feature of Sasthamcottah was the large number of monkeys there, considered as the guards of Lord Sastha. The King of Kayamkulam had made special provisions for the feeding of the monkeys.

Today there is no clear water in the lake. There are no trees on the hills. There are no fruits for the monkeys to eat. The lake remains a symbol of disgraced nature and a riddle before us.

I remember an evening in the past. An evening when Sasthamcotta got a new lease of life. There was a large group of poets, derisively called ‘tree poets. ’ The poets’ meet was led by Sugathakumari, a personaification of love of nature. Ayyappa Paniker, Vishnu Narayan Namboodiri, Vinayachandran, ONV and Madhavikkutty, later known as Kamala Surayya, were among the poets who had assembled there to rouse the conscience of the people to ensure that the lake was protected and no dirge written for it.

Jayapala Panicker and Shangrila Sasikumar painted pictures against the backdrop of the lake. Youth and women took oath to protect the lake. Scientists came to study what happened to the lake and they suggested protective measures in their reports. The feeling then was that the first step was taken for a great campaign for nature preservation.

All around the lake trees were planted and in the nearby hills afforestation was taken up -named Panchavadi - to prevent soil erosion. Fruit trees like jnaval were planted in a ‘Hanuman Thottam’ (Hanuman’s Estate). Youth planted saplings in waste lands. Nature lovers from the country and abroad came together to feed the monkeys. The writer author had the satisfaction of being a catalyst for this great campaign as the local District Collector.

Visited Sasthamcottah again much later. I remember the beautiful lines written by Wordsworth on his revisit to Tintern Abbey after a gap of several years. My experience was not at all similar. I know it is futile exercise to abhor history and accuse the past. Yet what was seen at Sasthamcottah was a matter of anguish. The garland of forest and Panchavadi were still there. But in the place where the instruction was to plant saplings of mango, jack-fruit, bamboo, reeds, soap-tree and attuvanchi, a veritable forest of acacia was seen. That perhaps was unavoidable as the only saplings the forest department had were those of acacia. Hanuman Thottam became just a memory. True, there were a few fruit trees here and there. The herbal garden named Sanjeevani Centre, planted at the directions of Dr. Warrier of Kottackal and other renowned ayurveda acharyas, looked almost abandoned. The buildings constructed to provide ayurvedic treatment appeared in a derelict state. Felt pity. If the attitude is this towards plant life it is not likely to be any different towards life breath itself.

Sasthamcottah lake should not be allowed to die.

It has to continue to live. It is only the people of Sasthamcottah who say this from the depth of their hearts. For them the link with the lake is like the relationshiop between Lord Shiva and his consort, Parvathy or between word and meaning. There will be protection for the lake only on the basis of such a relationship. The strength of biblical personage Samson was in his profue locks. If the locks were cut, he would lose his strength. It did happen precisely like that. If the umbilical cord of the link between Sasthamcottah lake and the local people is snapped, the lake there will die.

The lake is a source of drinking water for the people of Kollam town and nearby places. The lake and its banks harbour a multitude of water borne life forms and plants and trees and birds. Research students and scientists have collected detailed data on these aspects. Sasthamcotta is also a favourite haven of migratory birds.

There were many serpent groves in the vicinity of the lake. Now there is no such grove anywhere nearby. And if inded there is a grove, it does not have trees or vines or migratory birds. If anyone goes, to the bank of the lake and sprinkles grains of rice into the water, calling ‘come on Etta’, etta fish will not come.

What a time it was. But that time has gone, never to return.

Shouldn’t there be a return? Certainly. There should be. This is an issue of drinking water. Of life, of future and the coming generations. This lake was not a gift from our forefathers. It should be realised that it was a loan taken from the children. And we should be able to redeem that loan.

How can this be accomplished? If we have the will it can be done. The waters of Sasthacottah lake should not be dirtied. In fact what did we do? We encroached on the banks of the lake and cultivated the land. The top soil eroded and got deposited in the lake. We threw waste into the lake. When government agencies themselves colluded with such actions, there was no hope. And when the people living nearby went to the lake for their morning ablusions, the lake became a cesspool. The level of waste in the lake waters rose when it was used for bathing cattle and washing vehicles.

Everyone knows what the problem is. If not, ask the residents of Sasthamcottah. They know it only too well. They also know the solutions. But that is not enough. The knowledge they have should be put to practical use. But who will bell the cat? It is the same old question in Aesop’s fable that the people of Sasthamcottah also ask.

 Many tried. In the middle of the eighties the district administration itself took the initiative to do something. Some voluntary agencies in the area carried it forward. The water save project of Global Nirmiti Net gave a new impetus in this regard. Preservation of Sasthamcotta lake was the main item in the homestead afforestation programme of the forest department. Sasthamcottah was declared as eco-village.

Now we should not go back. We should not forget that when a lake dies, a culture also dies. What is needed is a sense of purpose and a will to do. What we need is a team, not a crowd. Once Ceaser in Rome had an experience. When there was delay in paying wages, the soldiers rose in protest. They were close to rioting. But Caesar stood unruffled. He said one word: Dhur Ba. The soldiers lowered their heads in shame and retreated. Dhur Ba means crowd. The champions of environmental protection should realise that they should not become a crowd. Be the soldiers of nature. And don’t waver till you reach your goal.