Even as the Agriculture department and allied research organisations are yet to swing into action for saving Eenthu trees which are almost on the verge of extinction in the north Kerala region after being hit by pest infestation, a Botany teacher and his students from Kannur district are going ahead with their independent efforts to save the maximum number of endangered trees with a field-level treatment drive.
P. Dileep, a teacher from Rajiv Gandhi Memorial Higher Secondary School, Mokeri, is the backbone of the initiative in which local farmers and volunteers of various organisations are also key partners.
“We identified 5,624 plants in a recent study in the Malabar region, which helped us prepare a good action plan for field-level intervention. We covered 31 grama panchayats and four municipalities in the study which signalled a very dangerous threat to the existence of several decades or centuries old trees, described as living fossils,” said Mr. Dileep who covered various affected locations near Purameri, Nadapuram and Edacheri regions in Kozhikode district recently.
He pointed out that the treatment using various accepted techniques was progressing with focus on clearing and burning all affected leaves, apart from washing the trees using soap and applying neem oil as the ultimate disinfectant.
According to Mr. Dileep, the survival of the affected plants will be at risk if no intervention is made within the next two crucial months. Proper treatment through pruning of affected leaves and their burning along with washing and disinfecting could ensure better plant life, he said.
Mr. Dileep took up the conservation initiative recently as his request to various government departments and authorities fell on deaf ears. However, the unconditional support from two students of Government Brennen College, Thalassery, helped him proceed with the mission. Despite exam duties and personal expenses, many teachers and students expressed solidarity with Mr. Dileep’s cause.
Unlike youngsters, senior citizens from various affected villages showed greater interest in the conservation initiative as they were all familiar with the lean days when they survived on Eenthu flour. There were also senior citizens who claimed that there were several Eenthu plants aged more than 100 years in the villages of north Kerala.
Till date, as many as 335 affected trees were treated in various villages in north Kerala covering Kozhikode and Kannur districts. According to the volunteers, more public participation would be vital for better results. Since the infectious pest could rapidly spread through wind and strike more plants, only a collective action by simultaneously covering more number of plants would draw the expected results, they pointed out.
