The protests against the delay in disbursal of welfare pensions assumed a new dimension with an elderly tribal couple at Adimali affixing a notice in front of their shop on Friday requesting mercy killing.
Sivadasan, 72, and his wife, Omana, 63, residents of Ambalappady, near Adimali in Idukki, put up the notice that read ‘ready for mercy killing’ in front of their shop on the roadside.
Ms. Omana says she is physically challenged and suffered from health issues. “I need nearly ₹3,000 to buy medicines for a week. The welfare pension and the income from the shop met our needs. However, the shop’s business reached a standstill due to insufficient money to purchase commodities. We had no other option and put up the notice,” she says.
Local people say the family had a small plot at the Kulamankudi tribal settlement under Adimali panchayat. However, the family was forced to stop farming due to wild elephant attacks and moved to Amabalappady.
With the issue grabbing headlines, Youth Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party workers visited the family and distributed one-month worth pension and provisions.
The family alleged that the local leadership of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) provided ₹1,000 and demanded removal of the notice board. But the family refused and continued the protest.
The couple ended the protest in the evening after CPI(M) Adimali area secretary Chandy P. Alexander assured them that the issue would be taken up with the authorities concerned. Party leaders also promised assistance in purchasing goods for the shop.
On Wednesday evening, a 90-year-old woman had staged a protest at Karuppupalam, near Vandiperiyar, against the delay in disbursal of welfare pension.
