The vexed endosulfan issue refused to die down as a leading organisation fighting for the cause of the victims and their families is contemplating to launch yet another indefinite hunger strike by mothers of the victims here from December 10.
The proposed move to start fresh agitation comes in the light of alleged failure to comply with the January 10 Supreme Court verdict ruling that the third instalment of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)-recommended compensation amount should be disbursed within three months.
“This is a clear case of contempt of court and we are exploring options to file a case in the apex court,” Endosulfan Peeditha Janakeeya Munnani (EPJM) secretary Ambalathara Kunhikrishnan has said.
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The EPJM is planning to convene a meeting here on October 29 to finalise the modality of the indefinite day/night hunger strike by the victims’ mothers seeking to resolve the long- standing issues faced by the persons afflicted with serious health hazards attributed to prolonged aerial spraying of the pesticide in the State-owned cashew estates dotted in 11 panchayats in the district.
Other demands
The other demands raised by the agitators include writing off the medical loans availed by the victims’ families, categorising all the families in the BPL ration card list, clearing of the unused endosulfan stocked in various State-owned Plantation Corporation of Kerala’s (PCK) warehouses besides paying off compensation to the victims included in the official list, besides releasing the list of fresh victims who had attended the special medical camps held in April last, Mr. Kunhikrishnan said.
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Out of the 5,848 victims figure in the official list, only 1,350 were paid ₹5 lakh each and another 1,315 receiving ₹3 lakh as recommended by the NHRC leaving a huge gap of 3,183 victims, who did not get any compensation despite the Court ruling to pay the assistance to all victims in the official list, Mr. Kunhikrishnan said.
Admitting that there has been confusion over the eligible victims referred to by the Supreme Court in its January 10 verdict, Deputy Collector (Endosulfan Cell) C. Biju told The Hindu here that the apex court had ordered the State to release entire “undisbursed” payment of ₹5 lakh each to all affected persons within three months.
However, the word “undisbursed” mentioned in the court ruling had triggered confusion as to whether the stipulated compensation had to be disbursed to all the victims or limit those who had received partial compensation as stipulated by the NHRC.
On the delay in publishing names of fresh victims who had attended the special medical camps held in April last, Mr. Biju said that the list would be submitted before the State by October end as resolved in the district-level endosulfan relief and remediation cell meeting held here on September 15, and published after getting approval.
Stating that 1,638.30 litres of the pesticide had been stocked in barrels in the PCK warehouses at Rajapuram, Cheemeni and Periye, he said the stock had been told to be shifted to fresh barrels as ordered by the State Pollution Control Board instead of at once packing them off to the pesticide company to ward off the possible health hazards to residents.