The Silent Valley in the Western Ghats is a Pristine Stretch of tropical rain forest in Kerala and is one of the most bio-diverse places on the earth. In the 1970 and 1980s, plans to construct a dam across the Kunthi river, proposed by the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) sparked a fierce debate about the future of this unique ecosystem. A monumental campaign led by environmentalists, scientists, teachers, students and local communities succeeded at the end and the Silent Valley Rainforest was declared as a national park in 1984.
The documentary "Only an Axe Away", directed by P. Babu Raj and C. Saratchandran, talks about the efforts of the nature lovers who save the Silent Valley from the danger that was only at an axe away. It visualizes the emotional and public aspects of the battle excellently. The film begins with the words of Ratheesh, the forest watcher of Silent Valley. Actually the name Silent Valley given to it by the British in 1847, as they couldn't hear the voice of cicadas there. The banks of the Silent Valley river are rich with orchids and with many endangered medicinal plants. More over it is the home to endemic species like the lion-tailed Macaque, Nilgiri tahr and Nilgiri Langur. The Proposed dam would have submerged the large portions of the Valley and swallowed the rich biodiversity and rare species. So, the people and the movements came to protect the Silent Valley at full strength.
In 1978 they protested with a 'Save Silent Valley' week and drew the State's attention. Even school children posted cards to the then Chief Minister to stop the dam project. However, in 1980, the then Prime minister Indira Gandhi Intervened and made the government of Kerala stop its furtherance with the Dam project. The documentary effectively illustrates the tension between the Government's need for development and its need to obey for the Calls for the environmental preservation. In the end Silent Valley's preservation got the priority and the project was abandoned in 1983. Then in 1984, Silent Valley was declared as a national park. Thus the dedicated activism protected and has presented the Silent Valley for the future generation.
------Thulasidharan V
No comments:
Post a Comment