Many residents leave Valparai hill

Labourer Subramaniam from Thonimudi Estate whose son was eaten by a leopard.

Coimbatore: Over the last one week alone, four families of tea estate workers living and working in the tea estates that abound in the rolling, lush green hills of Valparai, in Coimbatore district, vacated their homes to settle down in the plains. Two more families from Mudis Estates, a few kms from Valparai town, are packing their belongings to relocate out of the scenic hill station known for its cool climate and breathtaking vistas.

Locked homes and fleeing families of Valparai are indicative of a disturbing trend. According to the census of 2011, the population of Valparai municipality, which includes 21 wards, was 70,771. The population during the 2001 census was 95,107, signifying an alarming dip. “If the trend continues, we will hardly have 50,000-odd residents in Valparai by the next census and our municipality might lose its status and be reverted back to a village panchayat,” says a municipality official on condition of anonymity.

Locals point out that this reversal in population began only a few years ago and attribute two factors to the dwindling numbers. “Wild animal population has significantly increased and the public fear that this land might be converted into a forest area following the declaration of the Anamalai Tiger Reserve a few years ago. Besides, the wages of casual labourers is approximately Rs 150, which is lesser than the wages earned by even a construction worker in the plains below,” says Mr Subramaniam (57), a resident of Thonimudi estate.

Mr Subramaniam, one of those few persons who has first-hand experience of the perils of Valparai. On January 10, 2010, he was playing with his grandson Mukesh (4) in the portico of his home at Third Division, Thonimudi estate, when a leopard snatched the child away from him. “When the leopard attacked, it was 5.30 pm and I was right there. The leopard grabbed my grandson by his neck and dragged him around 200 metres into the plantations where he is body was recovered,” Mr Subra­maniam recalls.

He still gets shivers when he thinks of the incident. “All  residents here are afraid to let their children play outside.” Over the past few years, at least six children have been killed in leopard attacks while an adult was killed by a wild bear recently. “Elephant and leopard attacks are common and quite frequent here,” says a forest official in Valparai.

According to forest range officer Mohammed Ali, there are at least 5-6 tigers in the Valparai region that approximately spans 22,000 acres. “As for leopards, there are plenty and have been breeding like wild cats out here,” says Mr Ali.

However, he points out that the number of animals has not increased of late. “It is just that more and more people have started coming out at night as many own two- and four-wheelers now and there is electricity everywhere. Hence, the attacks and animal sightings have increased,” he explains.

Wage differential drives TEA labourers Down to plains

While the increase in animal attacks and the threat of the region surrounding Valparai being declared as a forest reserve is apparent, municipality officials point out that one of the main causes for the migration was the wage limit of the casual labourers.

“Valparai is full of tea estates and a vast majority of our residents are estate workers or their progeny. Even now, an estate worker earns anywhere between Rs 145 and Rs 160 for a full day’s work while their contemporaries in the plains earn anywhere between Rs 300 and Rs 500 even doing construction work,” says V. Sathyavani Muthu, chairman of the Valparai municipality.

This wage difference between estate labour and other work is the main driving force behind the migrations, she says. “Also, most youngsters here are now educated and do no prefer estate labour. Instead, they find jobs and settle down in the plains causing the decline in population at Valparai,” she said.

The municipality officials lament that there is not much they could do to arrest the declining population. “Apart from the town centre that stretches approximately 1.5km, all the remaining lands here have either been leased out to the tea estate owners or belong to the forest department. We are unable to take up any developmental activity or bring about new industry,” said a senior municipality official.

He pointed out that the Government Arts Coll­ege that had recently come up had played a big role in retaining the youngsters from moving out for higher studies. “Employment needs to be generated for locals to revive the population here,” says the official.

But wilderness lovers and nature buffs feel happy that while there as been a general worry of overcrowding across the globe, at least isolated spots like Valparai are returning to the wild.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130217/news-current-affairs/article/many-residents-leave-valparai-hill