KOCHI: A project mooted by Kochi Jews settled in Israel, to develop a heritage tourism corridor connecting the seven synagogues in Ernakulam and Thrissur districts, has hit a roadblock allegedly due to institutional apathy.
The 8,000-strong Kochi Jews living in Israel had petitioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi to protect the seven synagogues and cemeteries in Kerala which are in a dilapidated state due to neglect.Subsequently, Indian Ambassador to Israel Pavan Kapoor wrote a letter to Kerala Tourism secretary expressing interest to the synagogues in Kerala and discuss protection of the heritage structures and development of the tourist corridor.In his letter dated December 13, 2017, the ambassador said he was planning to visit Kochi from February 6 to 8 to visit the Jewish heritage sites.
He requested the Tourism Department to guide him to visit tourist sites that could be promoted among not only the Cochini Jew community but to the wider public in Israel. However, it is alleged the Tourism Department failed to respond to the letter forcing the ambassador to drop his travel plans.
When contacted, State Tourism Information Officer K R Sajeev said the department had received a letter from the ambassador, ‘but there was no subsequent communication.’ Though Express tried to contact Tourism Secretary Rani George, she was unavailable for comments. Members of Cochini Jew community in Israel expressed disgust over the apathy of Kerala Government which forced the ambassador to drop his travel plans.
Zipora Meir, one of the counsellors attached to the Indian Embassy in Israel, said the Kochi community in Israel was looking forward to the ambassador’s visit.“I don’t know what forced the ambassador to postpone his visit. But he’s very much interested in supporting the cause of Kochi Jews,” she said.Meanwhile, the destruction of the 1,000-year-old Jewish cemetery in Mala for construction of K Karunakaran Memorial Stadium has hurt the sentiments of Kochi Jews in Israel.
The destruction of the 1,000-year-old Jewish cemetery in Mala for construction of K Karunakaran Memorial Stadium has hurt the sentiments of Kochi Jews in Israel.“There are only around 20 Jews left in Kerala. But we want these synagogues and cemeteries to be protected. The government had declared the Mala synagogue and cemetery as protected monuments in December, last year. But the decision came too late. How can you destroy a cemetery like that? Only three tombs are left and they’ve made constructions on the 4 acre land. This is atrocious. It amounts to breach of trust. We expect the government will retrieve the land and initiate action against those who destroyed it. I will be returning to Israel on Monday and apprise the ambassador of the plight of Jewish sites,” said Zipora Meir.
She said a group of Kochi Jews from Israel had visited the synagogues in Kerala recently and expressed concern over their dilapidated state. “These are part of history and evidence of our roots. We want these monuments to be protected for posterity. We want our children to visit these places and understand our links with this land,” said Meir.
Archaeological Department conservation engineer Mukesh said the synagogues in Paravur, Ernakulam, Thekkumbhagam and Mala have been declared protected monuments by the government. The Paradesi synagogue at Mattancherry has been taken over by the Archaeological Survey of India. Now only the Kadavumbhagam, Chendamangalam and dilapidated synagogue at Mattancherry are left, he said.
Meanwhile, the Jewish community in Kochi is trying to revive prayers at the synagogues that have been lying locked for four decades. “We’ve decided to celebrate Pesaha at the Thekkumbhagom synagogue in April. Around 50 members of the community will arrive from Israel to participate in the prayers, said Josephai Abraham, president of Kerala Jews Association.
State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said he was not aware of the letter sent by the ambassador.Union Tourism Minister Alphons Kannanthanam said the ministry will extend all support to the project if approached.