KOCHI: The old generation in Aluva can still vividly remember a man who used to roam the streets on his scooter carrying a bucket and a metal pot at day break and dusk. He used to germinate seeds in empty milk packets and plant the saplings by the roadside. Not just planting saplings, but watering and nurturing them. With the death of Prof S Sitaraman, Kerala has lost a dedicated conservationist, who fought valiantly for the protection of rivers, water bodies, wetlands and forests in the state.
The 74-year-old activist had fallen off his scooter while returning home from a grocery shop near his residence at Aluva on Wednesday morning. Around 11.30 am, he collapsed and died.Sitaraman was the founder of the Association for Environmental Protection and had been its secretary for more than three decades. He was conferred the forest department’s Vanamitra Award for his contributions to environmental protection. Besides he was chosen for the Down to Earth Joseph C John Award in 2007 and bestowed with the Paristhithi Ratna Award in 2011.
As founder of the All Kerala River Protection Council, he had drawn up an action plan for protection of rivers and fought against encroachment, sand mining and pollution of rivers. He showed amazing determination and grit in the fight against destruction of natural resources.
If the mini forest on the banks of the Periyar at Aluva Sivaratri Manappuram bears testimony to his dedication in developing green jungles, the SC order in 2014 for demolition of the rainbow restaurant on Periyar bed at Aluva stands testimony to his relentless fight against destruction of nature. The restaurant built at a cost of `1 crore was demolished for violation of CRZ rules.
Sitaraman, who had retired as chemistry professor from Sree Sankara College, Kalady, was a member of the forest department panel for monitoring tree felling in the district. Besides planting over 30,000 saplings,he fought against reclamation of paddy fields, clay mining and granite quarries. He is survived by wife P E Parvathy (retd. scientist NPOL) and sons Jayanarayanan (scientist NASA) and Hariswaran (scientist, National Renewable Energy Laboratory). Sitaraman’s funeral will take place later.
