KANNIYAKUMARI: Residents of Thadikarankonam village appealed to the forest department to reopen a pathway through a 10-acre reserve forest land -- fenced off three years ago -- claiming they had been using the path to easily access retail marketplaces and healthcare services, located to the west of the village.
A social activist and a functionary of a farmers' association, A Ravi from Thadikarankonam, told TNIE that the village panchayat office, fish and vegetable markets, and an upgraded primary health centre are situated to the west of Thadikarankonam.
Other residential areas, including Anna Nagar, Indira Nagar and CMS area, are also located in the same region, he said. "For several decades, the villagers had also been using the pathway to reach a stream," he said, adding that the fence allegedly blocks the entrance to a small auditorium built 10 years ago for public use.
T Selvam, an 80-year-old resident, said the teak saplings within the fenced-off land parcel were planted by the villagers 40 years ago. One K Leela said the pathway was useful for women accessing the stream to take a bath. A vendor at the marketplace said people who reach the area by bus had used the pathway for easy access to the shops, which number has reduced after the fence was installed.
Officials from the forest department said the land parcel falls under the Thadikarankonam reserve forest, and that the villagers, if they wanted a pathway through the land, should apply for forest land diversion on the PARIVESH portal.