land hunqer and deforestation: a case study of the cardamom hills in kerala p. sivanandan d....

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-.%zYcing Paper .No. 212-



Land Hunqer and Deforestation: A Case Study of the

Cardamom H i l l s i n Kera la

P. Sivb.~endan

D.Narayana

K. Narayanan air

Introduction

Earent ia l eco log ical p rocesses ar e those processes th a t a re gover-

ned, supported o r st ro ng ly ncdc rat ed by ecosys';ens and a r e e s se n ti a l f o r

feed production, he al th and oth er a sp ec ts of human sur viv al and surtaina -

b l e devalopment. The maintenance of such processes end systems i s v i t a l

for crll s o c i c t i ~ c , oyclrdloso U I t l r s 3 . r stage of development.

Evergroen forest i s one such process which in f lu ence s the loc al

cljmate generally making them milder and hel ps t o ensure a cont inuous flow

ef clean water. Some forests are par t icu lar ly impor tan t because they

protect s oi l cover on s i t e and pro te ct a r e a s down 'stream from exce ssiv e

f l o od s and Qther harmful ef fec ts .

Thit Taper a t t e z p t s at jn:~. ? ti g at in g a ca;a of human int er ven tio n .with the evergreen f o r e s t s i n t h e High Ranges of Ker ala , i n p a r t i c u la r

the cardadorn H i l l s Reserv$' which ha s been hea vil y d8nudated a d pu t

under crops unsuitable fcr t h e iirea. A c a s e s t ud y of t h i s re g io n w i l l

g i v e us ins i gh ts i n t o the socio-economic and po lf t i c a l p rocesses t h a t

have bean operati ng i n t h e f o r e s t eco system during t he Post-Independence

r o d I t i s i mp or ta nt t o n o t e t h a t t h e r a t e o f d e f o r e s t a t i o n h a s been

a t a much highor r a t e i n t h e cardamom H i l l s i n Kera la than i n o the r loca-

tions in the S ta te . For instance, 87% of t h i s r eg io n ( fd uk ki d i s t r i c t )

was covered by forest in 1905; by 1965 t h e pro por ti on came down t o 65%

and it again sharply dec l ine d t o 33,4% by 1973. The following table

v i v i d l y br ings ou t t h i s t r end and a ls o makes sharp c o n t r i s t with t h e

dapletion rates i n o t h e r l o c a t i o n s i n t h e High Ranges.



Tab l e 1: Extent o f F or es t DE.;)let ion in t h e Western Ghat s of , Ke ra la

P e r c en t a g e of F o r e s t s t o t o t a l .P e r c en t a g e d i i f f e r en c *

F o r e s t l o c a t i o ng e o g ra p h i ca l a r e a of t h e d i s t . i n d e p l e t i i o n

1905 1965 1973 . 1905-1965 19650'73

i.

ii.

iii.

iv ,

V.

T h e C a r d a m m H i l l s 87.0865.04 33.40 22.04 31.64

( Idukki ~i t r i c t )

The Wnad Forest

{Kozhikode. 44.55 21.78 12.23 27.77

'cannanore-d i s t r i c t s )

The Southern Hiqh

Lands (Uu. i1 n 53.78

T r i v a n d r u m d i s t r i c t s )

O th er P a r t s of t h e 27.20CC-4. -

T o t a l f o r t h e S t a t e 44.07 27.71 17-06 16.36 110.65

Source: Sr ikumar Chattopadhyaya .mefores tat ion i n Pa r t s of

Western G h a t s Reqion erala la) I nd i a . Cen t re f o r

Ear th Scien ce Stud ies , Trivandrum 1984.

The l a r ge s ca l e conve r si on o f f o r z s t l and s i n t h e Cardamom H i l l s : h a s n d t

on l y a f f ec t ed t he mic ro -envi ronment and t he r eby a f f ec t i ng t he he a l t h of

Cardamom, which i s t h e h i gh es t f o r e i gn exchange ea r n e r among t h e s p i c e s ,

b u t a l s c l e d t o heavy s i l t a t i o n i n many of t h e hy da l p r o j e c t s l o c a t e d i n

t h e r e g i o n .

Th i s pape r i s o r ga n is e d i n t h r e e s e c t i o n s . The f i r s t s ec ti on tracer

t h e cou rse of development of cardamom c u l t iv a t i o n i n Kera la f rom t h e

s t a t u s of a wild f o r e s t pr od uc e t o t h a t of a commercial c r o p c u l t i v a t e d

u nd er p r i v a t e t e n u re . The per iod covered s t r e t c h e s u p t o t h e e nd o f the

Br i t i s h pe r iod . I n t h e second s ec t i on t h e devel opment t h a t t ook place



3

l ur in g t h e p o s t -i n d e p e n d en c e p e r i o d i s d i s c u s s e d . M t h o u g h t h e p o l i c y

fmWamd by t h e S t a t e 'f or a l l o c a t i n g f o r e s t l a n d f o r cardamom c u l t i v a t i o n

h r i n g t h e p o st -i nd e pe n de n ce pe r3 .o d w as t o a g r e a t e x t a n t a c o n t i n u a t i o n

m f the e a r l i e r o ne , t h e n a t u r e o f a c q u i s i t i o n a nd t h e p o l i c y o f r e g u l a r i -

88tlon were e n t i r e l y d i f f o r o n t and h i g h l y i n f l u e n c e d by p r i v a t e i n t e r e s t s .

In t h e f i n a l s e c t i o n t h e i m p a c t o f deforestation on the eco - sys tem i s

d iuusaed an d it stresses t h a t t h e d e g r a da t i on t h a t fo l lo w e d h a s ha: d e le -

t e r i ous e f f e c t s b o th on cardam om a nd t h e s o i l c o v e r .

G row th o f Cardamom C u l t i v a t i o n i n T r a v a n c o r 3

The High Range Division of T r a v a n c o r e i s b e l i e v e d t o ha ve b ee n t h eo r ig ina l homa o f cardamom, though ~ u b s e q u e n t l y h e spice has come t o be

l u m r i s n t l y g ro v m .. in many o t h e r p e r t s of t h e t r o p i c a l w or ld a s well.

Can laman Hills w h i c h c o n s t i t u t d a major p o r t i o n o f t h e High Range d i v i -

tien, a c c o u n t f o r a b o u t 85 per c e n t o f t h e a r e a a nd 30 p e r cent o f t h e

prkduction of cardamom i n K er al a.

Thc ea r ly commerc ia l po l i cy fo l lo !ved by Travanco re unde r monarchy

was one of p e r p e t u a t i o n o f s t a t e m onopoly of t r a d e i n a l m o s t a ' l l c o m o d i -

t i e s o f ~ o m e r c i a l m p o r t a n c g U n t i l t h e f i r s t q u a r t e r of the 1 9 t h

cmtury, g ov ern men t u se d t o c o l l e c t c ardam om f o r m e r c a n t i l e p u r p o s e s fro m

wild growth a s w e ll a s from r y o t s l p l a n t a t i o n s . . A f t e r the f i r s t geog ra-

phical survey conduc ted by L ieu tenan t s Ward and Conner (181?-20)., the

State r e i n f o r c e d i n i t i a l l y by a p p o i n t i n g a c o n s e r v a t o r o f f o r e s t s and t h e n

in 1823 by th e c r e a t i o n o f a s p e c i a l cardam om d e p a r tm e n t . The p r o d u c t



gath ere d was t ranspor te d t o the p o r t of Alleppey where i t was sorted,

graded and eventual ly auct ioned.

During ' t h e e a r l y phase of pro cur ing vroild cardamom f o r monopoly

2!/t r a d e th e government employed t r i b a l labour f o r col l ec t i on and curing.

A s the t ra de prospects f o r th i s crop improved i n course of t ime, the

government began t o in cr ea se i t s control by deploying a detachment of

i t s in fa nt ry (t he Nayat I3rigade) and pos ti ng la r ge numbers of watchmen

a t va ri ou s pl ac es i n and around t he cardamom growing re gion t o watch the .

5/Thavalams and the s t a t e ' s f r on t i er s , wi th a v iew t o p r w e n t smuggling

of cardamom and f o r ef fe c t iv e s uper visi on of th e c ol le ct io n and th e tra1l.l

spo r ta t io n of th e produce t o the market ing cen t res .

Since land revcnue and the tax on agricul tural produce const i tuted

i n t ho se days t h e most important source of income f o r th o s ta te , the

government po li cy had gr e a tl y emphasised, t h e need f o r encouraging

commercia'l cQl t iva t io n of th e most 'remunerat ivc crops , h i c h nat ural ly

inc lud ed cardamom. The va ri ou s lan d revenue and tl lo tm en t r u l e s framed

dur ing th e period be tme n 1860 and 1925 were e ss en t i a l ly meant t o a t t racd

more people i n t o the proccss of expansion of com cr ci a l ag r ic u l t uraTea, Coffee and Cardamom p l a n t a t i o n s grew up i n t h e Western Ghat region

w i th l an d a v ai l a bl e a t ve ry l i b e r a l t o m s . In order to sus t a in the pr6-

du ct io n of cardamom f o r the s ta te ' s monopoly t r ad e i n t h o e a r l i e r phase,

t h e government a l s o o f f e r ed s p ec i a l g r an t s o f l and f o r s e t t l m c n t pur-

po se and f i n a n c i a l he lp t o cardamom growers. However, under th e rules

p as s ed i n 1913, no l and was t o be. ass igned f o r cu l t iv a t i on wi th in 50

yard s from tho r i ve r bank no r on the c re s t of the h i l l s , t o the ex tan t

o f a q u a r t e r mile on each side. The f o r e s t s were f u r t h e r p r o t ec t ed by

r eg u l a t i o n s f o r t h e g r azi n g o f c a t t l e ; t h e a r ea s such a s pl an t a t i o n s

less than 15 years o ld and na tu ra l fo re s t s under 20 ye ar s o ld were pro-

Z lh ib i t c d f o r g raz ing , i n o rder t o p ro te c t t h e young.



ne system of c u l t i v a t i o n of cardamom i n t h i s regi on on a plan ta-

t i o n basis W A S in i t i a t ed by persons f rom out s ide Kera la - i t h e r t h eI

Britieh (usua l ly he i r s of co lon ia l o f f i c i a l s o r miss iona r i e s) o r cu l t i -

va to r~ rom t h e Madurai Df s t r i c t of th o Madras Pr esi den cy ( mostly from

Gundulur, Atmbum, Thevaram, Cambay and o the r ne iqhbouring Tamil V i l lages

an d mall towns? The Tamil growers recruited plentetion workers from

a l l over the Madurai d i s t r i c t t o perform annual agr i cu l tur a l opera t ions

i n t h e cardamom s t a t e s , th e European pl an te rs , on the ot he r hand, kept

jangs of' coo li e s permanent ly i n t h e i r e s t a t e s t o c a r ry ou t va r ious ag r i-

2/

cul tu ra l op e r ~ t io ns n a regu la r bas i s . Among t h e growers , t h e Etlropean

planters and th e c h z t t i c s of Tamil Nadu owned a o s t of t h e area under

t h o crop.

The terms offe red by the S ta te f o r the procurement of cardarnam

were, however, not favourable t o th e growers duri ng the period of t h e

nmopoly trade. ~ e t w e e n1823 end 1841, th o ry o t s were given a k u d i v i l a l

(production pr ic e) a t t he r a t e of 8 rupocs 6 annas and 9 paise per

thulama of 20 engl ish pounds of dry ccrdamom and between 1841 and 1869,

wthis ra te was fu r th er roduco by 11 annas per thulam. In the year

1870, a change.was mcds i n t h c system of payment: t h e r y o t l s cl ai m was

calculated a s a share of th e average r a t e of auct ion pri ce a t Alleppey.

Under the system, tho r y o t s rvceivod a loan o r advance from the superin-

tondent of cardamomH i l l s

a t t ho commencement of each season f o r weeding

and harvest in9 operat ions; a f t e r tho sa le of t h s i r produce, they weru

entitled t o a sh are ( a t t h e r a t e of Y3rd between 1870 and 1887 and

batween 1887 and 1896 of t h e av erage p r i cs of e ach v a r i e t y ) of t h e

market value of t h e i r produce l e s s th e loan amount and superv ision

charges'and a fu rt he r -deduction of 10 per cent of tho t o t a l amount

wlieu of ground rent.



The crop being very se ns i t jv e t o weather con dit io ns and i t s

p r i c e v e ry se nsi t iv e t o export demand, wide f l uct ua t io ns in th e t o t a l

output of cardamom and i t s u n i t p r i c e were ve ry common: Under such con-

d i t i o n s of u n ce rt a i n ty , the government found it unprof i tab l e t o cont inue

t h e system of rconopoly procuremen t and t r a d e i n cardamom. A s t he un i t

p r i c e of t he produce began t o move on a course of steady decl ine , and a

buyers1 market developed, th e fi xe d sha re of 2/5th of t he valu e accruing

t o t he growers ceased t o g iv e them any i ncen t ive f o r i ncreas ing produc-

t i o n . Moreover, t h e government found it impossib le t o ensure a sa t i s -

fa ct or y system of procurement, a s it ua ti on which fu rt he r accen'tuated t h e

fe el in g of unc ert ain ty among t he growers a s wel l a s th e government.

This unc er tai nty of th e cardamom the ref ore eventual l y le d t o

s i gn i f ic an t s h i f t i n the St a t c po l icy ; namely, abo l i t ion of State 'mono-

12/poly of t r a d e i n cardamom i n 1896 ( in t h e kannielam t r ac t , t he monopoly

was l i f t e d o nl y i n 1907) and the beginning of an e r a of a c t iv e govern-

mental encouragement and suppol't t o p r i v a t e e n t e r p r i s e i n c u l t i v a t i o n

for increas ing prpduct ion .

With t he a bo l it io n of S t a t e monopoly, tr ad in g i n cardamom had

passed in

Chet t i es .

i t i a l l y t o t h e co nt ro l of a group of t r ad er s cal led Nat tukot ta

13/They purchased a l l th e ~ a k a r a e l a & cardamom from t he ryots.

I

I n th e cardamom h i l l s , th e number of t r ad er s incre ased from 183 (118 of

them were chet t ies) in 1891 t o 277 a f t e r a decade . A s i n the case o f

growers, th es e t r a d e r s a l s o came from tho nearby Tamil region. They

c o n t r o l l e d l a r g e e s t a t e s i n the ~ i ~ hanges and handled most of the

cardamom produced i n t h e Pa la ni H i l l s of th e Madras Pre side ncy and i n

t h e Travancore region. M t h proponderence of t h e Tamil Trrd ers, th e

marketing c en tr e sh if te d from Alleppey ( i n Travancore) t o Bodinaikanur



( i n the Madras presidency). Tho small town of Eodinaikanur, s it u at e d

in the eas tern ou ts k i r t s of the High ~ an ge s , n Madurai d i s t r i c t ,

a sm e d rvbsequently t h e s t a t u s of Wardarnom Ci t yx on account of the

lrrge quantity of cardamom trade in that centre.

Rapid expansion of ar ea und er cardamom pl an ta t io n was t h e re8ul.t

rf r deliberate pol icy of the s t a t e fo llowed dur ing th e e ar ly decades

ef th e present century. A sys tem of ta x a t a uniform assessment rate

ef 6r.6Y4 per acre was t he f i r s t s te p i n t h i s d i r ec t i o n . Apart from

this t h e government a l s o int rod uced a scheme of as si gn in g cardamom

lands t o prospect ive cu l t iv at or s on payment of tha ra vi l a ( land value)

and tho issue of p a t t a . A t the beginning, 655 pa t t as were i s sue d in .the Makaraelam di vi sion and 9,435 acre were r e g i s t o red f o r cu lt iva t ion . .

Since then both the ar ea under cardamom and t he nmber of pa t t a s in-

15/croraed sig nif ic an tly . For in st an ce by 1$04-05, t h e t o t a l a r ea un de r ,

assesment was reported t o be 13,693 acr es, di st r i bu te d mong 1103

prttao; by 1908-09 the ar ea and th e number of p a t t a s inc rea sed t o

19,422 and 1515 respect ively . This scheme was f ur t he r rev is ed and as si -

yment continued under tho re vis ed ru l e s of 1935, 1937, 1939 and 1942.

f ie rate which was i n i t i a l l y b. l5/- pc!r acro was subsequently re vis ed

t r h2!S &d b.85 per acro i n th e c a s e of nolmal r e g i s t r y and t o i?a..125

per acre f o r lan ds ant er ed upon with out permission for cardamom culti-l!vvat i en.

During th e e a r l y pe rio d of expansion of area under cardamom

cultivation, the r u l ~ s ere very l i be ra l and the re was no co i l in g on

tho extent of a single holding. However, by an execut ive order dur ing

1940, it was s t ip u la t ed f o r t h e f i r s t time t h a t a s ing le app l i can t may

be given land on ly up t o 60 acres . Such an order was deemed necessary

en account, of th e in cr ea si ng demand from a h o s t of immigrant cu l t i v a t o r s. .



i n th e High Ranges f o r assignment of land f o r cardamom cu lt iv at io n,

Whi le f raming the r u l e s f o r assignment and a l lo tment of fo re s t land for

cardamom c u l t i v a t i o n th e government had from th e . ve ry beginning i ntro -

duced provis ions fox th e pro tec t ion of the f o r e s t Growth. For instance

t h e r u l e s o f 1896, 1899, 1900 and 1913, s t ipu la t ed tha t on ly under .

growth and such o th er t r e e s a s it was neces sa ry t o f e l l f o r t h e cu l t i -

vation of cardamom could be cleared and elso the ho ld ing could no t be

clea ' red f o r t he purpose of cu l t iv at in g cr ops oth er than cardamom. How-

e ve r, t h e r y o t s . were p e rm it te d t o u t i l i s e t h s t r e e s l e f t a s s hade for

growing pepper. The superintendent of the cardamom H i l l s had a lso t h e

auth or i t y t o Permi t cu l t i vat ion of such o the r crops which would n o t i n t e x -

fere .w it h t h e growth of cardamom. The r u l e s f i n a l l y p ro vi ded f o r t he

resumption of h oldings f o r contrave ntion of any of th e provis ions of

th e r u l e s o r any o t her r u l e s which may be passed from time t o t ime.

Immigration of both cu l t i va to r s and labou rers has remained a

r eg u l a r phenomenon i n the High Ranges Division eve r sinc e t h e beginning

of the 20 th cen tury . Apart from the la rge ccip i ta l i s t cu l t iv at or s who

wore a t t r a c t e d by r e inves tmen t po ss ib i l i t i e s i n h igh va lued p lan ta t ion

crops , a la rg e number of .small and medi'um farmers and labourers also. .

came from the low wage. &a s of t he ea r ly fami l d i s t r i c t s and from - the

12/high- land v a l u e ar ea s of t he mid-an&&rcland2.egions of Tcavancore.

,During the. .per iod 9911' - t o 1951, m@pe r c k t a g e *crease i n populatio n

was the h i g he s t i n t h e ~ i ~ $ange 'Division, th e highes t r a t e of increese

wi th in this period be ing i n t he decade 1921-31 caused by the expansion

of are a under crops l i k e tcB, coffee, rubber and cardamom, Most of the

ea r l y immigrants have come to t he reg ion as e s t a t e coo l ie s a'nd a la rge

majo r i ty of them acqu ired fo r es t l ands fo r cu l t iva t ion i n the course of

several decades.



9

' .

Because of t h e mounting pri.ssure on l a nd i n t h e ~ i ~ hcnges,

jrvernment introduced a se r f ds of rules a n d p ~ o c e d u r e . ~t ip u la t in g p ro-

h i b i t i o n of reg i s t ry of l and, r e s t r i c t io n on tho ex t en t o f l a n d posse-

S U B , duration of lease and th e r i gh t over other fores t produce , ospo-

c i a l l y tree growth. In 1942, i n the context of grow tlore. food campaigri,

th e gavornment fu rt h er pro hib ite d a l l rcgistbies of government land, and

instead provided f o r th e gr an t of land or lease f o r periods ranging fromw3 t@ years, This communique was a p p l i c a b le t o cardamom lan ds al so .

In 1944, mder t h e Kuthaua~pslttam l c a sc ruls, t h e l e a se period was r a i s e d

t e 26 years and t h e i n d i v i d u a l c e i l i n g f i xed e a r l i e r a t 60 acres was

reaffirmed,

Like i n t h o cam of thc e a r l i e r r u l e s f o r t he a l lo tmont of fores t

laid f a r cardamom cu l t iva t ion , tho pol ic ies fo l lowed dur ing the intcr-

war period and' l a t e r , al so had takon uxtrcme coro fo r p r ssorv ing t h e

t ree growth and t h ~o r e s t . D et a il ed r u l e s and procedures were laid

dawn (under t he cardamom Land Assignment ~ u l c s ) or th is purpose , fn

cases were i r r e g u l a r i t i c s were found, the 1 ase was terminated and penal

ac t ion taken on t h e assignee, Tho revenue m d f o r e s t departmen.ts were

given the re spons ib i l i ty f o r s t r i c t imp lementat ion o f the r u l e s . The

revenue department was con t ro l over t h e land assigned and leased

auk fo r cult ivat ion, whilc t h e fo rc s t depar tment re ta i ned con t ro l over

the trces on,the lands so assigned and lezsed ou t and also over the

land and t r e e s i n t h e t e a t of tho asmi. Such dual cont r o l of t he carda-

nm Hills', while help ing the revenue dspar tmen t t o c o l l e c t t h o land

revenue and o t h e r taxes from the p lan te r s , also helped t he fo rc s t depa r t - ...

rent t o prevent encroachment by inm igra nts of o th er land not, su it ed f o r

cardamom cult ivat ion.



The s t a t e p o l i c y o f e n c o u ra g i ng t h e c u l t i v a t i o n -of cardamom

t h ro u g h a ss i g nm e n t o f f o r e s t 1 nd r e s u l t e d i n s i g n i f i c a n t e x p a ns io n i n

t h e a r e a u n de r t h e c ro p . T o w a r d s , t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h i s c e n tu r y , t h e

a r e a u n d e r p r i v a t e c u l - t i v a t i o n w a s ,a b o u t "r5 t h o u s a n d a c r e s . , By t h e l a t e

1 t h i r t i e s t t h e a r e a un d er cu 1, t fv at i on i n c r e a i e d t o 56 t h o u s an d ac r e s : .

T he b u l k o f t h e e x p a n s i o n i n 2-a - t o o k . p l a c e & r i n g t h e t w e n t i e s , when

p r i c e o f c ardaniom show ed s t e e p u p w a d t r e n c Around 1$?0 t h e e s th a t k d ' r

p r o d u c t i v i t y ?e\r a c r e :!!as a b o ~ \ t 0 kg p e r a c r e ; t h i s i n c r e a s e d t o 35 kg

b y t h e l a t e ' t h i r t i e s , Such i mp ro ve m en t i n p r o d u c t i v i t y m u st h a v e bee n1 .

t h e r e s u l t o f t h e d ev elo pm en t o f t h i s c r o p fro m t h e s t a t u s of a w i ldi

f o r e s t p ro d u c e t o t h a t o f e c r o p c b l t i v e t e d u n de r p r i v a t e t e n u r e ; and

t h e s i g n i f i - c a n t i mp ro ve me nts made i n t h e t e c h n i q u e s o f c u l t i v a t i o n i n -

c l u d i n g w e ed in g, t i l l a g e m u1 ,tc hin g a nd c u r i n g o f t h e c a p s u l e .

I n s h o r t t h e p o l i c y f o l lo w e d by t h e go v er nm e n t a s w e l l a s t h e

r e s p o n s e o f t h e g r o w e rs t o w a r d s c u l t i v a t i o n of cardamom i n t h e 'High Ranges

d u r i n g t h e a a r l y d e c a d e s -of - 2 0 t h : - an tu ry were mu+u;crll y a c h i e v e d w i t h

l e a s t d i s t u r b a n c e t o e x o l o g i c a l b a la n c e .

E ncro achn lcn t an d t h e F o l i t i c s o f R e a u l a r i s a t i o n i n ' t h e P o s t -

I n d e p e n d e n c e F e r i o d

The a r e a u n d e r cardam om h a s : in C r e a se d c o n s i 2 e r a h l y d u r i n g t h e

p o s t - i n d e p e n d m c e p e r i o d . T hough s i m i l a r e x p a n s io n h a d t a k e n p l a c e

d u r in g t h e e a r l y ' tw e n t i e s , t h e i n i t i a t i i v e a t t h a t time cam e m o s t l y

i n r e s p o n s e t o t h e d e l i b e r a t e s t a t e p o l i c y o f e xp an din g co m m erc ia l a g r i -

c u l t u r e . 01 t h s o t h e r h an d , d u r i n g the p o s t i n d e pe n de n c e p e r i o d , on



rccrun~ f demographic change a r 4 con sequent economic pre ss ure s, a

series of in roads in to the h i t he r t o undis turbed h in te r lan ds of the

Hestern m a t s have occured.

~ i s t o r i c a l l ~he cardamom H i11s region had t he hig hes t incf dence

ef pepul8tion growth right from the turn of t h e century. This growth-

i s rainly.afPected by immigration froM th e nearby ta lu ks and th e adjoin-

ing districts. Nearly 75%of th e migrant households ( i n 1961) came t o

the kgi on wi th in a shor t per iod of 15 ye ar s sin ce independence and ' th e

rat*of inflow continued t o inc re as e th er ea ft er . However, the process

ef landholding i n t h i s region during the post independence period i s

distinctly dif fe ren t from tha t of the . ea= . l ie r .decades.

i f allotment*of cu l t ivab le was tes and f o r e s t shades a tL

far cennnercial c ul ti v a ti o n had been t h e main i nc dnt fve

For instance,

favourable terms

f o r t h e e a r l y

imnijrants, th e new immigrants most ly r e so rt ed t o encxoachment and

subsequent ag i ta t i o n f o r l eg a l i s a t i o n of occupancy ri.ght s.

There were only few i n s t an ces of small scale encroachments i n , t h e

Cardmom H i l l Reserve du r ing the th i r t i es arid fo u r t i es which were

induced by the rules of assignment of f o r e s t la nd f o r cardamom cu lti va -

tirn. However, massive encroachments were reported only from the e a r l y

fi ft ie s, when t h e pol ic y of th e government emphasf sed pro vis ion of cul-

t ivab le land i n the arab ie fo re s t reg ions

peasants md land l e s s lebourers. During

were i n existence, such a s th e High Range

i n y wasta lends f o r cul t iv at ion and the se

of th e s t a t e t o land-hungry

t he ' f i f t i e s v ar io us p r o g r a m s

Rec1 ma t i o n scheme f o r provid-

were r u l e s f o r t h e a l lo tm e nt

rf l a n d i n various high land vi l l a ge s under th e Kuthauamattam l ea se

rules ( a t t h e rate of 5 acres per f ami ly in o rder t o i nc rease the

)reduction .of food crops).



Attracte d by these oppor luni ties , hordes of land grabbers

rushed up and cleared vast areas in t h e cardamom H i l l Reserva Most

of the pioneer occupants sold out th e i r lands fo r pr of i t t o new comes

and moved for fresh encroachments in the more interior forest areas.

I n t h i s manner by 1956, almost t he e n t i r e eas tern portion of tho Car-'

damom H i l l s reserve came under some form of cultivation or other. I n

1955-56 about 35,000 acr es of occupied land i n t h e Cardamom H i l l s

Reserve were t o be decla red non-re vertible and s e t a pa rt f o r assignm'ent

t o the occupants. These al lo te es , had als o i n f a c t appropriated more

than what was le ga ll y a l l o t t e d t o them by t he government. ?he inflow

of encroachers t o th e f or es t la nds kept on growing. The middlemen ahd

th e speculators als o played a cruc ia l ro le in the probess . Another

s pur t of encroachment took pla ce between 1958-1960, when about l,5O, 000

ac re s of for es t land was encroached a t d i f fer ent locat ions i n t he Car-

damom H i l l s Reserve. The process of encroachment cont inued dur ing t he

' ' six tie s and se ve nt ie s period. Though we have no qu an ti ta ti ve data to

as se ss the ex te nt of such encroachments during the r ec ent pa st, an

account of t he var ious a gi ta ti on s on t he i ss ue and th e proceedings of

t h e government dur ing t h i s period cl ea rl y in dica te th a t massive unauthb

ri se d occupation of fo re st la nds have taken place a t various locations

i n the region.

There a re two important f ac to rs t ha t contributed t o t he growth

of la rg e scal e encroachment on th e f or es t area: (a ) ineffi cien cy of

t h e administ rative s e t up t o prevent encroachment and (b) the government

poli cy of le gi ti mi si ng encroachment alrea dy made on. land not su it ab le

for cardamom cultivation. A s mentioned earlier, during t h e pre-indepen-

dence period the land assigned for the cultivation of cardamom had been



under t h e dqal .con trol ,of th e revenue and f o r e s t departments,:. the-.

ferest dopartmen$ re ta in in g c on tr ol ~, ov er h e o;ther non-assigned .land. - ,

as well as over, the t r e e g rowth i n ( t h o e n t i r e area. lh is ~ u l o as,, , ' .

changed i n 1950. and t h e c o n t r o l o ve r a l l f o r e s t la nd w a s vested @ t h

the revenue, departrnant, t h e f o r es t department rat ain ing . contyok?hver

t h e treos. . alone.. . ,..:. . In? . , ,1957,-.t y e a r l i e r sy,stom w a s s&n for, ced .;f ~r .at.yeprr.

After.. .1958, tha:,control,,eyer lan d .and con-t ral o w r tree. rowth-.e rQ ,

w d n . vestold,wpa~a$ely.$th . thg, , wqw find$ qrp3f .@pq&~n$s;r;e.mmt

ctively. .By.,an .amehdment i n 1970, t&,..government-.. , , . . , . . . gave t h e ' .eqpstsd?P$rt-

Rent tho control over the land l ea se d o ut ( o r s u i t a b l ~f o ~ ,easjngA

lying alongside the f or e s t prese rvat ion areas.

Such. dyal co nt ro l over t h e f o ~ e $ t , y e g t ~ n .adc .fZh.c illegal,. ccu-

pa t i on of for es t are a --very&easy: o r t h e e n c ra a c h e rs . .The ,primary.res-

ponsibility of prevsnting encroachment l i e s with t h e fo re s t depar tmen t.

But the fores t o f f i c i a l s are i n e f f o c t i v e i n discharg ing t h f s responsl-I I . < . . I

.bility effect ively , . s ince land i.n t h e Cordamom.,Hi11s .Reserve. remain..,. . .

under t h e cont rol of th e revenue department and the fo ' res t department

can intervene only when t h e t r e e s are c u t . There fo re , i n a - s i tu a t ion

where unauthori sed occupatio n of f o r e s t la nd i s not .considered 'an

-ef.fmce, an. r egu la r i sa t ion i s eventual ly granted by . t h e revenue depart-

.8eat irxeqbctive of t h e l e g a l i t y o f t h e oc cu pa ti on , e f f e c t i v e a c t i o n.

.a$ ~ n v i o l g e d ~ ~ ,he.,Farest A c t against wre .FiLhi.ng40f t r ~ d s a#,bdc&e

a l r n ~ e timpo&$ible,

.An important a sp ec t .of t he encroachment of f o r e s t l 'ancl ' sihce'

,

t h e early f i f t i e s. was thc occupat ion of a large proport ion of the Jand

2 3 /no t suited for cardamom cultivation., . Such area under occupation

ranged from gra ,ss land in te rspe rsed i nthe

cardamom ar e a t or n~3s t



d e c i d u o u s f o r e s t s c o n t a in i n g v a l u a b l e t r e e gro wth . B u t t h e rules of

as s ignment o f fo res t l and on the Cardamom Wills R es e r v e p e r m i t t ed l eg &

l i s a t i o n o f e n c r o a c h m e n t o n l y f o r l a n d o c c u p i e d w i t h t h e s p e c i f i c p u r p 6 #

of growing cardamom. Because of t h e in cr ea se d demand f o r land , govern-,

m en t r ev i s ed t h e r u l e s of ass ignment of cardamom lands in 1959 and

f i x e d a 21i a c r e l i m i t on t h e maximum e x te n t of la nd which an ind ividu al

c o u l d t a k e on l e a s e . I n 1961, by ano th er amendment, t h e government

i n c r e a s e d the l e a s e p e r i o d f r o m 7 y o a r s t o 20 y e a r s ; t h i s amendment made

t h e p o s s es s io n o f l a n d i n the name of cardamom c u l t iv a t i o n more easy .

T hu s, i n t h e wake o f l a r g e s c a l e o ccu p a t i o n in t h e Cardaniom Hfl ls

R es e rv e , cv on a r o as n o t s u i t a b l e f o r r a i s i n g cardam om h ap pened t o b e

e n c r oa c h e d upon i n t h e name o f cardam om cu l t i v a t i o n , n o t w i t h a v iew t o

growing cardamom, b u t t o t a ke advan tage o f th e 25 a c r e l i m i t an d g e t as

much f o r e s t a r e a a s p o s s i b l e . Many of t h e o r i g in a l encroach er s , who

h ad t a k e n p o s se s si o n o f t h e f o r e s t a r ea , t r a n s f e r r e d t h e i r land to

1-

new;domers fok prof i t . ?'he new ccmers wero most ly ab sen tee land- lords ;

w i t h t h e h e l p o f m iddlem en t h e y s o l d t h e i r l a n d p ie c e- m e al t o l a n d l e s s

p e r s o n s e l i g i b l e f o r a se ig n m on t of l a n d u n d er tho Kerala Land Assignment

&,Rules . The m a j o r i t y of t h e t r a n s a c t i o n s r n r e n o t c ov e re d by v a l i d d o cy

mcints, and p h y s i o a l p o s s e ss io n w as t h e o n l y c r i t e r i o n f o r e n jo y m e n ti '. In

aourge of time, t h o g o v e r nm en t had t o r e g u l a r i s e a l l s u c h i l l e g a l t r a n -

s ac . t i o n s , a l o n g w i t h t h e r e g u l a r i s a t i o n of e nro ac hm en t i n t o o t h e r a r a b le

f o r e s t l an d rrhicti t o o k p l a c e un d 8r s e v e r e e c o no m h a nd p o l i t i c a l p r e s s ur e

a t v a r i o u s s t a g e s .

I t is p o s s i b le t o o b t ai n sama i n s i g h t s i n t o t h e process of rogu-

l a r i s a t i o n o f o n cr oa c hm e n ts o v e r t h e q l a s t t h r e e , ' d e c a d o s b y e xa m in in g

s y s t e m a t i c a l l y the v a r i o u s d e l i b e r a t i o n s w i th in th e s t a t e government on



r e ha b il it a ti o n o f t h e e v i c t e d .A

summary s t a t e m e n t of t h e r e s u l t s o f

such d e l i b e r a t i o n s i s g iv e n i n t h e f o l l o w i n g t a b l e .

The p r o c e ss i n v o l v e d i n t h e r e g u l arisatLowd%n~.oachedI;md

a s dep ic ted in Tal i l e 2 s ho ws t h e f o l l o w i n g : ( a ) t e n d e n c y on Be p a r t

ef t h e s t a t e t o r e g u l a r i s e i l l e g a l o cc u p a t i on o f f o r e s t l an d a s on a

certafn d a t e , i t f r e q u e n t i n t e r v a l s ; and ( b ) i n i t i a t i n g a c t i o n b y t h e

s ta te t o e v i c t t h e a n c ao a c he r s o c cu p yi ng t h e f o r e s t l a n d a f t e r e ac h o f

th e above d at es . Each t i m e , h ow eve r, t h e a c t i o n i n i t i a t e d l e d t o m a s s iv e

public p r o t e s t s a nd t o t h e a p p o i r r t m e n t o f ~cornrnittees/cornmissions o

reexamine t h e v a r i o u s d i m e n s i on s o f e v i c t i o n . And f i n a l l y on t h e ' b a s i s '

ef t h e s e - r e p o r t sv a l i d a t i o n o f e n c r o a & h m e ~ t [email protected] s u b s e q u e n . t

date. Ma t i s i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e here i s t h a t , b e tw e en t h e t i m e span

ef ,the f i r s t and t h e s e co n d.dates. o f v a l i d a t i o n , . f u r t h e r m a ss iv e e n-

creachments, took pl ac e. Thus, i t seem s t h q t t h e s t a t e h a s be en sh ow in g

r le nien t a t t i t u d e t w a r d s e n cr ca c hm e n ts , a p o l i c y t h a t h a s i n e f f e c t

8erired a s a 'p o w er fu l i n c e n t i v e t o s p re a d t h e e n c ro ac hm e nt m an ia f a r a nd

wide and t o denude t h e f o r e s t l a n d s of t h e s t a t e c o n t i n u o u s l y w i t h o u t

rhym e r reason.



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Impact on the Eco-system

Tho rap id growth, of encroechment of f or e s t land s while contr i -

b u t i n g t o the expansion of area under cu l t iva t io n , has re su l te d in t h o

fo l lo*n& changes i n t he cropping pr ac t i ce s a s wel l a s the micro-envir .

onment i n t h e Cardamom H i l l s Reserve:

(a) The migrant farmers adopted a cropping pattern not condu-

c i v e t o th e fo r e s t eco-system. Most of t he fa rmers who migrated from :

t h e mid and low-land are as of th e s t a t e came in search of agr icu l tu ra l

land f o r l ivel ihood , and they in troduced c va ri et y of wb sis tan ce crop0

l i k e r i ce , coconut , t ap ioca , and o thor cr ops l i k e pepper and rubber i n

t h e High Ranges. These were cu l t iv at ed i n t he g ra ss land s o$ deciduous. .f o r e s t a re as ad ac ant t o t he evergreen f o r e s t canopy where ca'rdamom n s

be ing cu l t iva t ed . Thus the re have t aken p lace s i gn i f i c an t sh i f t s i n

the cropping pattern in the CardamomH i l l

@(b) A t t he i n i t i a l s t ages , t h e cu l t iv a t i on of many o f these

c rops r equi red des t ruc t ion of t he t r e e g ro r r t k in th o dec iduous fo re s t

a r e a s . Although th e r u l e s of assignment of l and on lease p r o h i b i t t h e

d e s t r u c t i o n o f t h e t r e e g rowth, t h e dual co ntr ol of t he revenuo and4

f o r e s t department s on th e Cardamom H i l l s made i t p o s s ib l e f o r t h e cu l-I

t i v a t o r s t o i nd ul ge f r e e l y i n such a c t i v i t y. A s t h e f o r e s t o f f i c i a l s

were n o t e n t r u s t e d w i t h the r es po ns ib i l i t y o f menaging t he land and

le as es i n the fo re s t r egion, no ob jec t ion cou ld be r a i se d f o r t h e mere

occupat ion of l ands ) they would i n t w e n e only when th e t ree growth

was cut.' Once t h e lan d was a l i e h a t e d , t h e f i r s t s t e p of t h e e ncroa cher-was t o c l e a r a s much t r e e gsowth a s po ss ib le and commence cu lt iv at io n.



Even i f cases . were booked agai!: s t i l l i c i t f e l l f c a o f t r e e s no evic-

tian of th e occupan ts could t ake p l ace i n t h e a r ea and t h e cu l t i va to r s

could conbnue t h e i r ope ra ti on l ead ing t o f u r t he r des t ruc t5on of the

tree growth. The construction of hydel pr oj ec ts and i so la te d human

aattloments i n va r ious l oca t i on s h w e a1 so been con t r i bu t i n g t o t h e

26/accentuation of t he de fo r e s t a t i on p roces s '"

(c) Ihe c u l t u r a l p r a c t i c e s used i n t h e c u l t i v a t i o n o f many of9 .

them crops have no t been conducive t o t h e i o ~ e s tenvironment. Pra-

ctices l fk e t i l l a g e and p loughing i n s t eep s l opes l ead t o s e r i ous

preblcms of s o i l e ros ion and exposure of t h e so i l t o sun l i gh t , even-

21/tutlly leading t o a p r oc e ss o f l a t e r i s a t i o n .

Aa a consequence of la rg e ec aie d ef or es ta ti on i n t h e Cardambm

Hills m i o n , n o t o nl y t h a t t h e a d v er se e f f e c t s of i n a pp r o p ri a t e c ~ o p -

mix , depletion of t r e e growth and unsui t able c ul tu ra l pr ac t i ce have

rehlted. . i n de ci in e i n s o i l f e - t i l i t y and p roduc t i v i t y , bu t t ho mic ro1

environment necessar y f o r t h e sust enan ce of the cardamom plant has

28/a l r r und&gone irrevers!.hl e a l t e r a t i o n . The g r a v i t y of t h e s i t u a t i o n

is best &ought out by t h e i i n ~ . s i b r l i t y of sust aini ng cardamom i n,

ouch m environment.

"Large sca le unauthorf sed fe el in g of th e t r e e growth from

laiids 'suited f o r cardamom cu lt iv a ti on have taken p lace

aafnly fo r conversion and cul t i va t i on of seasonal crops

i n Vellathooval and P al l i v as al v i l l a g e s i n Devikuleva

Taluk and Ayyappancoil, Konnathady, Kalkoonthal,

Parathodu 'and Rajakad v i l l a g e s i n Udumbanchola Taluk.

Total area c l ea red afid converted for o t h e r c u l t i v a t i o n

i n t he se v i l l ages i s n o t l e s s t ha n 10,000 acres . Of

.thee v i l l ages , t h e r e was heavy and widespread exploi ta t ion



of f o r e s t i n . V e ll at ho o va l and P a l l i v a s a l v i l l a g e s i n

Dev ico lam Ta luk and in Ka lkoon th a l , Ra jakad andK on na th ad y v i l l a g e s cardam om c u l t i v a t i o n h a s a l m o s t

d i s a p pe a r e d . C o n v er s io n s h a ve o c c u r r e d i n a l m o s t a l lae/

o t h e r cardam om v i l l a g o s a 1 s o, b u t i n i s o l a t e d p oc k et sw .

T h e s i t u a t i o n i s f u r t h e r co m p l ic a te d by t h e r e c u r r e n t p e s t

and d i s e a s e a t t a c k s i n r e c e n t y e a r s and t h e u n s c i e n t i f i c c u l t i v a t i o n. .

p r a c t i c e s f o l l o w e d . S e v er a l s t u d i e s h av e shown t h a t t h e f e r t i l i t y

s t a t u s o f cardam om s o i l i s g e n e r a l l y v e r y hi g h du e t o t h e p r o c e s s of

b i o - c y c l i n g i n t h e f o r e s t e n v i r o n m e n@ In such an environment cer ta in

c u l t u r a l p r a c t i c e s l i k e f r eq u e n t t i l l a g e , d r a s t i , ~ ha de r e g u la t io n ,

p e r i o d i c r em o va l of s o i l fr om in t e r - r o w a r e a s , d e p o s i t of m ulch m a te r-

i a l s be n e ath t h e t o p s o i l ... e t c . , w hic h a r e w i d e l y p r a c t i s e d , a r e

p r ov e d t o be v e r y h a rm f ul t o t h e growth o f cardamom p l an t . 'They l ead

t o he av y m o i s t u r e d e p l e t i o n , p o or n u t r i e n t a b s o r p t i o n and h i g h de g re e

o f s o i l e r os io n i n t h e r eg i on . I n f a c t , it w o ullP se em t h a t m a j o r

t e c h n o l o g i c a l b r e a k - t h r o u g h i s n ee de d o n l y t o c o n t a i n t h e s e v e r i t y

o f t h e a t t a c k of p e s t s and d i s e a s e s . P ro du c t iv i t y of cardamom cou ld

s t i l l b e r e as o n a b ly m a in t ai n ed i f t h e c r o p i s a ll ow e d t o g row f r e e l y

i n i t s n a t u r a l f o r e s t e n v i ro n m e n t w i t h m i n im a l i n v e s t m e n t a n d maximum

c o n ce r n f o r t h e m a in te n an c e of e c o l o g i c a l b a l a n ce i n t h e r e g i o n .

I n sum, t h e i n d i s c r i m i n a t e human i n t e r a c t i o n i n tine d e l i c a t e

e c o s ys te m o f t h e Hig h R anges h a s s e r i o u s l y a f f e c t e d t h e e c o l o g i c a l

p r o c e s s e s i n g e n e r a l and t h e s e n s i t i v e cardamom p l a n t i n p a r t i c u l a r .

T he c o n c e r n f o r a d e q u a t e f o r e s t c o v e r i n t h e cardam om t r a c t w hic h w as

shown till t h e f i f t i e s i s no t shown any more and de s t ru c t i o n go es on



unchecked. I t i s . fu r the r abe t t ed by the rap id ly r i s i ng p r i ce of th e

crops grown in the regior. which do not adequately transmit t h e c o s t s

m f defo re s ta t ion t o the p r iva t e cu l t iva to rs . The various development

ins t i tu t ions a re too insons i t ive t o perce ive the so cia l c os t we have

begun'to pay. I t i s a l l t ne more complicated by t he extremely

complex r ea l i t y f aci ng u s i n th e form of high den si ty of population,

lack of any source of l ivel ihood ot he r than lend which ge t s re fl ec te d

i n the "land hungrynesst' of t h e popu lat ion , the po l i t i c s o f pe t ty

gains legit imis ing such hunger encouraging f u rt h er l and grabs and t h e

further degradation of t h e ecosystem.

( This paper i s extracted frcm a r e p o r t "Development of Cardamom.

P1ant;:ions i n t h e High Rang;: af Kerala", whl% we d i d f o r

the Na tiona l ~ a h k o r Ag ri cu lt ur e and Rural Development. We

are g r a te f u l t o t h e NABARD f o r t h e f i n a n c i a l s up po rt t o t h e

study and t o Pro fe ss or s K.N. Raj, P.G.K. ~ a n i k a r ,P.R.G. Nair

and Chi ran jib Sen f o r - the i r comments. However, we er e s o le l y

respons ib le f o r th e v iewsexpressed and t he d efe c ts t ha t remain)



Notes and References

Cardamom H i l l s re gio n form a po rt io n of tha Western Ghat i n

Kerala, covering t he geo ra phi cnl ar ea s of Udubanchola, Peemedu9nd Devicolam ta lu ks i n dukki Di st r i ct . This i s the only

region i n Kerala f o r which hi st or i ca l documents of t h e develop-

ment of Cardamom cultivation fo r a per iod of over hundred yearsa r e av a i l abl e.

Ashim Dasgupta, Malabar i n Asian Trade 1740-1800, Cambridge

Univer s i ty P ress 1967.

V. Nagam Aya, Travancore S t a t e Manual Vol. 111 pp. 84-85

Thavalams were p la ce s i n th e Cardamom H i l l s where the harvestedCardsmom was brought f o r dry ing and t ra ns po rt at io n purpose undert h e S t a t e monopoly c on tr ol .

Mrs. Heath Lovette, ' A Sho rt Hi st or v of t he Peermedu. Vandiuerivaz

Dis t r i c t ' , p. 21

Administration Report of Travancore M.E. 1077, 21

Mrs. Heath Lovette op.cit ,

Ibid. and Administration Rer ~ r tf Travancore MEIC45, p.68

Administration R e ~ o r t f Travancore ME 1045 p. 64 and ~ a ~ a n ~ i ~ a ,op.ci t . p .93

Nagam Iya, 0p.cit. Vol.111 p.85

Ib id .

The Nagarampara and Thodupuzha re s e r ves of t h e Thodupuzha Taluk

where ~ l s oardamom :s grown, a r e known a s t h e "KanniElarnw t r a c t .

The area unde r Cardamoa i n t h e Devicolam, Udumbanchola and

Peermedu Taluk i n the id ikk i d i s t r i c t are known a s the Makaraelamt r ac t . Th i s t r a c t i nc l .~d es he Cardamom H i l l s Reserve which i s

co-terminus with t h e 12 Revenue v i l l a g e s of Udumbanchola Taluk,

t h e P e r i y a r Reserve ( th e Pe ri ya r Peerumedu and Ealappara vi ll a ge si n Pzermedu ta lu ks ) and the Pa l l iv as al unreserved".



Csns~saf T r a v a n c o r e 1891 3;-~d 1901

T r av an co r e Ad m in i s t r a t i o n R e p o r t s ME 10 71 t o 1 0 84

K.V.. Ramakr ishnan: Repor t on ~ardzimorn 1975 g. 6 to 10 1978 andT.P. Viswanathan: Brief H i s t o r y o f Cardam om d i l l s R e s e r v e 1978.

C ~ S U S f T r a v a n c o r e 1921, 1931 and I941-K.V. R a m a k r i s h n a n , o p , c i t p. 11

Estimated area a n d p r o d u c t i v i t y of Cardamom i n t h e CardamomHills Regewe Reqi-01

'lear Area (1000 ~ c r e s ) P r o d u c t i v i t y acre

Saurce: Var io u s i s sues of t h e T r a v a n c o r e A d m i n i- st ra t io n R e p o r t s

2#. ~ 0 1 1 ewin g he example o f t h e E u ro p ea n p l a r i t e r s , t h e other smaller

grewers a l s o b r o u g ht o u t ~ t g n i f i c a ~ thanges i n t h e t e c h n i q u e sef curing czrddrnom; while it was e a r l i s r d r i e d i n sun l i g h t .Tho use o f c u r i n g c ha m be rs f o r b e t t a r d r y t n g becam e widespread

by t h e twenties and t h i r t i e s ' . These t e c h n i c a l c h a n g es r e s u l -

t e di n

s i g n i f i c a n t im pro ve me nts i n t h e q u a l i t yof

t h e t r i edc a p s d e by r e t a i n i n g i t s gree c o l o u r .

21. T.P. Viswanathan op .c i t .

22. K.V. Ramakrishnan op,cit.

23. T.?. Viswanathan o~.cit,



25. Ker cla St a t e Landuse Board: Land Use Pl an fo r Idukki DistrictTrivandrum 1984.

26. Census of Ke ra la - 1971. D i s t r i c t Census Hand Book Idi kk i

27. P.K. Za ha ri a "Need f o r Mulching i n Cardamom Cult ur en. Report

of t h e Proc eedi nus of t he N ational Symposium on Pl an ta ti on

Crops. CPCRI. Kasargod 1976

28. The impact of th es e on t h e f o r e s t eco-system may be underst oodfrom the environment in which cardamom i s c u l t i v a t e d i n t h eWcstern Ghats. The p l a n t p r e f e r s a warm humid atmosphere and

a tcmp era turo rang ing between 50° t o 95' F, t h r i v i n g b e s t i n

shade provided by t h e l o f t y t r e e s. The plant i s very sensi t ive

t o wind and grows w 2 l l only fn s l op e s of h i l l s o r p la i n l an ds

lyi ng aga ins t the normal di re ct io n of th e wind. The crop a lso

requ i res p l en t i fu l supply of hume m d f a i r ly d i s t r ibu ted ra in -

f a l l over 60 inches. Depending on t he v a ri a t io ns i n t he micro-environment i n which t h? cro p i s grown, i t s produc t iv i ty a l so

d i f f e r s s i g ni f i ca n t ly .

29. A n ot e p r ~ p a r e d t t he co l l ec t o ra t e , Idukk i, fo r perusa l 'ofthe Minis ter , A Brie f His to ry of &m in is tr at io n of Cardamom

lands i n Idukki Di s t r i c t , Chapter V 1978.

30. In a fo r e s t l i t t l e i s l o s t u n t i l t h e ti mb er i s destroyed. I t

i s est imated t h a t an hec ta re of cardamom pla nta t io n g e t s anaverage of 5 t o 8 tonnes, of le af from le af shedding adding

50-80 k g of N, 12-20 Kg of P and 75-120 Kg of K . Vegetation

further improves i t and t h e nutrient removal by cardamom i s

very low. Nu tr ie nt removal on account of ha rv es ti ng 100 Kgof cardamom i s only N-1 .28 kg , P -0.28 Kg, and K -3.84 Kg.

land hunqer and deforestation: a case study of the cardamom hills in kerala p. sivanandan d....

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