It was sheer love for jackfruit that bonded them. Though many of them do not know how to climb a tree, they managed to get themselves on the jackfruit trees to pluck the fruits and carefully lower it using ropes. The ripe ones were cut open and relished at the same time , while the raw ones were cooked into delicious jackfruit thoran (stir fry). A group of jack fruit lovers had gathered at a property near Eechamukku VFPCK at the Seaport – Airport road and celebrated the ‘glory’ of the jack fruit. The unique gathering was organized by the Adventures and Natural Trekking Society (ANTS).
The ripe jackfruits began to fell off the trees and were left unused. These unused jack fruits got decayed and attracted flies in huge numbers resulting in the increase of the fly density in the area. It was T Mohandas' efforts to find a solution for this menace which resulted in the gathering of the jack fruit lovers.
As informed through the social media groups, the jackfruit lovers began to gather in the plot from 8 in the morning onwards. By 10 am, it grew into a huge crowd which waited impatiently to taste the delicious jackfruit. Manoj, a Thripunithura native, was the first one to climb the jackfruit tree. He has a doctorate in chemistry and is the supervisor of the project which grows the beautiful gardens underneath the pillars of the metro rail, using organic matter.
Manoj was helped by Thiruvananthapuram native Suresh Kumar, a medical representative and his wife Revathy. The ripe jackfruits were lowered carefully using ropes and were shared by the group. The jackfruit lovers said good bye, promising to gather next week at another plot where jackfruits are ready to be plucked.
The gathering was headed by voter's alliance coordinator Aswathy Krishna Mitrapuram, Yoga instructor Raghunath from Palakkad, BSNL employee Raghunath from Kozhikode, Suresh Babu who runs the SMA Abacus in Ernakulam, Varapuzha native Jessy who owns the Thamasoma online news portal, her husband Shibu and children Joyce and Rejoice, Chittoor native Seena and daughter Swathy, transgender Athidi who runs the Ruchimudra hotel in Kacheripady, Preethy, Swami Joshy Bose and ANTS president Anil Jose.
Those who are interested to participate in the next gathering can contact: 9447498430
