Forest, legal hurdles keep thousands of high-range families waiting for title deeds

Erumeli: For thousands of families in Kottayam’s eastern high ranges, owning the land they have occupied for decades remains a distant dream, as legal and administrative hurdles continue to deny them title deeds. While around 10,000 families face uncertainty over Hillmen Settlement pattayams, residents of Pampa Valley and Angel Valley are still waiting for their areas to be excluded from the Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR).

Residents are now looking to Revenue Minister AP Anil Kumar, who is visiting the district on Friday, to intervene and resolve the long-pending issues. They have called for coordinated action by the government and the Revenue and Forest departments to secure their land rights.

A century on, families still await land titles
More than 1,000 families in Alapra, Nedumpuram, Chathuppu and Valakody Chathuppu continue to live without pattayams, despite having occupied 254 acres of land for more than a century. Although these settlements lie well outside the forest, residents have staged protests demanding title deeds.

The launch of the Hillmen Settlement process raised hopes that residents would finally secure pattayams, expecting the completion of the digital survey to pave the way for title deeds. However, the process has since run into trouble, leaving the families disheartened.

“The Forest Department’s present stand amounts to betraying the people. We cannot cut trees standing on our own plots. Many families are unable to receive financial assistance under the PM-KISAN scheme because they do not have pattayams,” said M S Satheesh, a resident.

“Immediate steps are needed to resolve the Pampa Valley and Angel Valley issues. The Revenue and Forest departments must arrive at a joint decision, with the government taking the lead,” said P J Sebastian, a protest committee leader.

Forest Department letter stalls pattayam process
The process of issuing pattayams under the Hillmen Settlement scheme in Kanjirappally taluk hit a roadblock after the Forest Department sent a letter stating that the land concerned was part of a reserve forest and that its prior approval was required before any action could be taken.

The Revenue Department has sought legal advice on the Forest Department’s letter, putting title deeds for around 10,000 families in the taluk on hold.

Tiger reserve tag keeps Pampa Valley, Angel Valley in limbo
According to Forest Department records, the areas covered by the Pampavalley and Angelvalley wards of Erumeli panchayat, spanning around 500 hectares, continue to fall within the PTR. Residents have been fighting for the past four years to have the areas excluded from the reserve. The issue has triggered major protests and prompted political intervention.

If Pampa Valley and Angel Valley are excluded from the PTR, an equivalent area must be added to the reserve. The Forest Department has identified land in the Goodrickal range in Pathanamthitta for this purpose.

The department must also prepare a sustainable development plan for Pampa Valley and Angel Valley as part of the process of excluding them from the reserve. The requirement has added another layer of complexity to efforts to resolve the long-standing issue.