Almost every day, Cherolil Saji lets out a gasp prompted by a cacophony of trumpets and grunts that echo at irregular intervals, leaving his ears momentarily deafened. “Each sound is a grim reminder of our plight,” he says, reflecting on a decade-old memory when he left with his family from Kongodumala to settle in Pashukkadavu in Maruthongara grama panchayat due to the threat from wild animals.
“We had no choice, but to shift elsewhere. Our lifeline was collapsing,” Mr. Saji said, his finger pointing towards a forsaken house that once belonged to his neighbour and fellow settler-farmer, Saji Parakkal, at the foothills of Kongodumala. An old bamboo beehive, dangling in the vicinity, and two rickety wooden cots leaning against the weathered walls of the derelict house are remnants of their past.
Both the Sajis had bid farewell to Kongodumala, and sought solace in the embrace of hilly Pashukkadavu, despite the location being prone to landslips and being three kilometres away. “My house in Kongodumala had crumbled two years ago, and now, we are sure that this abandoned house will be destroyed during the monsoon,” Mr. Cherolil says.
