Congress in Kerala accuses ruling Left of neglecting issues of human-animal conflict, crop loss

Idukki (Kerala), Feb 21 (PTI) The Congress in Kerala on Wednesday severely criticised the ruling Left government in the state over various issues, including the alleged neglect of the problems faced by people living in the hilly districts of the state, such as human-animal conflict and crop loss.

The Congress accused the state government of being indifferent to the problems of people living near forest areas in the mountainous districts of Idukki and Wayanad in the state.
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly V D Satheesan said that both the Centre and the state government are responsible for this alleged neglect, particularly in Idukki. He said that the economy of Idukki district was in a bad shape due to land problems, wild animal attacks and the fall in price of agricultural produce.

No compensation has been paid by the state government in the around 7,000 cases across Kerala, including in Wayanad and Idukki, of destruction of crops and loss of lives due to animal attacks, Satheesan claimed, while speaking to reporters here. Amidst these problems, there has been an increase in various taxes, adding to price rise, he said. The government has hiked by 50 per cent the rate of daily essentials sold through the state-run SupplyCo outlets, he further claimed. The opposition leader also alleged that there was a shortage of medicines available in state-run hospitals, which state Health Minister Veena George has refuted.
While George has denied the opposition’s allegations, the Kerala Government Medical Officers’ Association (KGMOA) has written a letter to the minister pointing out the dearth of medicines in state-run hospitals, he asserted.

He slammed the government for being a “mute spectator” to the problems being faced by the people. Criticising Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s recent face-to-face programme with the state’s youth organised a day ago in capital Thiruvananthapuram, he alleged that it was a “stage-managed” event where who should attend and what questions should be asked were “decided in advance”. “It was all staged to ensure that there is no criticism of the government. They are trying to fool the people,” he further said.