Forest officer P.G. Sudha | Sumitra Nair
Work of a forest range officer isn't easy. And this is evident from how people have been approaching P. G. Sudha, beat officer of Kuttampuzha forest in Ernakulam district of Kerala. As we take the off road track to Kunjipara tribal colony in the forest, people approach Sudha for various things. And be it to complain about elephants creating trouble, to thank her for the recent water connection or a general talk about various issues affecting the colonies, Sudha faces it all without batting an eyelid.
Sure, it is rare to find a woman forest range officer, but that's not what makes Sudha unique. It is how she was instrumental in building 497 toilets in the tribal colonies of the Kuttampuzha forest that makes her a person of interest. It was post this, that Kerala was declared open defecation free. The state is the third in the country to achieve the feat. Her efforts won her the Chief Minister's Open Defecation Free campaign award on November 1, 2016. 50-year-old Sudha, who became a forest officer in 2002, has served in Malayatoor and Thundayil forests, too.
The no-fuss woman says, “I believe in being sincere about my work.” “There is so much open space available, so the people have never felt the need for a toilet.” Also, people were not aware of the importance of using toilets until recent years, she adds.
One of the completed toilet units in Kunjipara tribal colony | Vipin Das
“In order to complete the ODF mission successfully, the responsibility to coordinate and supervise the construction of toilets was given to the respective forest range officer. And in Kuttampuzha we chose Sudha as she was also the secretary of the vana samrakshana samithi (a local body comprising forest officials and tribals). Also, she seemed enthusiastic to take up the responsibility. The idea was to involve the local people in the project,” says K. Mohammed Y. Safirulla, Collector, Ernakulam district.
“We had various health professionals and the Suchitwa Mission representatives educating on the importance of constructing a toilet and the health problems that could become the result of defecating in the open.” It was in September, 2016 that Safirulla approached me and put me in charge of constructing toilets in all the tribal colonies in the district like Kunjipara, Thalavechi para and Mappilapara comprising approximately 346 families.
Sudha, who supervised and helped complete construction of 497 toilets in all the colonies in the district, did not have it easy. Initially, the funding did not reach on time. “Materials were bought on a loaner from stores in Kothamangalam.” Also, it was difficult to reach all the materials to the interior of the forest. “Pick up vehicles cannot reach the interiors easily. But the villagers and those living in the colonies helped a lot.
“The original budget for this project was Rs 15,400 per unit. But since the colonies in Kuttampuzha were located in the interiors of the forest and transporting the materials could be done only in a jeep, the budget was raise to Rs 28,000 per unit. While Rs 13,000 came from the Suchitwa Mission's fund, the rest came from panchayats and corporate CSR donations,” says the Siju Thomas, Ernakulam District Coordinator, Suchitwa Mission.
Materials like cement blocks and roofing sheets. had to transported to high ranges and one day, the bamboo raft that was being used to transport the materials capsized. “We waited nearly till 2 am when help finally came, some of the materials were retrieved and at around 6 am, we got going to the top most colony in Mappilapara. Thanks to cooperation from all the officers including the collector and the village officers all the construction was completed in time,” says Sudha.
Sudha also received the Nari Shakti Puraskar on Women's Day this year from President Pranab Mukherjee. In 2006, she also got the award for the best forest range officer. This was for replanting trees in areas where elephants had uprooted them. She ensured that the balance is maintained by also opening a nursery, so that the tribals can replant any tree that may get uprooted.
As she proudly took us around the colony showing the toilets that were completed, you can see that she is an integral part of the system. The members of the tribal colony fondly call her 'chechi' (elder sister) and seek her advice on various issues like watching out for elephants and what they should be cultivate in their backyards. On our way back, we got a live taste of the kind of power Sudha wields. She spotted an unauthorised vehicle in the forest and stopped them immediately. She confronted them, told them off firmly and reported it to her senior officer. For Sudha, who grew up near Kuttampuzha, forest certainly has become the way of her life.
