People’s convention demands conservation of KAU’s model jackfruit farm 

On World Environment Day, activists owing allegiance to the Chakkakuttam Farm Protection Committee sought to protect the 193 indigenous varieties of jackfruit trees at the 70-acre model organic jackfruit farm of the Agriculture Research Station under Kerala Agricultural University in Mannuthy. 
| Photo Credit: K.K. NAJEEB

A people’s protest is gathering momentum against the move to cut down and transfer control of the model organic jackfruit farm of the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) in Mannuthy to the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU), which reportedly plans to convert the land into a fodder cultivation area.

This Model Organic Farm (MOF) is unique for conserving over 193 indigenous varieties of jackfruit trees, many over 50 years old. A “jackfruit paradise,” the farm is spread across 70 acres in the Agriculture Research Station (ARS) under the KAU. It also houses over 100 varieties of mango trees, 200 diverse native tree species, other fruit trees, vegetable plots, and research crops—all cultivated without chemical fertilizers or pesticides since the era of Shaktan Thampuran in 1917.

On World Environment Day, a Farm Protection Convention was organised at Mahatma Square, Mannuthy, under the leadership of the Chakkakuttam Farm Protection Committee and local environmental activists. Over 150 people, including environmentalists, local workers, and concerned citizens from various districts, participated in a public rally and symbolic protest. Participants tied ribbons to each jackfruit tree, embraced them, and formed a human chain of protection, followed by an environmental pledge to preserve the farm.

Ecological consequence

The speakers emphasised the grave ecological, agricultural, and food security consequences of destroying this living gene bank. The MOF plays a critical role in supplying quality, diverse jackfruit saplings to farmers and is an active centre for biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, and value-added agricultural research organisation.

Despite KVASU and the government possessing alternative lands for fodder cultivation, this particular intervention threatens to dismantle one of the largest jackfruit biodiversity collections in the world, they alleged. The convention called for an urgent and permanent resolution to this ongoing dispute, which has persisted for years, and urged the government to issue a favourable decision. They also demanded that the employment concerns of the workers currently engaged at the model farm be addressed fairly.