P Krishna Pillai Memorial Land Revocation a Challenge to the People, Says CPI(M)

Alappuzha: The UDF government's decision to revoke the five acres of land allotted at Nooranad in Alappuzha for establishing the P Krishna Pillai Cultural Centre is a challenge to the people, CPI(M) Alappuzha District Secretary R Naser said in a statement.

He said the LDF government had envisioned the cultural centre as a project aimed not only at preserving the legacy of P Krishna Pillai but also at providing care and support for senior citizens and distressed artists. According to him, the UDF government's move has completely derailed that objective. He demanded that the government reverse its policy and withdraw the decision to reclaim the land.

The UDF government decided to take back the land that had been allotted for the P Krishna Pillai memorial at a high-level meeting chaired by Minister K Muraleedharan. The decision was taken under the pretext of allocating land for a Kendriya Vidyalaya for the ITBP.

The five-acre plot, part of the Nooranad Leprosy Sanatorium owned by the Health Department, had been transferred to the Cultural Department in January 2023 for the memorial project. The LDF government had planned to establish the cultural centre with facilities aimed at the welfare of elderly people and distressed artists. As part of the process, the land under the Health Department had been transferred to the Revenue Department.

The government had also approved granting the Cultural Department permission to use the land for constructing the memorial. All these decisions have now been overturned.

Of the total 134.84 acres belonging to the Nooranad Leprosy Sanatorium, 50 acres had already been leased for 30 years to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) for establishing a camp and a Kendriya Vidyalaya.