In a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed before the Kerala High Court, wildlife activist Angels Nair accused the Plantation Corporation of Kerala of executing unauthorized commercial pineapple monoculture across 1,600 acres of forest land at the Athirappilly and Kallal estates. The lawsuit highlights that this agricultural activity has persisted despite a forest department stop memo and the official expiration of the state’s 50-year land lease agreement. Nair argues that the heavy use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides poses an immediate toxic threat to the nearby Chalakudy River basin, while simultaneously accelerating soil erosion and destroying local animal fodder—a combination that directly escalates dangerous human-wildlife conflicts in the area.
