Latest news with #Saseendran
Time of India
16-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Will make snakebite antivenom locally: Min
T'puram: A project will be developed in collaboration with health department to locally produce and distribute antivenom for snakebite treatment, forest minister A K Saseendran said. Speaking at the World Snake Day programme at Kerala forest headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, Saseendran said antivenom was being sourced from other states. Due to geographical factors, there can be variations in the potency of snake venom in different regions, making local production of antivenom essential, he said. The plan is to make antivenom from the rescued snakes and then make them available at primary health centres. Globally, between 82,000 and 125,000 people die annually from snakebites, with half of these deaths occurring in India. Kerala has also been significantly affected by snakebite fatalities. "To address this, forest department launched the Snake App. In 2019, there were 119 snakebite deaths, which were reduced to 30 by 2024 due to the department's constant vigilance," the minister stated. Chief wildlife warden Pramod G Krishnan said almost all snakebites happen outside forest areas, showing that these snakes are allied with agriculture and are friends of farmers. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Villas For Sale in Dubai Might Surprise You Dubai villas | search ads Get Deals Undo There are 6,200 volunteer snake rescuers, 3,000 being certified and 300 are women, he added. The next target is to make Kerala free from snakebite deaths in five years, he said, adding that it could be possible only with cooperation from health, agriculture and education departments. "We need the cooperation of health department to produce and distribute antivenom. Agriculture department comes into play as we must reclaim land lying unused and covered in undergrowth," Krishnan said.
The Hindu
16-07-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
State to produce antivenom locally, says Saseendran
Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran has announced that the State will soon launch a project in collaboration with the Health Department to produce snake antivenom locally. Inaugurating the World Snake Day observance here on Wednesday, he said the antivenom at present used in Kerala was sourced from Tamil Nadu. 'Studies have shown that the potency of snake venom can vary from region to region due to atmospheric differences. As a result, antivenoms may not neutralise the venom of the same species found in different regions. Hence, locally produced antivenom is essential for effective treatment,' he said, emphasising the importance of region-specific antivenom. Pointing out that between 82,000 and 1.35 lakh people die from snakebites globally every year, the Minister said nearly half of those deaths occurred in India. 'Kerala has historically reported high snakebite fatality rates.' 'However, efforts by the Forest department and the introduction of the SARPA (Snake Awareness, Rescue and Protection App) mobile application have significantly brought down the number of deaths. From 119 reported deaths in 2019, the figure dropped to 30 in 2024. The State aims to achieve zero deaths due to snakebites by 2030 as part of the Snake Envenomation Zero Mortality Kerala project,' Mr. Saseendran stated. Head of Forest Force Rajesh Ravindran presided over the programme. Chief Wildlife Warden Pramod G. Krishnan also spoke on the occasion.
The Hindu
02-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Saseendran expresses concern over tribal deaths, calls for steps to adopt indigenous knowledge
Expressing concern over the disturbing trend of tribal fatalities in wildlife attacks, Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran has assured steps to study the factors leading to the alarming pattern. He was inaugurating a State-level workshop on Gothrabheri, an initiative aimed at integrating indigenous knowledge into wildlife conflict mitigation strategies, here on Wednesday. Mr. Saseendran said while various human-wildlife conflict mitigation projects initiated by the Forest department had begun to show results, the loss of tribal lives remained a pressing issue. He pointed out that 67 people lost their lives in wildlife-related incidents during 2024-25. Of these, 34 were due to snakebites and 19 due to elephant attacks. Alarmingly, 13 of those killed by elephants belonged to tribal communities. Chief Wildlife Warden Pramod G. Krishnan pointed out that the trend was unusual since tribespeople were traditionally known to coexist harmoniously with wildlife. He emphasised the need to examine whether changes in animal or human behaviour or other external factors were contributing to this shift. The Gothrabheri programme has been conceptualised to collect, document, and incorporate tribal ecological knowledge into official conservation and conflict mitigation policies. As part of the initiative, 18 regional seminars were held across Kerala, engaging as many as 1,016 tribal representatives from all 360 unnathis (tribal hamlets) in the State. Insights gathered from these interactions are being consolidated and studied for implementation. The initiative is a collaborative effort involving the Scheduled Tribes Development department, the Kerala Forest Research Institute, and other agencies, including the State Planning Board and the Kerala Startup Mission, to convert tribal insights into actionable government programmes. Highlighting Kerala's unique approach, Mr. Saseendran added that the government was investing in modern technologies and fostering inter-departmental coordination to enable transformative solutions in this area. Head of Forest Force in-charge and Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF) P. Pugazhendi presided over the inaugural session. APCCFs L. Chandrasekhar, J. Justin Mohan, Scheduled Tribes Development department Director Renu Raj, State Planning Board member Jiju P. Alex, Kerala Forest Research Institute Director Kannan C.S. Warrier, Kerala State Biodiversity Board Chairman N. Anil Kumar, Raman Rajamannan, tribal king of the Mannan tribal community of Kovilmala in Idukki, and Periyar Tiger Reserve Field Director P.P. Pramod participated.
New Indian Express
21-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Declare wild pigs as vermin for at least six months: Kerala forest minister
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Close on the heels of the Centre rejecting its request to bring amendments to the Wildlife Protection Act, the state has again approached the Union Ministry with the same demand. In a letter to the ministry, Forest Minister A K Saseendran pointed out loopholes in the Centre's stance that the chief wildlife warden has powers to effectively deal with human-wildlife conflict. The minister urged the Centre to declare wild boars as vermin — at least in villages identified as conflict hotspots — for a period of six months. Saseendran, in his letter to Union Minister for Environment and Forests Bhupender Yadav, pointed out that the chief wildlife warden has only limited powers to act swiftly in critical situations involving human-wildlife conflicts. 'Chief wildlife warden is empowered first to capture, tranquilise or translocate a dangerous animal. If these options are not feasible, then only the chief wildlife warden may permit killing of the identified wild animal listed in Schedule I of the Act. These procedural constraints have limited the warden's ability to act swiftly in critical situations,' he said.
The Hindu
13-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
A.K. Saseendran to launch seed ball dispersal drive
Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran will formally inaugurate the 'Vitthoot' initiative in Kozhikode on June 15. 'Seed balls' will be dispersed as part of the 'Mission Food, Fodder and Water' ecological restoration campaign to ensure food availability within the forests across the State. The balls will be made using a mix of indigenous plant seeds, soil, compost, cow dung and natural fungicides. Degraded forests and abandoned plantations are among the sites that have been chosen for the programme. In Thiruvananthapuram, the project will get underway at Kuttappara in Paruthipally forest range on June 17. Students, sociocultural activists and the local populace will come together for the conservation effort, a press release stated.
