The Grandmother of forests: How Devaki Amma grew a jungle and a legacy

Thiruvananthapuram: What that began as a hobby of planting saplings at her farm land around 45 years back has led the way for a series of honours for 92 year old Kollakkayil Devaki Amma, the latest being the Padma Shri, for having developing a forest and sending strong message on the need for nature protection.

Spread over five acres close to the Arabian sea at Muthukulam in Alappuzha district of Kerala, the 'Thapovanam' forest offers hundreds of varieties of rare and indigenous trees, plants, shrubs and creepers. It has become a rich source of medicinal plants, a favourite spot for researchers on bio diversity, botany and global warming.

It was an accident during her forties that led to the habit of growing varieties of saplings in her farm land where paddy cultivation was done till then. Owing to the accident she could not get involved in paddy cultivation for some time. Hence she started planting various varieties of saplings in the farm land with the support of her husband Gopalakrishna Pillai and other friends and relatives.

Now there are hundreds of varieties of trees and plants in her forest ranging from common varieties like teak and mahogany to rare varieties like Lakshmitharu and Chinese orange. The 'Thapovanam' forest is also the favourite spot of migratory birds. The serene forests in Alappuzha have also become a favorite spot of nature lovers and tourists. Having acquired first hand knowledge of nature, Devaki Amma is also a known speaker at environment events.

Devaki Amma, who is popularly known as 'Vanamuttashi' (grandmother of forests), already won various awards including the Indira Priyadarshini 'Vriksha mitra' award of the Ministry of Environment and Forest and the 'Nari shakti 'award of the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Sharing the happiness of having been selected for the Padma award, Devaki Amma told reporters that she considers it as an honour for her work.

Devaki Amma used to tell those visiting 'Thapovanam' that it was the environment of the forest that still keeps her healthy despite age related issues and used to tell everyone to plant at least one tree in their premises.