Even if the land is irrigated, cultivation cannot be done as the water evaporates in the heat,” said an aged inhabitant of the village, Kovalan. For a population of 278 villagers, there is a lower primary school, health centre and an office of the Integrated Tribal Development Programme (ITDP). The village is in a rain shadow region and one of the eight Hill Pulaya colonies in the sanctuary. It is a tribal settlement with no income of its own. In the past, there was government support for cultivation taken up by the Hill Pulayas of the Champakadu colony.

Source: The Hindu May 15, 2017 16:15 UTC