Aravanchal Kavu

Forest, Grasslands

3 ha

Kannur, Kerala

Contributors:

Description

Country	India
Area (ha)	3
Ecosystem Type	Forest, Grasslands
Number of households	600
Number of people	1000

Aravanchal Kavu

No Data

Located about 25 km east from Payanoor in Thalliparambu taluka in Kannoor district of north Kerala, Aravanchal Kavu (sacred grove) is an excellent example of local community involvement in the management of an old sacred grove. The grove is about 7 acres (2.8 ha) large, situated in the middle of the grassy plains of Aravanchal village of Peringom Vayakkara Panchayat, which falls in the midland eco-region of Kerala state.1 The presiding deity for this sacred grove, as in most sacred groves of Kerala, is the Mother Goddess in the incarnation of Thayiparadevada, locally called ‘Vellarakurangal Bhagawati’.

The grove is representative of vegetation structures that would be found in semi-evergreen forests, Myristica swamps, deciduous forests and grasslands, and grassy meadows. There are more than 200 varieties of plants in this grove, with Diospyros buxlifolia forming the top canopy of the forest. However, due to gradual degradation of these forests through forest fires, human interference and grazing, only the core area of the grove contains the original floral structure. In the areas where it was open to human interference and others destructive factors, the evergreen vegetation structure has given way to a deciduous one. These degraded sections of the forest now contain species of a more deciduous and thorny scrub nature. Trees and shrubs belonging to the Leguminosae family—a rare occurrence in the evergreen forests—is a common sight in these groves with the top canopy of these forests now occupied by nandi, Wrightia spp., white silk-cotton tree, Alexandrian laurel, Dioclea spp., shisam and others. Bonnet macaques are stated to be in such large numbers that these creatures fearlessly interact with the villagers residing outside the grove.

The kavu is located in a region of 5 sq km where 600 families reside, of which 400 are Hindus, 160 Christians and 40 Muslims. The total population of the village is stated to be around 1000. Most of the community members are occupied with agriculture or earn their living through private service.

Origin and Establishment

Origin	-
Year of Formation	1969
Motivations	-

This kavu once belonged to an old nair family called Tharavadu. But this nair family abandoned the grove as they felt that it was unlucky for them. Since then the grove lay without ownership until the 1970s, when the local community took over its management though not legally. In the past many years the community members had been collecting fuelwood and grazing their cattle on the outskirts of the grove. People also feared the wrath of the deity if they disturbed the grove in any way. Fear along with respect for the grove has been the reason behind community based conservation of this grove over many decades.

No Data

Governance, Management and Conservation Systems

Collective of CCAs	-
Decision Making Body	Aravanchal Shri Bhagavati Kavu Committee.
Rules and Regulations	Informal
Community activities through the year	Patrolling, watch and ward, Soil and water conservation

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Around 1970, the Hindu families (from all castes), residing within a 4 km radius of the sacred grove formed the Aravanchal Shri Bhagavati Kavu Committee. Presently 400 Hindu families are members of this committee. A general body meeting is called once a year, wherein an executive committee comprising of nine to thirteen members is elected through voice vote. The executive committee members in turn elect the president, vice-president, secretary, joint secretary and treasurer. The objectives of this committee as stated by Shri K.M.K. Nambeeshan, Secretary, Aravanchal Shri Bhagavathi Kavu Committee is ‘for wildlife protection and to conserve/protect a place where we can bathe and worship nature’.

Although the committee holds meetings in formal office building, it is interesting to note that the committee members arrive at decisions related to the management of the sacred grove through application of divination techniques, which means passing resolutions after applying to the local deity. This brings a curious mix of tradition and modernity to the management of the grove

Certain rules and regulations are strictly followed by the local community:

1. Strict observance of entry and exit into the kavu as per the Hindu calendar.

2. Entry is open to pilgrims only during certain times of the year.

3. No leaf litter/dead branches are permitted to be taken away from the grove.

4. Only during Theyyam festival is fallen wood from the grove collected and burnt for the purpose of the ritual.

5. Grazing of cattle is also not permitted within the grove limits.
6. Grass from the sacred grove is auctioned once a year, although this does not bring in much money to the kavu committee.
7. Photography is not permitted inside the grove, or of the Theyyam dancers, as they are believed to be possessed during the dance.
8. Women are not allowed to enter the grove during menstruation.

No Data

Legal and Other Recognitions

Legal Status	-
FRA Applicability	-
Community Forest Resource Rights (CFR)	-
Date of filing CFR claim	-
Level of CFR claim	-
Date of recognition of CFR claim	-
Management plan status	-
Land Ownership	-
Other Recognised Status	-
Sacred Landscape	Yes

No Data

Impact and Learnings

Impact on Livelihoods and Subsistence	-
Social Impacts	-
Ecological Impact	-
Internal Threats and Challenges	Lack of resources and pressures of poverty
External Threats and Challenges	-

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The greatest constraint faced by the committee currently is that of funds. Because of the financial crunch the construction of the water tank has not been completed. They would also like to take up the stonewall fencing of the sacred grove on priority if sufficient funds are available.

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The local community hopes that by conserving the sacred grove the water shortage that they face during summer will be resolved. Aruvanchaal, a perennial stream that originates inside the grove and flows out from the eastern side of the grove, has run dry over a period of time as the grove has become smaller and surrounding forests have been denuded. The committee plans to afforest some area around the grove to create a buffer around it. Through this afforestation, the committee members hope to rejuvenate the Aruvanchaal stream. They plan to largely plant fruit trees in order to provide sufficient food for the monkeys of the grove.

Data Contributor

Data Source	From publicly available sources
Year of Study	2000

Roshni Kutty; CCA Directory- Kalpavriksh

References and Glossary

License

CC BY Attribution

No Data

CCA Directory, Kalpavriksh https://kalpavriksh.org/Aravanchal-Kavu/

Multimedia, News and Updates

No Data

All content on this portal is under CC-BY License unless otherwise specified.

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Aravanchal Kavu

Description

Village

Panchayat (No Data)

Location

Ecosystem - further details

Communities

Origin and Establishment

History

Motivations - further details (No Data)

Governance, Management and Conservation Systems

Collective of CCAs - further details (No Data)

People and decision making

Rules and Management Practices

Ecological Restoration and Biodiverstiy Conservation (No Data)

Legal and Other Recognitions

CFR - further details (No Data)

Legal and Other Recognitions- further details (No Data)

Impact and Learnings

Impact - further details (No Data)

Opportunities (No Data)

Threats and challenges - further details

Needs (No Data)

Future Plans

Data Contributor

Information Provider

References and Glossary

Glossary of Vernacular terms (No Data)

References

Multimedia, News and Updates

News and Updates (No Data)

Multimedia (No Data)