Sabari project: livespaused by a rail line

Except for the gentle gush of rainwater cascading through a crystal-clear rivulet outside her window, Daisy's home ar Ainkombu, a few metres from the Pala-Thodupuzha road, sits in total silence.Flanked by rolling green hills on one side and a patchwork of farmland on the other, the view could easily grace a postcard. But for Daisy, 60, living alone in the house she once built with her late husband Kariyachan, this silence is far from peaceful.

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Her children now live far away. Days slip by quietly, broken only by the occasional chirping of birds and rustling of leaves in the breeze. But now, what breaks the silence are the memories that keep popping up from two decades ago.In her backyard, half-buried in the thick undergrowth, lies a moss-covered boundary stone planted by railway surveyors a few years ago. To Daisy, it’s a marker of promises unkept.Since the day it appeared, her life has taken a turn. Her life got stuck abruptly. She is unable to sell the holding or use it as collateral. Her home, like her life, remains trapped in the shadow of a railway line that never came. That project is the Sabari rail line, a long-envisioned route meant to connect Angamaly to the pilgrimage town of Sabarimala through the rubber-growing areas of central Travancore.

Daisy's land was once earmarked for Ramapuram railway station, which was expected to serve six panchayats in Meenachil taluk. Nearly 80% of her property, including farmland and polders, was marked for acquisition. “This land was the hub of the protests,” she says, her gaze fixed on the stillness beyond her doorstep.“Now it's all gone and quiet. People are tired. We just want clarity. Are we staying? Or are we leaving?” she asks. The protests started after they marked the rail line through the area. Her husband, Kariyachan, was at the forefront of the agitation. “But that was so long ago. Nobody is opposing it now. We just want to know what comes next,” says Daisy in a disillusioned tone.