THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kumaran Asan Smarakam at Thonnakkal in the district is in total disarray following the delay in appointing a new governing committee in place of the committee appointed by the previous LDF government. As the incumbent committee has been asked to continue till a new committee is appointed, it is also not so keen in convening regular meetings to deal with the various issues plaguing the Smarakam, it is alleged. The situation has slipped into chaos, following the termination of four workers who demanded a hike in festival allowance during Onam. M Thulasi, one of the four terminated employees, told Express that they were terminated for asking for an increase in festival allowance during Onam. Following this, four persons, including the librarian, were terminated. A woman worker was allegedly blocked in a room and questioned. She later filed a complaint with the Mangalapuram police station alleging that four persons, including the honorary secretary P Soman, governing committee member Thevarthottam Sukumaran, Smarakam director Subash and an employee of the Samrakam had harassed her. She was also later sacked. With the termination of the librarian, the library at the Smarakam is remaining closed. The library here is a research centre under the University of Kerala. Thonnakkal Vasudevan, who was a member of the governing committee, had resigned from the committee following the expiry of his three-year term. He told Express that the workers should have been given a more considerate treatment as their monthly wages were less than Rs 4,000. He pointed out that the Smarakam had received a special grant of Rs 10 lakh last year, besides the annual grant of Rs 10 lakh. The autonomous institution functioning under the Cultural Department has other revenues form the sales of books and saplings from the nursery. He pointed out it was during the term of T K Ramakrishnan as culture minister in 1998 that the Smarakam witnessed unprecedented growth and development. He alleged that the present director of the Smarakam Subash had been treating the institution as his fiefdom for over 30 years. Thulasi said he had complained to the Chief Minister, Culture Minister and Labour Minister about their termination. He also alleged that the woman worker was harassed by the director in the presence of the honorary secretary P Soman. Taking to Express, Soman said the allegations against the committee and the director were baseless. He said the workers were supplied by a private agency and they had no right to claim bonus. He also said that they had decided to pay Rs 1,750 as festival allowance. But Thulasi and others collectively demanded more money. “Though it is an autonomous institution, it is the District Collector who passes the Salary Bill. And we have no such freedom to pay as we wish,” he said. Asked why they did not quit even after the expiry of the three-year term, Soman said all of them had expressed willingness to quit. ‘’It is the Culture Minister K C Joseph who asked us to continue till a new committee was appointed,” he said. Reacting to the allegations of harassment against a woman worker, director Subash admitted that the terminated woman had filed a complaint with Mangalapuram police against them. “But the charges levelled against us, including the honorary secretary Soman and member Thevarthottam Sukumaran, are baseless,” he said. He also alleged that a section of the land mafia active in the area was behind the controversy. Whatever be the facts, the delay in appointing a new committee may further vitiate the situation here much to the woes of the workers. The casualty will be the goodwill of the institution, which is attracting large number of fans of the great poet from across the state.
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