Environmental consciousness and human sensitivity to Nature became key topics of discussion at the launch of environmentalist C. Raheem’s book, Nammude Pakshikal, at the Forest Central Library in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
Filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan spoke about human culture and mythological themes, referring to the Ramayana, which originates in Nature and the wilderness. He expressed concern that modern development is creating a rift between humans and Nature, with new development plans for Kerala, including the national highway project, destroying hills, a major keystone of Kerala’s ecosystem.
Academic Achuthsankar S. Nair received the first copy of the book.
Introducing the book, former bureaucrat K.V. Mohan Kumar compared the work to K.K Neelakantan’s Keralathile Pakshikal, saying it will help native readers connect with birds in their locality.
Pramod G. Krishnan referred to Karl Marx’s theory of “metabolic rift” to convey his concerns about our culture’s disassociation from our natural roots.
Dr. Nair touched upon several thoughts about our relationship with Nature, stressing that humans were part of Nature and not separate from it.
Author Bhasurachandran discussed the book’s literary qualities and the influence of birds in Malayalam literature.
Mr. Raheem said: “writing about birds never feels enough.” He called for environmental conservation to be an individual responsibility for all and for closer coordination among the government departments concerned with the environment.
Published – June 04, 2026 07:57 pm IST
