At the park, young comrades, both men and women, had been appointed as life guards, customer care executives and guides. Though park managing director P.P. Chandran claimed that they were chosen strictly on merit, employees secretly admitted that the 300-odd jobs at the park have mostly gone to party workers. Most of the workers are from party villages in Kannur.
Sumesh, a plumber at the park, is from Pinarayi, the home town of CPI-M state Secretary Pinarayi Vijayan. Sumesh joined the park after quitting his job with another of the party’s co-operative ventures.

The CPI-M, which claims to be the voice of the working class, doesn’t seem to have got it right here. Several workers complained that they were yet to get their appointment letters. “I have been promised a monthly salary of Rs 5,000. But, I have not got any papers to that effect,” said a woman worker, who is also a DYFI activist in the locality.

But the park management says these are teething troubles andhopes to have a smooth ride once the number of tourists picks up. The park is strategically located between two famous tourist spots—a temple and a snake park. The Sree Muthappan Temple at Parassinikkadavu is the only temple in Kerala where theyyam, a folk art form of Kerala, is performed as a daily ritual. Toddy and dried fish are special offerings at the temple and a good number of devotees turns up every day. The snake park at Parassinikkadavu houses more than 100 varieties of snakes and is a major tourist draw. The park management expects that a chunk of Sree Muthappan’s devotees and the snake park visitors will be drawn to the park.

... contd.