The article attempts to understand the occurrence of climate-sensitive diseases in the Kuttanad Wetland Ecosystem, considering the backdrop of landscape changes. The study analysed the changes in the environmental landscapes of Kuttanad, which presumably had contributed to the disease epidemiology. The changes in the landscapes in terms of water bodies, land utilization, agricultural practices and other anthropogenic interventions were comprehended by employing the geographic information system and remote sensing approaches. Further, through oral histories, the perceptions of the local inhabitants about the changes in the ecosystem and disease epidemiology were captured. In the study, substantial spatial changes were observed in the wetland during the period 1990–2017. The development initiatives have created serious environmental damage and pushed the wetland into a state of ecological fatigue. The narratives from the field survey attribute the changes in the environmental landscapes as factors that contributed to the epidemiology of climate-sensitive diseases. Infectious diseases, mostly fever-type, assume epidemic proportions during the monsoon and create a feeling of trepidation among people due to their fatal and contagious characteristics.
Ajayan. (2009). Kuttanad cancer spread linked to chemicals?Mint. https://www.livemint.com/Politics/0BH1LPemyHZK35vjq8eBrK/Kuttanad-cancer-spread-linked-to-chemicals.html
2.
AravindakshanM., & JosephC. A. (1990). Five decades of rice research. Kerala Agricultural University Press.
3.
AshaC. V., SusonP. S., RetinaC. I., & NandanS. B. (2014). Decline in diversity and production of exploited fishery resources in Vembanad Wetland System: Strategies for better management and conservation. Open Journal of Marine Science, 4, 344–357.
4.
BalakrishnanA., ThekkekareR. J., SapkalG., & TandaleB. V. (2017). Seroprevalance of Japanese encephalitis virus and West Nile virus in Alappuzha District, Kerala. The Indian Journal of Medical Research, 146(Suppl. 1 ), S70–S75. 10.4103/ijmr.IJMR_1638_15
5.
BallesterF., MichelozziP., & IñiguezC. (2003). Weather, climate, and public health. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 57(10), 759–760. 10.1136/jech.57.10.759
6.
BeyerK. M. M., ComstockS., & SeagrenR. (2010). Disease maps as context for community mapping: A methodological approach for linking confidential health information with local geographical knowledge for community Health Research. Journal of Community Health, 35(6), 635–644. 10.1007/s10900-010-9254-5
7.
ChandranS., & PurkayasthaS. (2018). History of reclaimed Kayals in Kuttanad wetland and associated social divide in Alappuzha District, Kerala. International Journal of Research and Analytical Reviews, 5(3), 573–581.
8.
ChandyJ. (2013). Economic and environmental dimensions of backwater resources in Kerala: A study with special reference to Kuttanad region [PhD dissertation]. Economics Research Centre, Government College—Kottayam. Mahatma Gandhi University.
9.
ChandyJ. (2016). A survey on the insecticide exposure and the related health hazards in Kinakary, Kuttanad, India. International Journal of Science and Research, 5(10), 218–220.
10.
DHS Kerala (2009). Data on communicable diseases. Directorate of Health Services.
11.
DongusS., NyikaD., KannadyK., MtasiwaD., MshindaH., FillingerU., DrescherA. W., TannerM., CastroM. C., & KilleenG. F. (2007). Participatory mapping of target areas to enable operational larval source management to suppress malaria vector mosquitoes in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. International Journal of Health Geographics, 6(37). 10.1186/1476-072X-6-37
12.
EscamillaH. P., MartínezM. J. J., MedinaC. M., & MoralesS. E. (2007). Frequency and causes of infectious abortion in a dairy herd in Queretaro, Mexico. Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research, 71(4), 314–317.
13.
EvangelistaK. V., & CoburnJ. (2010). Leptospira as an Emerging Pathogen: A review of its Biology, pathogenesis and Host Immune Responses. Future Microbiology, 5(9), 1413–1425. 10.2217/fmb.10.102
14.
Fletcher-LarteyS. M., & CaprarelliG. (2016). Application of GIS technology in public health: Successes and challenges. Parasitology, 143(4), 401–415. 10.1017/S0031182015001869
15.
GoarantC. (2016). Leptospirosis: Risk factors and management challenges in developing countries. Research and Reports in Tropical Medicine, 7, 49–62. 10.2147/RRTM.S102543
16.
González PlazaJ. J., HulakN., ZhumadilovZ., & AkilzhanovaA. (2016). Fever as an important resource for infectious diseases research. Intractable and Rare Diseases Research, 5(2), 97–102. 10.5582/irdr.2016.01009
17.
GopalanU. K. (1984). Estuary: Needs for legal protection. In KrishnanP. L. (Ed.), Law and environment, Cochin university law review (pp. 268–273). University of Cochin.
18.
Government of India. (2011). Census of India—2011. Provisional population totals, rural-urban distribution. http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011-prov-results/paper2/data_files/india/paper2_at_a_glance.pdf
19.
Government of Kerala. (2006, June23). Budget speech, revised budget 2006–2007, by T. M. Thomas Isaac, Minister for Finance . Finance Department, Government of Kerala.
20.
Government of Kerala. (2009, February20). Budget speech 2009–2010, by T. M. Thomas Isaac, Minister for Finance. Finance Department, Government of Kerala.
HannawayC. (1993). Environment and miasmata. In BynumW. F. & PorterR. (Eds.), Companion encyclopaedia of the history of medicine (pp. 292–308). Cornell University Press.
23.
HartskeerlR. A., Collares-PereiraM., & EllisW. A. (2011). Emergence, control and re-emerging leptospirosis: Dynamics of infection in the changing world. Clinical Microbiology and Infection, 17(4), 494–501. 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2011.03474.x
24.
Hernández-RodríguezP., GómezA. P., & VillamilL. C. (2017). Implications of urban and rural agriculture practices on the transmission of leptospirosis. Agrociencia, 51, 725–741.
25.
HuqA., SackR. B., NizamA., LonginiI. M., NairG. B., AliA., MorrisJ. G. J., KhanM. N. H., SiddiqueA. K., YunusM., AlbertM. J., SackD. A., & ColwellR. R. (2005). Critical factors influencing the occurrence of Vibrio cholerae in the environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 71(8), 4645–4654. 10.1128/AEM.71.8.4645-4654.2005
26.
IDSP. (2011). Epidemiological situation of communicable diseases in Kerala. Directorate of Health Services, Government of Kerala.
27.
JacobM., MathewM. M., & RayJ. G. (2018). Critical analysis of the “Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS)” of the FAO: A case study of Kuttanad, South India. Modern Concepts and Developments in Agronomy, 3(2), 288–296.
28.
Kelly-HopeL., & ThomsonM. C. (2008). Climate and infectious diseases. In ThomsonM. C., Garcia-HerreraR., & BenistonM. (Eds.), Seasonal forecasts, climatic change and human health (pp. 31–70). Springer.
29.
KochT. (2005). Cartographies of disease: Maps, mapping, and medicine. ESRI Press.
30.
KumarK. K., & RajanP. D. (2012). Fish and fisheries in Vembanad Lake: Consolidated report of Vembanad fish count 2008–2011. Community Environment Resource Centre (CERC), Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment.
31.
KumarM. A. (1996). Kuttanad: A case in point. Down to Earth. https://www.downtoearth.org.in/coverage/kuttanad-a-case-in-point-27265
32.
KumarS., & DevadasV. (2016). Integrated planning for sustainable development of Kuttanad wetland region, Kerala State. Procedia Technology, 24, 1660–1667. 10.1016/j.protcy.2016.05.185
33.
KurupB. M., HarikrishnanM., & SureshkumarS. (1998). Population structure and yield characteristics of a prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii reared in polders under monoculture system. Indian Journal of Marine Sciences, 27, 396–401.
34.
LiC. F., LimT. W., HanL. L., & FangR. (1985). Rainfall, abundance of Aedes aegypti and dengue infection in Selangor, Malaysia. The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health, 16(4), 560–568.
35.
MathewD. M. (2010, January12). Survey confirms “high” prevalence of cancer in Kuttanad. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/Survey-confirms-high-prevalence-of-cancer-in-Kuttanad/article16837172.ece
36.
MgodeG. F., Machang’uR. S., MhamphiG. G., KatakwebaA., MulunguL. S., DurnezL., LeirsH., HartskeerlR. A., & BelmainS. R. (2015). Leptospira serovars for diagnosis of leptospirosis in humans and animals in Africa: Common Leptospira isolates and reservoir hosts. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 9(12), e0004251. 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004251
37.
Indo-Dutch Mission (1989). Kuttanad water balance study: Updating mission report. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Government of Kerala.
38.
MSSRF. (2007). Measures to mitigate agrarian distress in Alappuzha and Kuttanad wetland ecosystem. M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation.
39.
MSSRF. (2012). Kuttanad below sea level farming system: The only system in India that has been practicing rice cultivation below sea level since the past two centuries. GIAHS Programme, FAO. M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation and Government of Kerala.
40.
National Research Council. (2001). Under the weather: Climate, ecosystems, and infectious disease. The National Academies Press.
41.
PadmakumarK. G., KrishnanA., RadhikaR., ManuP. S., & ShinyC. K. (2002). Open water fishery interventions in Kuttanad, Kerala with reference to fishery decline and ecosystem changes. In Proceedings of the National Seminar—Riverine and Reservoir Fisheries of India (pp. 15–24). Society of Fisheries Technologists.
42.
RajeshK., & ThomasM. B. (2012). Decentralization and interventions in the health sector. Journal of Health Management, 14(4), 417–433. 10.1177/0972063412468973
43.
RoopaV., & VijayanN. (2017). Detection of land use land cover changes in the wetlands of Kuttanad, Kerala. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, 6(6), 10487–10491.
44.
SaranS., SinghP., KumarV., & ChauhanP. (2020). Review of geospatial technology for infectious disease surveillance: Use case on COVID-19. Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 48(8), 1121–1138. 10.1007/s12524-020-01140-5
45.
SreejaK. G., MadhusoodhananC. G., & EldhoT. I. (2015). Climate and land use change impacts on sub-sea level rice farming in a tropical deltaic wetland [Proceeding session]. E-proceedings of the 36th IAHR World Congress. IAHR.
46.
SreejithK. A. (2013). Human impact on Kuttanad wetland ecosystem—An overview. International Journal of Science, Environment and Technology, 2(4), 679–690.
47.
SteibK., & MayerP. (1988). Epidemiology and vectors of Dracunculus medinensis in north-west Burkina Faso, West Africa. Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, 82(2), 189–199. 10.1080/00034983.1988.11812228
48.
SudheeshT. (2017, February7). Polluted Kuttanad in deep waters. Deccan Chronicle. https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/in-other-news/070217/polluted-kuttanad-in-deep-waters.html
49.
SylasV. P. (2010). An ecological study of macrophytic vegetation of the Kuttanad ecosystem [PhD dissertation]. Mahatma Gandhi University.
50.
ThampattiK. C. M., & PadmakumarK. G. (1999). Nature watch—Rice bowl in turmoil: The Kuttanad wetland ecosystem. Resonance, 4(3), 62–70. 10.1007/BF02838725
51.
ThomasJ. J. (2011). Paddy cultivation in Kerala. Review of Agrarian Studies, 1(2), 215–226.
52.
ThomasP. M. (2002). Problems and prospects of paddy cultivation in Kuttanad region: A case study of Ramankari village in Kuttanad taluk. Kerala Research Programme on Local Level Development.
53.
ThomsonM. C., Garcia-HerreraR., & BenistonM. (Eds.). (2008). Seasonal forecasts, climatic change and human health. Springer.
54.
VallikappenT. (2012). Where blessing and curse merge with life and death: Local beliefs in contemporary Lower Kuttanad [MPhil dissertation]. Department of Social Anthropology, University of Bergen.
55.
World Health Organization. (2003). Climate change and human health—Risks and responses. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/climate-change-and-human-health---risks-and-responses
