Mourning MK Sivabal
by Dr. Mina Venkataraman, ESRAG Chair for Community Action for Fresh Water
MK Sivabal, Co-Chair of ESRAG’s South Asia Chapter, died May 24, to the shock and grief of our colleagues.
He was 58.
Past President of the Rotary Club of Erode in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, MK Sivabal was an agronomist and an entrepreneur. His passion was working with the Rotarian community and creating collaborations to get big projects off the ground. During the COVID lockdown, his team in Rotary District 3202 put up a 400-bed hospital in 45 days. As an ESRAG member, he and three co-presidents of their period canvassed almost all of the districts in Zone 5 to popularise ESRAG.
His active rallying for environmental projects gave impetus to pollinator park projects and record-breaking seed ball projects. He was the driving force in getting the whole district behind adopting the restoration and protection of the 206-km River Bhavani as a long-term project of the District. As project coordinator, he set up subcommittees in Rotary Clubs along the river. He organised the presidents in those areas to conduct cleanups and meetings with local administration and community leaders. He coined the name “Namma Bhavani” – “our Bhavani” for the project, and he was instrumental in negotiating an MoU with the World Wildlife Fund to provide technical help and the MoU with the National River Conservation Directorate.
His current focus was on launching biochar projects to improve the fertility of farmlands by increasing the carbon content of the soil and organising teams to remove invasive species.
We have lost in him a good leader, a great friend, and a committed environmentalist. His teams have committed themselves to continuing his vision.
