| Home» Track your State
»Kerala
|
 |
| Profile and Factoids |
Kerala is a state located in southwestern India. Neighbouring states include Karnataka to the north and Tamil Nadu to the south and east; to the west is the Arabian Sea. Besides the state capital Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), the other major cities in Kerala are Kochi (Cochin), Kozhikode (Calicut), Thrissur and Kollam. The principal spoken language is Malayalam.
The state is known for achievements such as near 100% literacy rate, among the highest in India. A survey conducted in 2005 by Transparency International ranked Kerala as the least corrupt state in the country. It is uniquely dependent on remittances from a large Malayali expatriate community based mainly in Persian Gulf countries.
History
It is not certain if the region was inhabited during Neolithic times. However, there is evidence of the emergence of prehistoric pottery and granite burial monuments in the form of megalithic tombs in the 10th century BC; they resemble their counterparts in Western Europe and other parts of Asia. These are thought to be produced by speakers of a proto-Tamil language. Kerala and Tamil Nadu once shared a common language, ethnicity and culture; this common area was known as Tamilakam.
According to legend, Kerala was an Asura-ruled kingdom under Mahabali. Onam, the state-wide festival of Kerala, is dedicated to Maveli`s memory. Another legend has Parasurama, an avatar of Mahavishnu, throwing his battle axe into the sea; from those waters, Kerala arose.
The ancient Cheras, whose mother tongue and court language was ancient Tamil, ruled Kerala from their capital at Vanchi. They were constantly at war with the neighbouring Chola and Pandya kingdoms. A Keralite identity, distinct from the Tamils and associated with the second Chera empire, became linguistically separate under the Kulasekhara dynasty (c. 800–1102).
By the beginning of the 14th century, Ravi Varma Kulasekhara of Venad established a short-lived supremacy over southern India. After his death, Kerala became a conglomeration of warring chieftaincies, among which the most important were Calicut in the north and Venad in the south.
The Chera kings` dependence on trade meant that merchants from West Asia and Southern Europe established coastal posts and settlements in Kerala. 192–195, 303–307 The west Asian-semitic Jewish, Christian, and Muslim immigrants established Nasrani Mappila, Juda Mappila and Muslim Mappila communities.
The Jews first arrived in Kerala in 573 BC. The works of scholars and Eastern Christian writings state that Thomas the Apostle visited Muziris in Kerala in 52 AD to proselytize amongst Kerala`s Jewish settlements. However, the first verifiable migration of Jewish-Nasrani families to Kerala is of the arrival of Knanai Thoma in 345 AD. Muslim merchants (Malik ibn Dinar) settled in Kerala by the 8th century AD and introduced Islam.
After Vasco Da Gama`s arrival at Calicut (now Kozhikode) on May 20, 1498, the Portuguese gained control of the lucrative pepper trade by subduing Keralite communities and commerce.
Conflicts between Kozhikode and Kochi provided an opportunity for the Dutch to oust the Portuguese. In turn, the Dutch were ousted by Marthanda Varma of the Travancore Royal Family who routed them at the Battle of Colachel in 1741.
In 1766, Hyder Ali, the ruler of Mysore invaded northern Kerala, capturing Kozhikode in the process. In the late 18th century, Tipu Sultan, Ali’s son and successor, launched campaigns against the expanding British East India Company; these resulted in two of the four Anglo-Mysore Wars. He ultimately ceded Malabar District and South Kanara to the Company in the 1790s. The Company then forged tributary alliances with Kochi (1791) and Travancore (1795). Malabar and South Kanara became part of the Madras Presidency.
Pazhassi Raja, the "Lion of Kerala", who waged a guerrilla war against the British in the late 18th century.Kerala saw comparatively little defiance of the British Raj. Nevertheless, several rebellions occurred, including the 1946 Punnapra-Vayalar revolt, and leaders like Velayudan Thampi Dalava, Kunjali Marakkar, and Pazhassi Raja earned their place in history and folklore. Many actions, spurred by such leaders as Vaikunda Swami, Sree Narayana Guru and Chattampi Swamikal, instead protested such conditions as untouchability.
After India gained its independence in 1947, Travancore and Cochin were merged to form Travancore-Cochin on 1 July 1949. On 1 January 1950 (Republic Day), Travancore-Cochin was recognised as a state. The Madras Presidency was organised to form Madras State several years prior, in 1947.
Geography
Kerala is wedged between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats. Lying between north latitudes 8°18` and 12°48` and east longitudes 74°52` and 72°22`, Kerala is well within the humid equatorial tropics. Kerala’s coast runs for some 580 km (360 miles), while the state itself varies between 35 and 120 km (22–75 miles) in width. Geographically, Kerala can be divided into three climatically distinct regions: the eastern highlands (rugged and cool mountainous terrain), the central midlands (rolling hills), and the western lowlands (coastal plains). Located at the extreme southern tip of the Indian subcontinent, Kerala lies near the centre of the Indian tectonic plate; as such, most of the state is subject to comparatively little seismic and volcanic activity. Pre-Cambrian and Pleistocene geological formations compose the bulk of Kerala’s terrain.
The Western Ghats rises on average to 1,500 m (4920 ft) above sea level, while the highest peaks may reach to 2,500 m (8200 ft). Just west of the mountains lie the midland plains comprising central Kerala, dominated by rolling hills and valleys. Generally ranging between elevations of 250–1,000 m (820–3300 ft), the eastern portions of the Nilgiri and Palni Hills include such formations as Agastyamalai and Anamalai.
Kerala’s western coastal belt is relatively flat, and is criss-crossed by a network of interconnected brackish canals, lakes, estuaries, and rivers known as the Kerala Backwaters. Lake Vembanad—Kerala’s largest body of water—dominates the Backwaters; it lies between Alappuzha and Kochi and is more than 200 km² in area. Around 8% of India`s waterways (measured by length) are found in Kerala. The most important of Kerala’s forty four rivers include the Periyar (244 km), the Bharathapuzha (209 km), the Pamba (176 km), the Chaliyar (169 km), the Kadalundipuzha (130 km) and the Achankovil (128 km).
State symbols
Animal: Elephant Bird: Great Indian Hornbill Flower: Cassia Fistula (Indian laburnum) Tree: Coconut Fruit: Jackfruit Costume: Mundum Neriyathum(women), Mundu(men)
Demographics
The 31.8 million Keralites are predominantly of Malayali ethnicity, while the rest is mostly made up of Jewish and Arab elements in both culture and ancestry. Kerala`s 321,000 indigenous tribal Adivasis, 1.10% of the population, are concentrated in the east.
Malayalam is Kerala`s official language; Tamil and various Adivasi languages are also spoken by ethnic minorities.
Kerala is home to 3.44% of India`s people; at 819 persons per km², its land is nearly three times as densely settled as the rest of India, which is at a population density of 325 persons per km². Kerala`s rate of population growth is India`s lowest, and Kerala`s decadal growth (9.42% in 2001) is less than half the all-India average of 21.34%. Whereas Kerala`s population more than doubled between 1951 and 1991 by adding 15.6 million people to reach 29.1 million residents in 1991, the population stood at less than 32 million by 2001. Kerala`s coastal regions are the most densely settled, leaving the eastern hills and mountains comparatively sparsely populated.
Most Keralites, such as this fisherman, live in rural areas.Women compose 51.42% of the population. Kerala`s principal religions are Hinduism (56.2%%), Islam (24.70%), and Christianity (19.00%). Remnants of a once substantial Cochin Jewish population also practice Judaism. In comparison with the rest of India, Kerala experiences relatively little sectarianism.
Economy
Since independence, Kerala was managed as a democratic socialist welfare economy. Since the 1990s, liberalisation of the mixed economy allowed onerous Licence Raj restrictions against the free market and foreign direct investment to be lightened, leading to economic expansion and job creation.
The state clocked 8.93% growth in enterprises from 1998 to 2005 compared with 4.80% nationally. Relatively few such enterprises are major corporations or manufacturers. Per-capita GSDP is Rs. 11,819 (US$ 237.09), above the Indian average and far below the world average.
Kerala`s Human Development Index rating is the highest in India. This apparently paradoxical "Kerala phenomenon" or "Kerala model of development" of high human and low economic development results from the strong service sector. Kerala`s economy depends on emigrants working in foreign countries (mainly in the Gulf countries such as Dubai or Bahrain) and remittances annually contribute more than a fifth of GSDP.
Traditional industries manufacturing such items as coir, handlooms, and handicrafts employ around one million people. Around 180,000 small-scale industries employ around 909,859 Keralites; 511 medium and large scale manufacturing firms are located in Kerala.
A small mining sector (0.3% of GSDP) involves extraction of ilmenite, kaolin, bauxite, silica, quartz, rutile, zircon, and sillimanite. Home gardens and animal husbandry also provide work for hundreds of thousands of people. Other major sectors are tourism, manufacturing, and business process outsourcing. As of March 2002, Kerala`s banking sector comprised 3341 local branches; each branch served 10,000 persons, lower than the national average of 16,000; the state has the third-highest bank penetration among Indian states. Unemployment in 2007 was estimated at 9.4%; underemployment, low employability of youths, and a 13.5% female participation rate are chronic issues.
Education
The local dynastic precursors of modern-day Kerala sponsored sabha mathams that imparted Vedic knowledge. Apart from kalaris, which taught martial arts, there were village schools run by Ezhuthachans or Asans.
Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics The Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics was a school of mathematics and astronomy founded by Madhava of Sangamagrama in Kerala, South India, which included among its members: Parameshvara, Neelakanta Somayaji, Jyeshtadeva, Achyuta Pisharati, Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri and Achyuta Panikkar. The school flourished between the 14th and 16th centuries and the original discoveries of the school seems to have ended with Narayana Bhattathiri (1559-1632). In attempting to solve astronomical problems, the Kerala school independently created a number of important mathematics concepts.
Their most important results—series expansion for trigonometric functions—were described in Sanskrit verse in a book by Neelakanta called Tantrasangraha, and again in a commentary on this work, called Tantrasangraha-vakhya, of unknown authorship. The theorems were stated without proof, but proofs for the series for sine, cosine, and inverse tangent were provided a century later in the work Yuktibhasa (c.1500-c.1610), written in Malayalam, by Jyesthadeva, and also in a commentary on Tantrasangraha.
Their work, completed two centuries before the invention of calculus in Europe, provided what is now considered the first example of a power series (apart from geometric series). However, they did not formulate a systematic theory of differentiation and integration, nor is there any direct evidence of their results being transmitted outside Kerala
The history of western-style education in Kerala can be traced to the establishment of numerous schools and colleges by Christian missionaries.
Culture
Kerala`s culture is derived from both a Tamil-heritage region known as Tamilakam and southern coastal Karnataka. Later, Kerala`s culture was elaborated upon through centuries of contact with neighbouring and overseas cultures.
Native performing arts include koodiyattom (a 2000 year old Sanskrit theatre tradition, officially recognised by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity), kathakali—from katha ("story") and kali ("performance")—and its offshoot Kerala natanam, koothu (akin to stand-up comedy), mohiniaattam ("dance of the enchantress"), thullal, padayani, and theyyam.
Other forms of art are more religious or tribal in nature. These include chavittu nadakom, oppana (originally from Malabar), which combines dance, rhythmic hand clapping, and ishal vocalisations. However, many of these art forms largely play to tourists or at youth festivals, and are not as popular among most ordinary Keralites. These people look to more contemporary art and performance styles, including those employing mimicry and parody.
Kerala`s music also has ancient roots. Carnatic music dominates Keralite traditional music. This was the result of Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma`s popularisation of the genre in the 19th century. Raga-based renditions known as sopanam accompany kathakali performances. Melam (including the paandi and panchari variants) is a more percussive style of music; it is performed at Kshetram centered festivals using the chenda. Melam ensembles comprise up to 150 musicians, and performances may last up to four hours.
Panchavadyam is a different form of percussion ensemble, in which up to 100 artists use five types of percussion instrument. Kerala has various styles of folk and tribal music. The popular music of Kerala is dominated by the filmi music of Indian cinema. Kerala`s visual arts range from traditional murals to the works of Raja Ravi Varma, the state`s most renowned painter.
Kerala has its own Malayalam calendar, which is used to plan agricultural and religious activities. Kerala`s cuisine is typically served as a sadhya on green banana leaves. Such dishes as idli, payasam, pulisherry, puttucuddla, puzhukku, rasam, and sambar are typical. Keralites—both men and women alike—traditionally don flowing and unstitched garments. These include the mundu, a loose piece of cloth wrapped around men`s waists. Women typically wear the sari, a long and elaborately wrapped banner of cloth, wearable in various styles. Presently the North Indian dresses such as Salwar Kameez has also become very popular amongst women in Kerala.
The elephants are an integral part of the daily life in Kerala. These Indian elephants are loved, revered, groomed and given a prestigious place in the state`s culture. Elephants in Kerala are often referred to as the `sons of the sahya.` The ana (elephant) is the state animal of Kerala and is featured on the emblem of the Government of Kerala.
Polity
Kerala, governed via a parliamentary system of representative democracy, has a unicameral legislature with 140 Assembly constituencies. The state sends 20 members to the Lok Sabha and 9 to the Rajya Sabha, upper house of Parliament.
The judiciary comprises the Kerala High Court and a system of lower courts. The High Court of Kerala also hears cases from the Union Territory of Lakshadweep. Auxiliary authorities known as panchayats, for which local body elections are regularly held, govern local affairs. The Kerala High Court is in Ernakulam.
Kerala hosts two major political alliances: the Left Democratic Front (LDF—led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) and the United Democratic Front (UDF—led by the Indian National Congress). At present, the LDF is the ruling coalition in government; VS Achuthanandan of the CPI(M) is the Chief Minister of Kerala and Oommen Chandy of the UDF is the Chief Opposition leader.
|
|
| 2004 LOKSABHA SEATS |
| SEATS |
20 |
| CPI-M |
12 |
| CPI |
3 |
| INC | 0 |
| JD(S) | 1 |
| Others | 4 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|