Kerala, born again

It is said that Kerala was born on November 1, 1956. Recently my grandson asked me, 'Why is that Granpa, wasn't Kerala here before that?' That's when I had some doubts too: then, Parasurama did not do anything, or did he! Or did the Kerala he created later die and be reborn on November 1, 1956?

If Kerala is so young, is it fair that Malayalam, the language of the region, has acquired the status of a great language on the basis that it is thousands of years old? Of course, Kerala has been there for a long time as a Malayalam-speaking place. In other words, Kerala existed from the time when Ramanujan Ezhuthachan created a new language order and a script to write the language by combining Tamil, Malayalam and Sanskrit.

Because it is administratively divided into three parts, it is not as if it is not one. When we celebrate the birth of Kerala, we are celebrating the first and only event of a democratic rule in a Malayalam - speaking region. Nothing that has never happened before has sprouted, and nothing that has existed before has died and been reborn. As in the case of the idol in the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple, the only thing that has changed is that you don't have to look through the separate windows to see the head, waist and legs.

So for this birthday we need to think seriously about what misfortunes have befallen this region with democracy, we need to remember those who made fortunes and how to avoid the circumstances that led to misfortunes.

Despite this night, a new dawn will break

When we saw the country which was divided into three become one with the birth of Kerala, it was a big change. The knowledge that it was no longer the selfish rulers but the subjects who will rule now opened up a great flow of hope. Foremost was the hope that secular human equality would prevail. Thus, for the first time in world history, the Left came to power here through an election.

But the story that the rulers of the state should be the whole people, not the winning party, came to life in a riddle. Therefore, the people were never ready to give a majority to the Left alone ever again. The state was then ruled by various mixed fronts that were loose, tied, broken, torn apart and exhausted. They could not even wish for the overall progress of the country beyond their existence.

So we did not make significant fundamental progress in any field. The education system could not be comprehensively reformed, the mother tongue could not be given its due place and no significant industry could be created. Unemployment was rising, agriculture was declining, and food have to come from outside. Then, with the money sent by the expatriates who flew out in freedom, we continue to spend at will.

In the meantime, successive floods, other burdens and now the Covid pandemic. In fact we have become very tired and thin, and the long-term effects of these tragedies will last for many years to come.

The regime, which aims to make money into the treasury and to their pocket, has caused great damage to the environment and resources of the state. Several hundreds of parties in the multi-party system of governance have shaken caste and religion and tried to pave the way for their own victory, resulting in loss of community harmony. This is in fact is a serious cultural loss.

For the first time in Kerala, stability and a sense of purpose for governance were achieved during C Achutha Menon's tenure as chief minister. It was at that time that an industry flourished in Kerala after Sir CP, and only then. It was only when the present Chief Minister came to power that a feeling of formidable leadership over allied party politics came. Unfortunately, the treasury is empty.

Anyway, hopefully, a new dawn will break. Kerala is a matrix that has maintained a universal attitude that is a model for the world of tomorrow. That sentimentality will protect us for sure.