Kerala, With An Area Of 38,863 Sq Km (15,001 Sq Miles), Is The Second Smallest State In India After Goa. It Has A Population Of 30 Million, And Is Densely Populated. The 575km (357 Miles) Long Coastal State Was The First State In India To Elect The Communist Party To Power, In 1956. Since Then The Congress Party Has Been Re-Elected.
This Can Be Explained By The Fact That Only Approximately 50% Of Its Population Can Read And Write. On The Street, Practically Only Malayalam Is Spoken And Understood. Kerala Produces About 70% Of India’s Spices, About 70% Of Its Coconuts, And 35% Of Its Fish. Apart From That, Tourism Is A Money-Spinner. The Endless Coconut Palm Plantations, The Romantic Inland Backwaters, Kovalam Beach And The Periyar National Park, Draw More And More Visitors.
Related Travel Information
The Capital Of Kerala Has A Population Of 500,000, And Not Much Worth Seeing. It Is Rather A Clean And (For India) Prosperous Looking Town. It Is The Jumping Off Point For The Famous Kovalam Beach And There Are Flights From Here To Sri Lanka And To The Maldives.
This Island Group Belongs To India, And Lies Between 190km (118 Miles) And 300km (186 Miles) West Of Kerala. Of The 36 Coral Islands, With A Total Area Of 32.4 Sq Km (13 Sq Miles), Only Ten Are Inhabited. The Population Of 50,000 Are Mostly Muslim.
The Main Industry Is Fishing (Tuna And Sharks). That Could Change If They Were Opened Up For Unrestricted Tourist Development. On The Other Hand The Laccadives Are A Restricted Area, And Travellers Who Want To Visit The Islands Have To Get A Permit In Delhi. The Only Exception Is The Island Of Bangaram.
Kerala Tourist Reception Centre, Shanmugham (Shunmuham) Road, Ernakulam, Ph 353 234. Open Daily From 8am-6pm. They Take Bookings For The Bolghatty Palace And Cochin Sightseeing Tours As Well As For The Hotels In Periyar Park, But You Have To Pay A Hefty Booking Fee. Govt Of India Tourist Office Near The Hotel Malabar, Willingdon Island, Ph 6 045 Open Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm, Sat 9am-Lpm. Very Friendly And Helpful. They Have Plenty Of Pamphlets About India Even If They Are A Bit Out Of Date.
Pai And Company, 1st Floor At The Southern End Of Broadway, Ernakulam, Have A Good Selection Of Books
There Isn't Much Accommodation Available And What There Is, Is Not Very
Appealing Except For The Hotel Malabar.
Cochin, With Its 700,000 Inhabitants (1 Million In The District), Is The Largest City In Kerala And An Important Port. It Consists Of Four Parts:
Fort Cochin/Mattancherry: The Charming Old Section Of Cochin, Built On A Peninsula Where The Gpo Is Located. It Has A Charm Of Its Own And Is Worth Seeing.
