“God’s own country,” “India’s miracle State,” and “the Kerala model” are phrases that capture the affection and admiration with which the small, emerald-green State of Kerala is regarded. It is this rich, layered perspective that the essays in The Kerala Club: Keepers of the Flame set out to explore.
Nevertheless, it is worth recalling the British economist Joan Robinson’s words about India — that whatever you can rightly say about the country, the opposite is also true. Kerala, too, is a State of contradictions. It elected a Communist-led government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad in 1957, just a decade after India had become free of British colonial rule. Long recognised as an outlier for its excellent literacy, health, and human development indicators, Kerala has never regarded income growth as the only measure of development. It is also a leader in democratic decentralisation, with widely recognised achievements, particularly after the “big bang” devolution of the 1990s. Panchayat ward members help residents with everything from birth certificates to toilets, to even, as in Lijo Jose Pellisserry’s film Ee Ma Yau, looking for a burial ground. In Jeo Baby’s film Kaathal — The Core, Mammootty’s character stands for election as a panchayat member. Active elected local bodies are not only reflected in popular culture but are part of daily life in Kerala — and thus a major reason why the State, through its public hospitals, anganwadis, and schools, succeeds in delivering quality childcare, education, and health services.
Yet, concerns remain. For a State with a history of a matrilineal social structure and powerful reformist movements, Kerala remains a patriarchal society. The dowry system is entrenched across communities. Alcoholism is a continuing issue. The recorded number of suicides is among the highest in India.
The Kerala Club is a collection of 29 essays by civil servants — some for whom Kerala was always home, and some who made it their home. As Cabinet Secretary T.V. Somanathan points out in his foreword, India’s non-partisan civil service has played a crucial role in maintaining the nation’s democratic constitutional order. After a stint of training in Mussoorie, young recruits are sent to different State cadres where they spend the formative years of their public service. As reflected in these essays, they grow to engage deeply with their new home States.
Editors K.M. Chandrasekhar and T.P. Sreenivasan have put together a thoughtful and readable set of essays about aspects of public administration, development, and local self-governance in Kerala. From colonial administrative practices to migrant “guest” workers, Kerala’s white revolution in dairy, and the 7,000-plus Kudumbashree women who won the local body elections of December 2020, this collection presents an insightful look at the State by some who have served it and others who have regarded it with affection, if from more distant locations, whether in Assam or Cambodia.
While consistently readable, the essays vary in depth and analytical insight. One of the most compelling essays is Surendra Kumar’s narrative, written in the first person, about Ramachandran, an elephant born wild in Assam, cared for in Bihar, and after the death of his beloved human caregiver, transported to Kerala. “My eyes welled up, but no one noticed.” This deeply felt essay reframes the collection as a meditation on displacement, care, belonging, and conflict in the world today.
One gap in the book is the lack of women’s perspectives. Except for two essays — one by K.B. Valsala Kumari on engendering governance and the other by B. Sandhya on community policing — the rest are by male authors. In a State celebrated for its social development, this imbalance is striking. It is worth recalling that the first woman to join the IAS, the trailblazing Anna Rajam George, was from Pathanamthitta in Kerala. She had a stellar career, including being the first woman to serve as Secretary to the Government of India.
The many anecdotes in this book are engaging, such as Shivshankar Menon’s account of being pushed out of the train window as a child in Ottapalam railway station. With its variety of recollections and reflections, The Kerala Club captures the lived texture of governance in a beautiful, complex, and endlessly fascinating State.
The reviewer is in the IAS.