India 2018

States and Union Territories 619
Government
Governor : Shri Vajubhai Vala Chief Secretary : Ms. Ratna Prabha
Chief Minister : Shri Siddaramaiah Jurisdiction of : Karnataka
Kerala
High Court
Area : 38,852 sq km Population : 3,34 crore
(as per census 2011)
Capital : Thiruvananthapuram Principal Language : Malayalam
History and Geography
Kerala is in the extreme south-west of the Indian subcontinent. When
independent India amalgamated small states together Travancore and Cochin
states were integrated to form Travancore-Cochin state in July 1949. However,
Malabar remained under the Madras province. Under the States Reorganisation
Act, 1956, Travancore-Cochin state and Malabar were united to
form Kerala state in November, 1956.
In between the high Western Ghats on the east and the Arabian Sea on
the west, the width of the state varies from 35 km to 120 km. According to the
geographical features, the state can be divided into hills, valleys, midland plains
and coastal belt. 44 rivers (41 west flowing and 3 east flowing) cut across the
state with their innumerable tributaries and branches. The backwaters form
an attractive and economically valuable feature of Kerala.
Agriculture
Kerala, the land of lush green paddy fields, cool coconut groves, fragrant spice
garden, dubbed as “God’s Own Country” is nestled in the southern tip of India.
Fertile soil and warm humid tropical climate make Kerala an ideal place for
cultivation of a wide variety of crops which included coconut, rice, rubber,
banana, spices, fruits, vegetables, cashew nut, tubers, coffee, tea, medicinal
plants, arecanut, etc.
Industry
To transform Kerala into a vibrant entrepreneurial society with faster, inclusive
and sutainable economic growth in order to achieve global standards in every
domain, the government has taken steps to implement investor friendly
industrial policy to enable constructive investment in all sectors.
Irrigation
The surface irrigation constitutes major chunk of irrigation infrastructure. There
are 18 dams intended for irrigation. Irrigation development is mainly centered
on the developement of surface water resources mainly on the major and
medium irrigation projects. In each Plan, priority in allocation was given for
the development of major and medium irrigation projects. Rice is the major