Kerala as seen by Encarta (

Kerala as seen by Encarta 95(Microsoft)

Kerala, state, southwestern India, bordered on the north by Karnataka State, on the east by Tamil Nadu State, and on the south and west by the Arabian Sea. A belt of lowlands about 16 to 19 km (about 10 to 12 mi) wide lies along the coast. Inland are alluvial plains about 48 to 64 km (about 30 to 40 mi) in width. In the eastern section of the state rise the Western Ghats, a highland area with elevations of some 2134 m (7000 ft). The principal agricultural products of the state are rice, tapioca, coconut, areca nuts, oilseeds, pepper, sugarcane, rubber, tea, coffee, and cardamom; almost all Indian black pepper and Indian rubber products come from Kerala. The kinds of livestock raised are buffalo and other cattle, sheep, and goats. Most of the industrial concerns in the state are owned or sponsored by the government. Privately owned industries include cashew processing and the manufacture of coir, a coconut-husk fiber. Other manufactures are tiles, textiles, ceramics, fertilizers and chemicals, and glass. In addition, numerous factories process the agricultural and mineral products of the state. Fishing is also a flourishing activity. The capital of Kerala is Trivandrum. Kerala State was formed in 1956 from portions of the former Travancore-Cochin State and the former Madras State, including much of the Malabar Coast. Area, 38,864 sq km (15,005 sq mi); population (1991) 29,098,518.

Cochin

Cochin, also Kochi, city and seaport, southwestern India, in Kerala State, on the Arabian Sea. Cochin lies at the northern end of a narrow neck of land, about 19 km (about 12 mi) long and less than 1.6 km (less than 1 mi) wide in many places, and is separated from the mainland by inlets from the sea and by the estuaries of rivers draining from the Western Ghats. During the rainy season these backwaters are navigable, but in the dry season some are less than 61 cm (less than 2 ft) deep. As a result, the harbor is barely operative during the months from May to August. At all times large vessels must anchor about 4 km (about 2.5 mi) offshore. Cochin, the most important port on the Malabar Coast, is the center of coconut oil production in the state; products made of coconuts are the chief items in the city's export trade. Rice is imported. The major industries of Cochin are shipbuilding, sawmilling, fishing, and the manufacture of coir mats. The Portuguese were the first European possessors of Cochin when they seized the town in 1500. Two years later the explorer Vasco da Gama erected a factory there. The first European fort in India was constructed in Cochin in 1503. In 1577 Jesuits published at Cochin the first book printed in native Indian characters. The English settled in the city in 1634 but were driven out by the Dutch, who captured Cochin in 1663 and subsequently developed it as an important center of trade. During their conquest of India the British seized the town in 1795 but allowed the Dutch to administer it until 1814, when it became a possession of the East India Company. In 1936 Cochin was placed under the direct administration of the British government in India and given the status of a major port. In 1947 Cochin became part of newly independent India. Population (1990, greater city) 1,139,543.

Trivandrum

Trivandrum, city, southern India, capital of Kerala State, on the Malabar Coast. Industries include cotton and silk weaving and monazite processing. Trivandrum is the site of the University of Kerala (1937) and an 18th-century Vishnu temple built within a fort. Population (1991) 523,723.

Malabar Coast

Malabar Coast, long, narrow coastal plain, southwestern India, in the states of Kerala and Karnataka. It is on the Arabian Sea and is bordered inland by the Western Ghats mountain range. The region, varying in width from 48 to 113 km (from 30 to 70 mi), extends about 845 km (about 525 mi) from Goa in the north to Cape Comorin in the south. The Malabar Coast is a fertile rice-growing area.