The Malayali Mind

A strange dichotomy seems to exist in Kerala. The average guy there is intelligent but avenues to use the intelligence don't seem to exist anywhere in his own state. It is racked by the wrong kind of politics, one which does not let any enterprise thrive. We all know what it did to West Bengal over the years. As a result, any intelligent student has to migrate out of the state to get a decent education in any field, and the average worker to the Gulf for a decent job.

Why the state cannot create good educational institutes in any field is hard to understand. When even so-called backward states have a few good institutions of learning in all fields, it should be a priority for Kerala too.

In contrast, places like Pune are an educational hub and attract students from all over. Even Tamilnadu gets a lot of its students from Kerala, and so does Karnataka. There is an old movie called Hum Nahin Sudhrenge, and I hope this does not continue to be the case with Kerala's job and education scene.

Tourism and IT could perhaps be job generators of even greater potential, aided by Ayurveda and medical tourism. But quality higher education must also fit in somewhere, for Kerala's own sake.