Slices of Kerala Life

If you were in England now, you would be dreaming of the heat, but here ins Kerala, the daytime temperature is 37 or 38 degrees which, as they say here, is too too hot. Normally at this time of year there would be the returning monsoon which would give Kerala a second wash. This year, again, the monsoon has failed.

There was only a month of rain and Keralites expect that comes next February there will be more rolling power cuts to reduce the drain on the big hydro power stations.

There are byelections in Cochin and Alappuzha and the heat does nothing to reduce the fervor of the local political parties as they electioneer. Every street is papered with election posters and the lorries travel round spouting all manner of political promises. Keralites are highly political animals and discuss politics with great animation. But one senses that even here there is genuine antipathy for the present LDF government that are seen as nothing less than Gundhas (gangsters) who are widely expected to lose power next time. Even the LDF know this so they are losing no time in stripping as much wealth from the state as they can before they lose power.

It is certainly hot in Kerala at this time of year.