Meeting with a cooperative business magnet of south India*

Meeting with a cooperative business magnet of south India*

It was a happy meeting at Sargalaya craft village, Iringal, the seashore village where Kunhali Marakkar IV sacrificed his life for the freedom of this country in 1600 AD., with Mr. Paleri Ramesan, the ever dynamic chairman of ULCCS, Uralungal at the international craft festival on 20th December 2024.

I had associated in the planning with this tourist destination with Mr. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, the then tourist minister of Kerala since the days of 2008 till its inuguration in 2011. We have also decided in this planning to construct two big statues on the two rocks; one of 'Sakambari', the goddess of vegetation and other one mother godess of Earth, utilising the skills of Mr. Kanayi Kunhiraman, the great sculptor of Kerala who is in the sunset like me. 

Sargalaya can think of this sky statues.

I was also happy to meet with our Payyoli Express Dr. P.T. Usha particularly in requesting to take up the Kalari skills in vertical jumping and games like volley ball and basket ball.

I described her the skills of the forcible strikes of Olympian Iringal Pappan, a veteran trained under his father Adhikari of Iringal, a legacy of our culture. It was also a pleasant meeting with our dynamic tourisam minister Mr. P.A. Muhammed Riyas who takes up Malabar in the world of tourism.

In fact the ULCCS is converting the agricuture labourers into industrial labourers a process long before completed in Europe. They are greately successful in this venture.The great philosopher and visionary Vagbhadananda started this great experiment by 1928. I always used to point out this example of vital cooperative movement to fight against the multinational companies and their labour exploitations and conquest of resources for self interest.

The ULCCS had arrived to couter act even Larson and Tubro. As in Norway and Sweeden, the most devoloped countries through cooperative movements.

Now I appraise the messages of cooperativism to be implemented everywhere for the welfare and not for self appropriation as seen nowadays.

I am thrilled with the success of ULCCS at its centenary as I come from a nearby village of its headquarters. The dedication of thousands of labourers and their management and technical staff made this great saga of our country’s progress not only in ifrastructure but also in our culture, tourism and technical knowledge.

*Dr. K.K.N. Kurup*

(Historian and 

7th Vice Chancellor,

University of Calicut.)