Joseph Murickan also known as Murickan Auta or Murikkum Moottil Authaman was a farmer and landowner from
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
, India, who played an important role in the expansion of paddy cultivation in Kuttanad. He started farming by filling up the backwaters of
Kuttanad
Kuttanad ( ml, കുട്ടനാട്) is a region covering the Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts, in the state of Kerala, India, well known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. The region has the lo ...
. He is popularly referred as ''Kayal Raja'' literally meaning 'King of Lake'.
Biography
Joseph Murickan also known as Murickan Auta or Murikkum Moottil Authaman was born in 1900, in
Kavalam
Kavalam is a village in Kuttanadu, Kerala state, Alappuzha District. India.
Location
Kavalam is located on the borders of Alapuzha and Kottayam districts, on the banks of Vembanad Lake.
Environment
The Pampa river flows through the village ...
in present-day
Alappuzha district of Kerala.
His father, Thomman Luka, came to Kavalam in search of a fertile farmland from Azhikkal house in
Kulasekharamangalam near
Vaikom
Vaikom, , is a municipal town and a capital town of Vaikom Taluk, situated in the northwest of Kottayam district in the state of Kerala, India. The town is also noted for its role in the Indian independence movement for being the venue of Vaikom ...
in present-day
Kottayam district
Kottayam (), is one of 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. Kottayam district comprises six municipal towns: Kottayam, Changanassery, Pala, Erattupetta, Ettumanoor, and Vaikom. It is the only district in Kerala that neither borders the A ...
.
Personal life and death
Murickan was survived by his wife, Eliyamma of Veliyanad Puthanpura Panchara.
They have nine children: eight boys and one girl.
Murikan died at the age of 74 at
Thiruvananthapuram Medical College
The Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram (also known as Thiruvananthapuram Medical College or Trivandrum Medical College) is in Thiruvananthapuram (the capital of Kerala), India. Founded in 1951, it was inaugurated by Prime Minister J ...
Hospital on December 9, 1974.
He was buried at
Palayam Palayam may refer to:
* ''Palayam'' (film), a 1994 Malayalam film
* Palayam, Kanyakumari, a village in Neyyoor town panchayat, Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India
* Palayam, Perambalur, a village in Perambalur district, Tamil Nadu, India
*Palay ...
Saint Mary Church Cemetery.
Contributions
Paddy cultivation
During the famine in
Travancore
The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...
after the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, Travancore king
Chithira Thirunal
Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma , popularly known as Sree Chithira Thirunal, was the last ruling Maharaja of the Princely State of Travancore, in southern India until 1949 and later the Titular Maharajah of Travancor ...
ordered more land to be cultivated.
The king had only said that the land could be exempted from tax for five years.
Murickan suggested that paddy could be grown in the lake. The locals joked that Murickan was crazy that he could grow paddy in the lake.
Regardless of that, he studied the nature of the lake with the help of experts. Realizing that there were shallow parts in the lake, he dug a ridge with mud and pumped out the water.
The soil at the bottom was made usable.
Thus, in 1940, for the first time, paddy was grown in the backwaters where there was no paddy.
Murikkan showed his sincerity to the royal family by naming the fields created by him as Chithira (900 acres), Marthandam (652 acres) and Rani (600 acres).
In 1954, farmers' struggle was waged against Muricken, the then largest landlord in Kuttanad. Following the Land Reforms Act passed by the
Kerala Legislative Assembly, in 1972, when
C. Achutha Menon
Chelat Achutha Menon (13 January 1913 – 16 August 1991) was the Chief Minister of Kerala state for two terms. The first term was from 1 November 1969 to 1 August 1970 and the second 4 October 1970 to 25 March 1977. He was instrumental in ...
was the Chief Minister, the Government acquired these lands from the Murikan family.
In 1975, the government distributed 1600 acres of land acquired from the Murickan family to 1580 farmers.
Churches
Chithira church, the first christian shrine in Kuttanad was built by Murickan.
In addition to Chithira Church, Murickan who was a devout Catholic, built six large churches and a small church in
Malabar and Thiruvananthapuram region.
Freshwater pond
Due to the salt water in the lake, he himself took the initiative to get freshwater for the thousands of workers who were working for him and dug a 10 acre pond near the Chithira Church.
He implemented a natural purification system in the pond.
In addition to the workers, water was also provided to those from nearby areas.
Honors
Joseph Murikkan was honored by the
Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
(FAO) of the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
.
His successful efforts to cultivate land below sea level have been praised internationally.
Controversies
In the
ICSE Class VII Malayalam textbook, a chapter was about the life of Murickan.
The chapter 'Joseph Murickan' was from the autobiography of journalist
T. J. S. George.
CPI (M)
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated as CPI(M)/CPIM/CPM) is a Marxist–Leninist communist political party in India. It is the largest communist party of India in terms of membership and electoral seats and one of the nat ...
demanded that the chapter be withdrawn on the grounds that it mocks Land Reforms Act of Kerala.
Former Kerala chief minister
V. S. Achuthanandan said that praising the feudal landlord and mocking
land reform
Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultural ...
is an insult to history.
George strongly denied the allegations, saying he did not mock land reform or glorify feudalism.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murickan, Joseph
1900 births
1974 deaths
People from Alappuzha district
Indian farmers
Indian landlords