Being over-hygienic Keralites used to clean their houses thoroughly only to throw the garbage outside their gates. This innate habit of the people made the State a waste-bowl rearing mosquitoes and novel forms of diseases. Savithri Suresh but finds a small village in Kerala which she says can be sculpt for the neighbors in habituation and life styles.

The monsoon has hit coastal Kerala. Slime, grime, wet grasses and unclean drains are all going to be a common sight across the state. With all this, comes the usual mosquito infestation which has led to the development of a lot many deadly diseases across the state. But if someone says that there is a place in Kerala with almost no mosquitoes then it might invoke laughter from many quarters. But Ambalapuram, a placid village in Central Kerala we can find it true to its core.

Located in Thrissur district, Ambalapuram, a small domain in the Panchayath sector, on first glance seems to be a place which has all the ingredients required for a very brawny mosquito infestation. But the unique characteristics and lifestyles of the residents here seems to have transformed the nature of the very area itself.

A forgotten tale

You might not have seen or read about this place in any history texts. But as its auspicious name indicates, it holds a royal and majestic script to its bosom. It was here, the famous Kerala Kalamandalam has born. It was a realization of a poet’s dream. When a heart-broken Vallathol Narayana Menon came to his friend the then King of Manakulam Palace, it was he who has offered his premises at Ambalapuram to house the Kalamandalam, the brain child of the poet.

At Ambalapuram, you can find the vast green fields and shady backyards still not massacred. Here you can see a lot of men and women who are ready to work under the sun still. When the globe is fuming, the wells of this village will give you chilled water oozing from the underlying granite spreads.

Clean image – in and out

The village has one of the most organized and the cleanest drainage systems as a result of which the drains have absolutely no grime in them. This is a different situation from other places inclusive of village domains where it is not possible to find even a small area having a proper drainage system with no slime or grime.

Another aspect of the ‘no mosquito situation’ is that the people in this region have a fierce cleanliness drive. Almost all the houses in this area own cows which people rear for the purpose of milk and its by-products. Cow-maintenance comes with the problem of unhygienic environments resulting from cow-dung and the odor that it brings, ticks and mites that live on the animal and the smell of wet hay.  However, all these disadvantages seem nothing when one sees the manner in which the women of the households clean the cowsheds. The cows have an advantage of being able to eat the weeds and grasses making way for an organic garden in its place. If a cow drops dung on the road, immediately it goes to the organic garden as manure. Such is the efficiency of the people of this hamlet.

Soothing…

The spirit of the people of Ambalapuram teaches many of us an important lesson. Cleanliness and a sense of belonging to Mother Nature can be done in our own way without shouting it aloud. Even the usage of plastic bags is comparatively less to the people of this village. While urbanization and developments inversely affect the ecosystem of the area, Ambalapuram shows the other side positively showcasing its fresh ambience in and out.

Ambalapuram is located in the township of Athani which is an industrial area and also houses the Thrissur Medical College Hospital. Despite all these developments, the area is cleaner and hygienic and most importantly has in its own little way contributed in making a difference to the world in this era of “Fight global warming” campaigns by the powerhouses of India and also of the world.

What one needs is a simple attempt by the people themselves, starting from their own backyards. Less talk and more practical action can help in reducing the crisis that mankind is facing in today’s time. After all, as the saying goes, “Every drop maketh an ocean”

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