Kerala: Land of letters and lakes
• Kerala is a green strip of land, in the south west corner of
India.
• The literacy rate here is 100 percent.
• A major portion of land is filled with water bodies, yet
potable water shortage is an issue during summer in
many parts of the state.
Water to unite a community
• The people of Kerala, Malayalees, are a global community with
a presence in almost all countries. 10 % of the 31.8 M are
residing outside the country.
• They like to express themselves, and to contribute to
development activities irrespective of where they are located.
• Shortage of water is another hot issue which the Malayalee is
keen to debate and find a solution.
• The challenge lies in reaching out to all Malayalees and
communicating the message.
Cross media presence to conserve water
• The Malayala Manorama group has a presence across media print, TV, mobile, internet and multimedia.
• This is a success story which we built by effectively using the
reach of the media through multiple modes for a common
cause: conserving water.
The Project: Pala Thulli
• May 2004: The campaign was conceived and launched at a time
when Kerala was reeling under severe drought.
• Named Pala Thulli (Many Drops), Malayala Manorama took up
the cause of water conservation and to spread the message of
rain water harvesting (RWH).
• The group, through cross media activities, educated people on
methods of water conservation and rain water harvesting.
• Necessary information, technology and building models were
provided.
Building Communities: Cross Media Approach
• Malayala Manorama adopted a multi-dimensional approach for
this campaign by involving multiple platforms to spread the
message. The platforms are:
Newspaper to
capture the common man
A page in the Malayala Manorama newspaper
(circulation 1.5 million copies daily) was
dedicated every Tuesday/Friday to explain the
technologies for RWH and highlight success
stories of the common man with water
conservation schemes
Online to involve the global
Malayalee
A web site was developed to build an online
community around the activity, to collect
feedback, user posts, in-depth coverage, etc.
This helps to get the support and inputs from the
huge online Malayalee community living outside
the state.
Mobile for instant
feedback
Mobile SMS campaigns, opinion polls,
contests, user feedback, etc., on
Malayala Manorama’s short code 6776
Road shows to get nonManorama readers
Trucks fitted with a working model of rain
water harvesting system travelled throughout
the state spreading the message of water
conservation and RWH to the
accompaniment of folk songs and folk
dances.
Booklets for general
awareness
Booklets with information on RWH
methods and benefits were distributed
free of cost to 1.5 million subscribers
and at 500 public distribution centres
in the state
Multimedia CDs to involve
celebrities
A specially made video CD with
popular film star Mammootty as the
presenter was screened at exhibitions
and hundreds of educational
institutions
Pala Thulli Awards to
encourage audience
An award scheme with prize money of Rs 4.5
lakh was introduced to encourage educational
institutions to take up water conservation and
RWH activities. In 2004-2005, about 300
institutions registered for the scheme and the
awards for the first year have been distributed.
In 2005-2006, some 1500 institutions have
registered.
Seminars for serious
participants
Hundreds of seminars, workshops and
discussion sessions were conducted
throughout the state
Training camps were held for school teachers
Exhibitions/Projects/Expeditions
Exhibitions with photos and working models on RWH were held
throughout the state.
Student expeditions were conducted to rivers which were dying a slow
death.
A painting competition for students from all over the state was held on
the banks of the river Bharatapuzha in 2004 with rivers as the theme.
A campaign to protect traditional wells was launched with articles and
booklets on recharging of such wells (Kerala has 450,000 fresh water
wells)
An innovative RWH project was done at Kumarakom, the world
famous tourist destination, to show how unused canals can be utilised
for RWH
Participation: Involving
Ourselves
The newspaper built, at its own expense, 18 rain water harvesting
systems around the state to serve as models for the public to
replicate in their homes. The first one, built at the Civil Station in
drought-hit Palakkad district, was inaugurated by World Water
Prize winner Sunita Narain on September 15, 2004. This system is
still operational.
The newspaper introduced rain water harvesting systems in its own
offices across Kerala.
Project Results: A New Water Culture
• The response was heartening. In the 38 months so far of this
statewide campaign, one can see a new water culture taking root
among the state’s 30 million people.
• Hundreds of schools, colleges, religious institutions, industrial
units and government offices have installed rain water
harvesting units as a result of the relentless campaign.
• Village Panchayats (Local administration bodies which are
democratically elected) have begun to include RWH schemes in
their annual plans.
• RWH is today becoming an essential part of architectural plans
for new homes.
Achievements
What others say
Prof. Yashpal, one of India's leading scientists and former Chairman of the University Grants Commission, in a
letter to the World Water Forum, wrote about Malayala Manorama’s RWH campaign:
“ When I came to hear of the manner in which a large and respected newspaper had become an activist and a
doer to wipe out the insult that such a rainy State as Kerala should begin to suffer from water famine, I was not
too surprised. I was not surprised because Kerala has often led India in many efforts of social import. But when
I learnt about some of the wide-ranging activities they encouraged, their sustained effort in educating, in
mobilising projects, large and small, and in enveloping the state in a frenzy of effort, I was thrilled.
There was something new infused in the generally recognised responsibilities of media, I wish this would show
up a bit more often than it does. In days of rabid free market advance with eyes focused on the bottom line, this
brought me a lot of hope for the future.
I hope Kerala will never be thirsty again. And I hope its human development index will begin to be recognised
as being close to the top, and if properly redefined, way beyond the top “.
What others say
'Down to Earth' an environment focussed fortnightly magazine, published by Centre for Science
and Environment, Delhi, wrote in its March 15, 2005 issue :
“It is a rare occasion when a media group transcends its expected role of expressing and creating
opinions and sets about to solve the problems of the people directly.... (Malayala Manorama's)
campaign has stirred public consciousness on water, water conservation, especially rain water
harvesting (RWH), and thousands of people are beneficiaries now“
Thank You