Ayyankali

Ayyankali (also Ayyan Kali) (28 August 1863 – 1941) was a social reformer who worked for the advancement of those people in the then princely state of Travancore, British India, who were treated as untouchables. His efforts influenced many changes that improved the social wellbeing of those people, who are today often referred to as Dalits.

In November 1980, Indira Gandhi unveiled a statue of Ayyankali at Kowdiar square in Thiruvananthapuram.

Background

Ayyankali was born on 28 August 1863 in Venganoor, Thiruvananthapuram, Travancore. He was the oldest of eight children born to Ayyan and Mala, who were members of the Pulayar community of untouchables. Although the family were relatively well-off compared to other Pulayars, having been given 5 acres (2.0 ha) of land by a grateful landlord, the children were encouraged to adopt the customary occupation of agriculture. Members of the Pulayar community generally were rural slaves at this time.

The region in which Ayyankali lived, which now forms a part of the state of Kerala, was particularly affected by social divisions during his lifetime and was described by Swami Vivekananda as a "mad house" of castes. The Pulayars were regarded as the lowest group of people in the kingdom and they suffered badly from oppressive discrimination, in particular from members of the powerful Nair caste.Robin Jeffrey, a professor specialising in the modern history and politics of India, quotes the wife of a Christian missionary, who wrote in 1860 of the complex social code that