Political Parties in India (with special reference to Karnataka)

Updated data - 2013

What is a Political party ? (introduction)

Political parties are an integral and indispensable part of democracy. They take an active part in mobilising the mood and opinion of the people to the desired maximum advantage in order to achieve the chief objective of forming the government. It is known that which ever party gets the majority vote forms the government and hence political parties and democracy are interlinked. Thus political parties constitutes the life blood of a representative government.

Political parties at regional level:

The presence of a large number of regional parties is another outstanding feature of the Indian party system. A political party which is restricted to a particular state, its culture, customs, and interests is called a regional party.  In the early stages of independence, regional parties had virtually no pressence. But in the early 1980’s the regional parties started asserting themselves on the theme of prefferential treatment of the central government and consolidated their hold on states and started controlling the successive central governments. They have emerged so strong that they help create, control and pull down the government at the centre.

Example: Telgu Desam Party (TDP) -  Andra Pradesh

                  Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK)- Tamil Nadu

                  Trinamool Congress (TC)- West Bengal

                  Shiv Sena- Maharashtra

KARNATAKA:

Karnataka was no less in experiencing the freedom struggles. It is this series of events which led to the emergence of national conciousness in tern to the formation of small groups. Later these groups winged out as political parties.

Early leaders:

Pre Gandhian Era (1885-1920): Gangadhar Rao Deshpande, Alur Venkata Rao, Govinda Roa Yalagi, Anna charya Hoskere and Shrinivasa Rao Koujalagi.

Later : Karnad Sadashiva Rao, Hardekar Manjappa, T.Siddalingayya, K.Hanumanthayya, S. Nijalingappa, KC Reddy.

The desire for a linguistic state which led to the movement of Unification of Karnataka was another cricial event that contributed for the formation of regional level parties. Like:

Karnataka Sabha (1917): It was the first political organisation which was in the forefront. It was led by Kadapa Raghavendra Roa. Slowly it began to develop close contact with the Indian National congress. 

 “A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagara) A Contribution to the History of INDIA” 

It is written by the famous historian Robert Sewell. Robert Sewell (1845-1925) was a civil servant in colonial India. He did extensive work on the history of Vijayanagara empire particularly of Hampi (empire’s capital).

         This book covers wide range of information about Vijayanagara empire through its 17 chapters, all in chronological order like, origin of the empire, founder kings, different dynasties, expansion of the empire, the intruder rulers, the wars fought (special focus: battle of Talikote), cultural and architectural contributions etc.. The book doesn’t only focus on these political areas, but also a real picture of social setup, culture of people, the grand ceremonies practiced, temples etc..

        The description given about the different dynasties gives us clear view of this empire. These information has been enriched and made crystal clear through maps, flow charts which are really appreciable and necessary aspects. But the only sad thing was that the everlasting confusion about the empire’s origin is not made clear in this book also. But anyways, as this book also reflects our cultural self sufficiency and heritage, gives us a feel of proud and patriotism.

        The most fascinating fact about this book is that it has been translated as seen by Domingo Paes and Fernao Nuniz which is honored as an eyewitness account of Portugese travelers to India in 16^th century report. This is why even today this book still serves as one of the important source about Vijayanagara empire. Hence it proved the title “A Contribution to the History of India”.

COFFEE LIFE - 3 

PROCESSING OF COFFEE:

1. Nurture the Sappling

2  Plant them 










3.Sprinkler Irrigation -  Fertilizers/Spray











4. Removing Weeds













5. Flowering season – Fruit (cherry)

                      

  






6. Pulper: The upper layer of the fruit gets  seperated (opens up). Coffee bean or the seed   inside is made to dry and is exported for   further process. This bean is called Parchment. 

                                                                                                             

7. Roasting 

8. Powder: Chikori/ Cafin (15%)

Coffee Life - 2 

COFFEE in INDIA:

It was during 18th century that the commercial plantations of coffee were started, thanks to the success of British entrepreneurs in conquering the hostile forest terrain in south India. 

Since then, Indian coffee industry has made rapid strides and earned a distinct identity in the coffee map of the world. 

Coffee in India is grown under a canopy of thick natural shade in ecologically sensitive regions of the Western and Eastern Ghats. This is one of the 25 biodiversity hotspots of the world. Coffee contributes significantly to sustain the unique bio- diversity of the region and is also responsible for the socio-economic development in the remote, hilly areas.

In India, coffee is traditionally grown in the Western Ghats spread over Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Coffee cultivation is also being expanding rapidly in the nontraditional areas of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha as well as in the North East states.

Places: 

Manjarabad (Karnataka):  Gentle sloping terrain with small streams and coffee plants provide a natural habitat for the jungle fowl.This yellow-headed bird with a red comb and multi-coloured plumage is generally seen in pairs, close to the coffee plantations.

Coorg (Karnataka):  Lush coffee plantations are bustling with honeybees which yield the delicious Coorg Honey, collected by nimble-footed tribals.

Chikmagalur (Karnataka):  Chikmagalur’s forests and wildlife sanctuaries are abundant with beautiful peacocks.

Biligiris (Karnatka/Tamil Nadu):  Besides full-bodied Arabicas, this region is noted for the sambar - the largest Indian deer with huge antlers.

Bababudangiris (Karnataka):  Bababudan brought seven ‘magical’ beans from Yemen and planted them in the lofty hills of this region. Deer is often spotted here, grazing alongside plantations abundant with full-bodied Arabicas.

Anamalais (Tamil Nadu) and Nilgiris (Tamil Nadu): Wildlife sanctuaries in this region are the abode of spotted leopards,while the plantations are home to fine, high-grown Arabicas,including the exotic Kents.

Brahmaputra:  The mighty Brahmaputra which flows through the North Eastern states and is condusive to grow coffee.

SOUTH INDIAN COFFEE:

South Indian coffee, also known as Kaapi (South Indian phonetic rendering of "coffee'), Mysore filter coffee or Madras kaapi or simply filter coffee, is a sweet milky coffee made from dark roasted coffee beans (70–80%) and chicory (20–30%),especially popular in the southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. 

The most commonly used beansare Arabica and Robusta grown in the hills of Karnataka (Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru and Hassan), Tamil Nadu (Nilgiris District, Yercaud and Kodaikanal) and Kerala (Malabar region).
Coffee is something of a cultural icon in Karnataka,  Andhra Pradesh,  Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It is customary to offer a cup of coffee to any visitor. Coffee was originally introduced by Baba Budan to chikmagalur (Karnataka) in 17th century and became very popular under the British Rule. Until the middle of the 20th century traditional households would not use granulated sugar but used jaggery or honey, in coffee.


Coffee is predominantly an export oriented commodity and 65% to 70% of coffee produced in the country is exported while the rest is consumed within the country.

Indian coffee has created a niche for itself in the international market and the Indian Coffees are earning high premium, particularly Indian Robusta which is highly preferred for its good blending quality. Arabica Coffee from India is also well received in the international market. 

COFFEE LIFE  

Coffee is a beverage  prepared from the roasted or baked seeds of several species of an evergreen shrub. The two most common sources of coffee beans are the highly regarded Coffea arabica, and the "robusta" form of the hardier Coffea canephora. Coffee plants are cultivated in more than 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Once ripe, coffee"berries" are picked, processed and dried to yield the seeds inside. The seeds are then roasted to varying degrees, depending on the desired flavor, before being ground and brewed to create coffee.

Myth: Kaldi was an Ethiopian goatherd who discovered the coffee plant, according to popular legend.. Kaldi, noticing that when his flock nibbled on the bright red berries of a certain bush they became more energetic (jumping goats), chewed on the fruit himself. His exhilaration prompted him to bring the berries to an Islamic monk in a nearby monastery, but the monk disapproved of their use and threw them into a fire, from which an enticing aroma billowed. The roasted beans were quickly raked from the embers, ground up, and dissolved in hot water, yielding the world's first cup of coffee.

BRIEF HISTORY:

   

The earliest credible evidence of either coffee drinking or knowledge of the coffee tree appears in the middle of the 15th century, in the Sufi Muslim monasteries around Mocha in Yemen. It was here in Arabia that coffee seeds were first roasted and brewed, in a similar way to how it is now prepared. By the 16th century, it had reached the rest of the Middle East, Persia, Turkey, and northern Africa. Coffee seeds were first exported from Ethiopia to Yemen. Yemen traders brought coffee back to their homeland and began to cultivate the seed. The first coffee smuggled out of the Middle East was by Sufi Baba Budan from Yemen to India in 1670. Before then, all exported coffee was boiled or otherwise sterilised. Portraits of Baba Budan depict him as having smuggled seven coffee seeds by strapping them to his chest. The first plants grown from these smuggled seeds were planted in Chikmagalur.Coffee then spread to Italy, and to the rest of Europe, to Indonesia, and to the Americas.

It is derived by  Italian  word caffe. There are many terms used in Arabic and Turkish language. Here in India, the local slang of calling South Indian Filter Coffee is Kaapi.

In the United States, September 29 is celebrated as "National Coffee Day."