Editing Kerala model (section)

== State policy ==
In 1957 Kerala elected a communist government headed by [[EMS Namboothiripad]], introduced the revolutionary [[Land reform in Kerala|Land Reform Ordinance]]. The land reform was implemented by the subsequent government, which had abolished [[tenancy]], benefiting 1.5 million poor households. This achievement was the result of decades of struggle by Kerala's peasant associations. In 1967 in his second term as [[List of chief ministers of Kerala|Chief Minister]], EMS again pushed for reform. The land reform initiative abolished tenancy and [[landlord]] exploitation, effective [[Rationing|public food distribution]] that provides subsidised rice to low-income households, protective laws for agricultural workers, pensions for retired agricultural laborers, and a high rate of government employment for members of formerly [[Indian caste system|lower-caste]] communities.{{Citation needed|date=April 2009}}

[[India]] is a multinational state home to provincial states with differing policies, and Kerala's place within this [[federalist]] system can be seen through analyses of its [[regime type]]. Two coalitions containing all-India parties have alternately been in power in Kerala—not dissimilar to the neighboring South Indian state of [[Andhra Pradesh]]. Kerala has a strong [[leftist]] movement presence that has contributed to changes in the traditional [[Caste|feudal-caste]] system in India. [[Democratization]] of the state has surrounded significant increases in components of [[welfare spending|welfare]] and has led to a large social transformation since the early 20th century.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Chathukulam |first1=Jos |last2=Tharamangalam |first2=Joseph |date=January 2021 |title=The Kerala model in the time of COVID19: Rethinking state, society and democracy |journal=World Development |volume=137 |pages=105207 |doi=10.1016/j.worlddev.2020.105207 |issn=0305-750X |pmc=7510531 |pmid=32989341}}</ref>

Kerala and [[Tamil Nadu]] have comparable increases in social development, albeit with Kerala to a much higher degree—yet Tamil Nadu has been ruled by Tamil [[Nationalism|nationalist]] parties for over half a century.<ref name=":15">{{Cite journal |last=Oomen |first=T. K. |date=2009 |title=Development Policy and the Nature of Society: Understanding the Kerala Model |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40278657 |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |volume=44 |issue=13 |pages=25–31 |jstor=40278657 |issn=0012-9976}}</ref> In comparison, [[West Bengal]] is seen as even stronger in terms of Leftist movement and governmental policy compared to Kerala yet is ranked far lower in disparities in rural areas, urban areas, [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|scheduled castes, and scheduled tribes]]. Further, there is hardly any per capita consumption expenditure and [[Literacy|literacy levels]] between Muslims and Hindus in Kerala—while Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and the country as a whole have relatively high levels of disparities among the two predominant religious groups.<ref name=":15" />

Interestingly enough, those political radicals involved in the original social integration movements in Kerala were politically conservative. Nonetheless, the social discrimination due to caste of the early 20th century contributed to the cultural revolt and [[political mobilization]] of depressed castes. It was the success of these movements that allowed for the creation of Leftist movements that elevates the social status of lower classes as a whole.<ref name="Véron 601–617">{{Cite journal |last=Véron |first=René |date=2001-04-01 |title=The "New" Kerala Model: Lessons for Sustainable Development |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X00001194 |journal=World Development |language=en |volume=29 |issue=4 |pages=601–617 |doi=10.1016/S0305-750X(00)00119-4 |issn=0305-750X|url-access=subscription }}</ref>