Page 43 - history_Classical

Parvathi Bayi, and Sri Pooram Nal Ravi Varma Koyi Thampuran of the Royal House of
Kilimanoor. He was privately educated, and became the Maharajah of Travancore, at the

age of 12, upon the death of his maternal great uncle, the then Maharajah of Travancore
Sree Moolam Thirunal, on 7 August 1924. He reigned under the regency of his maternal
aunt, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi (1924–31), until he came of age and was invested with full ruling
powers on 6 November 1931.

The period of Sree Chithira Thirunal's reign witnessed many-sided progress. He enacted the

now famous Temple Entry Proclamation in 1936, established the University of Travancore
(now the University of Kerala) in 1937. The Women Studies Journal Samyukta reports that,
40% of the Travancore's revenue was set apart for education, during the reign of Sree
Chithira Thirunal.Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, Travancore Public Transport
Department renamed Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, Pallivasal Hydro-electric
Project, Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore (FACT) etc. were established by him. Historians
like A. Sreedhara Menon credit him for the industrialization of Travancore as well.

According to researchers, the Punnapra-Vayalar uprising in 1946 which led to the death of
hundreds of Communist Party workers, the declaration of an independent Travancore in
1947, and allowing too much power to his Prime Minister, Sir C. P. Ramaswamy Iyer, would
represent the negative aspects of Sree Chithira Thirunal's reign.

Upon India's independence from the British on 15 August 1947, Sree Chithira Thirunal
initially chose to keep his domain an independent country. As this was unacceptable to the
Govt Of India, several rounds of negotiations were held between the Maharaja and the
Indian representatives. Finally an agreement was reached in 1949 and Sree Chithira Thirunal
agreed to merge Travancore officially as a part of the Union of India. In 1949, Travancore
was united with Cochin, and Sree Chithira Thirunal served as the first and only Rajpramukh
(Governor equivalent) of the Travancore-Cochin Union from 1 July 1949 until 31 October
1956. On 1 November 1956, the state of Kerala was created by uniting the Malayalam-
speaking areas of the Travancore-Cochin Union with Malabar, and Sree Chithira Thirunal's

office of Rajpramukh came to an end