There is poetic justice in the induction of K Krishnankutty into the state cabinet as the minister for water resources. The 74-year-old farmer-cum-politician has in-depth understanding of inter-state river water sharing agreements and his voice of protest has been heard loud and clear against any violation of those pacts.
Krishnankutty is an advocate of integrate farming who grows a variety of crops including coconut and vegetables in 40 acres of field attached to his residence in Palakkad district's Chittur taluk, a region where water scarcity is severe. It goes without saying that he is somebody who knows every drop of water matters. Over the years, he has successfully tried out different farming practices including precision farming, drip irrigation, and poly greenhouse technology.
When Oommen Chandy was the chief minister, Krishnankutty was entrusted with the task of heading a committee constituted to put out a draft agricultural development policy for the state. The fact that several aspects in the guideline prepared under his supervision were later adopted by the Union Ministry of Agriculture bears testimony to his expertise in the field.
Chittur has always been a fertile ground for agriculture as well as socialist parties. In the 60s when socialist movement flourished from the seeds planted by United Socialist Party leader K Sivarama Bharathi, Krishnankutty was an active member of Indian National Congress. When the parent party split vertically in 1969, he remained firmly in Congress (O). Subsequently, he moved to Janata Party and later to Janata Dal. In 1980, he contested on Janata Party ticket from Chittur constituency and defeated sitting MLA P Sankar by a margin of 264 votes.
In the 1982 assembly elections, he once again successfully contested from Chittur, getting the better of the current KPCC president Mulappally Ramachandran by over 5,000 votes. In 1983, Krishnankutty tasted defeat in his third attempt, losing to Congress candidate KA Chandran. Making a strong comeback in 1991, he defeated the same opponent by a margin of over 3,000 votes and regained the seat. The three assembly elections held between 1996-2006 saw him losing to Congress' A Achuthan.
When Janata Dal split in 2009, he remained with the faction led by MP Veerendrakumar. However, unable to get along with the Veerendrakumar-led group and Congress, he joined the split-away faction led by Mathew T Thomas and won from Chittur in the 2016 assembly elections. Later, he was elevated to the post of Janata Dal (S) state president.
He lives with wife Vilasini and son Narayanankutty at Ezhuthani near Chittur. The couple's other children are Latha Balasai, K Ajayan and K Biju IAS, who is the director of the department of Industries and Commerce.
