New book: Rise and Fall of Coorg State in Kodava language
Journalist P.T. Bopanna’s highly successful book ‘Rise and Fall of the Coorg State’ has now been translated into Kodava language.
Eminent Kodava language writer Nagesh Kaloor has translated the book. The title of the book is ‘Coorg State: Udchad – Thandad’.
The original English version of the book was first published in 2009 and was translated into Kannada by journalist B.K. Ganesh in 2011 under the title ‘Coorg State: Udaya-Pathana’.
The book mainly deals with the circumstances leading to the unpopular merger of the erstwhile Coorg State (now known as Kodagu district) with Karnataka in 1956.
Referring to the decision to translate the book into the Kodava language, author, P.T. Bopanna, who has written five books so far, said: “Among all my books, ‘Rise and Fall of the Coorg State’ is close to my heart. The book also created a record of sorts by going into reprint within two months of its release. Even more than 55 years after the merger with Karnataka, many people in Kodagu, especially the Kodavas, feel betrayed by the loss of Statehood and the step-motherly treatment being meted out by successive governments in Karnataka. In the circumstances, I was keen to bring out ‘Rise and Fall of the Coorg State’ in Kodava Thak, the language spoken by the indigenous people of Kodagu.”
Moreover, Bopanna is of the view that the creation of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), a semi-autonomous administrative body for the Darjeeling Hills in West Bengal in 2011, has brought a glimmer of hope to people in Kodagu. The GTA will have administrative, executive and financial powers, but no legislative powers.
The Karnataka government could create a similar semi-autonomous body in Kodagu to take care of the development needs of the neglected tiny hill district. This will go a long way in removing the feeling of neglect among the indigenous people of Kodagu.
The book is priced at Rs 70 per copy and published by Rolling Stone Publications, Bangalore.
