About 50 km from Kasargod district in Kerala is Jayakrishnan’s farm in Parappa, where tourists gather around the system at the heart of keeping the crops alive — the suranga. Surangas, traditional tunnel irrigation systems, are now providing a boost for tourism in some districts. The suranga is an indigenous water management system in coastal Karnataka districts and Kasargod.
At Jayakrishnan’s farm, since 2016, ‘suranga tourism’ has brought a consistent inflow of tourists from all over the world.
“We have been dependent on the water from our suranga for all our day-to-day requirements for generations,” says Savitha, Jayakrishnan’s wife. The 100-year-old suranga at their farm is around half a kilometre long.
The couple was trained in hospitality through an initiative by the Bekal Resorts Development Corporation (BRDC). “We learnt about suranga tourism, and realised we could implement it. Since then, tourists have been visiting to have an experience inside the suranga and to know more about it,” she adds.
Under the initiative, as many as 150 farmers from Kannur, Kasargod and parts of Kozhikode were trained in hospitality so far. Around 60 have started their ventures focusing on tourism.
“We introduced the system to more than 80 foreign tourists from Germany, Spain, Portugal and England. Domestic tourists from Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, and various parts of Kerala have also been visiting the farm,” says Savitha.
In fact, the tourists have claimed it as a wonderful experience as it is rare to have such an experience in other parts of the country. Further, they liked the water from the suranga, which has a distinct taste.
Suranga tourism is in its nascent stage, says Shree Padre, an exponent of rainwater harvesting. “The BRDC has been highlighting surangas in the district. Tourist operators are also including surangas as the central attraction in their packages. There is a lot of potential in suranga tourism if taken up in an organised manner,” he adds.
Citing examples for further development of the initiative, Padre says, “A powerpoint presentation on how a suranga is dug can be more interesting. It can include the experience of Kunhambu, who has dug more than 1,000 surangas in Kasargod in the last 50 years.” Another tour could showcase the unique suranga at Sheni, which has seven air vents.
There is also a potential to expand the initiative to include the farm of Mahalinga Naik, the farmer in Dakshina Kannada who was awarded a Padmashri for his innovative use of the suranga.
BRDC manager Prasad says, “We are trying to facilitate experiential tourism.” The promotion of surangas helps homestays and farmstays.