The Kenis of Kerala

“Kaneer Muthu” was the word used by an elder member in a tribal hamlet in Kerala to describe the jewels they traditionally construct and conserve to harvest water. Kaneer Muthu, roughly translates from Malayalam, ‘as water pure as tears and precious as pearls’, and is the phrase they used to describe the quality of water from a Keni.

Essentially, Kenis are shallow wells found in Wayanad district of Kerala, predominantly in the hamlets of the Kurichyas and Mulla Kurumas tribal communities, and considered sacred. These traditional small wells, some built more than 200 years ago, are used by local communities to meet their daily water needs, both for domestic and ritual purposes. They can be made with locally available raw materials at minimum costs, while respecting water flows and community norms governing the commons (the aquifers).

History and Construction of Kenis

The normal depth of each Keni ranges between 0.8 to 1.5 meters. The wall of the Keni is constructed by using the bottom portion of trees like “pana” or Fishtail Palm (Caryota urens) and Anjili (Artocarpus hirsute). Sometimes Kenis are also constructed with the help of stones. In the case of a tree wall, the pith of the tree is removed and the strong outer part of the stem is used for making the walls. The drum is then plunged in areas of adequate water availability (such as spring heads, wetlands) by exerting pressure. In the case of stone walls, the stones are placed inside the well either in square or circular shape to form the well. Mainly, Kenis are spotted in three specific locations: in the middle of the paddy field, at the edge of the paddy field, or near/inside the forest in wetlands. The surrounding area is well protected with the help of earthen bunds which are renovated annually. In some Kenis, the surrounding area is covered by trees and plants such as Pandanus fascicularis (Locally used name: Kaitha). The whole process is carried out by tribal communities to meet their water demands. Kenis are an important traditional knowledge system and an inevitable part of the everyday life of the local communities. Since Kenis are located in wetlands, the hamlets cannot be constructed nearby. They are constructed either in the highlands or in the fringe area between the lowlands and highlands.

Wooden Keni situated in a paddy field with an eroding wall. The inability to arrest runoff from the paddy field makes the water in the Keni more prone to contamination.

Man walking through a paddy field near Keni. Traditional rice cultivation practices help to hold more water and will help in recharging the shallow aquifer which in turn increases the yield of Kenis and ensures year-long water availability.

A landowner shows the continuous water outflow from the Keni even during mid-summer in Pachilakkadu, Wayanad, Kerala. This Keni was initially made from wooden materials and later replaced with a cement ring because of the lack of availability of materials.

One of the oldest Kenis situated in Pakkam, Wayanad. The surrounding area of the Keni is protected with the help of stones.

Keni built by stones in Maddur, Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad.

A boy is grazing his buffalos in a wetland near Chethalayam in which an active Keni is situated. The wetland guarantees the grass for the buffalos as well as it ensures water security for his family.

Local Communities and

their Relationship with Kenis

The tribal communities of Wayanad associate strong cultural and religious values with the Kenis. Kurichya and Mulla Kuruma are the two major tribal communities of Wayanad which traditionally constructed Kenis. The Mulla Kuruma tribal community follows a custom of offering one pot of water everyday to the daivapura (place of worship in the hamlet, also considered the abode of the gods). This water that is offered should be strictly taken from the Keni. A newborn is fed its first drops of water from the Keni. After childbirth, the mother is given water from the Keni prior to her entry into the home. After the marriage ceremony, the bride has to customarily collect water from the Keni and place it in the daivapura. The rice used for preparing dishes on the third day after marriage is to be washed using water from the Keni itself. After a person’s death, the body is given a final bath in water from the Keni, thus completing the life cycle. The major festival among Mulla Kuruma community is known as “Uchar“, which is celebrated with members from another tribal community named “Oorali”. During this festival the locals worship the Keni and offer flowers. Water from the Keni is also used for ceremonies during other festivals like “Puthari” and “Thulappathu”.

In the case of Kurichya tribes the rituals are mainly centered at the “Kavu” (sacred groves owned and maintained by the community). If the Kenis are situated in the Kavu, they are only used for rituals and not domestic purposes. One of the interesting practices the community followed in the past for decision-making was the tossing of coins and wishing for something. If the coins fall in a plate with the correct side one wished for, they will proceed with their wish. The elder people in the community claim that since coin tossing is a part of their decision-making process this practice might have been used for choosing the location of Kenis in the past. Mostly they use 1 rupee, 50 paise, and 25 paise coins for this purpose. Regarding the selection of the location of the Keni, they believe that it was the ability of their great grandfathers to foresee and make decisions. They believe that the lived experience of the older generations is sufficient to find such locations.

A villager demonstrating how the coin was tossed in the past to select a location for the Keni.

Goats drinking water from a Keni in Wayanad. Design of Kenis helps cattle and even wildlife to quench their thirst

A villager walks into the sacred grove in Aneri, Wayanad. The Kenis inside these sacred groves are cleaned only before the festivals and used only for rituals.

A place of worship inside a sacred grove in Kaniyambetta, Wayanad. For every ritual here water will be taken from the Keni situated on the opposite side of the valley in a paddy field. Initially it was a Keni with a wooden stem, but now it has been renovated with a cement ring.

‘Daivapura’ in Thirumugham colony, Pakkam, Wayanad.

A place of worship near Maddur, Wayanad. Water for various rituals is taken from the Keni situated in the valley area of the hillock in which the sacred grove is also located.

Children playing in front of a ‘Daivapura’ in Pakkam, Wayanad.

Villagers tries to keep the Keni premises clean by various efforts. They clean the premises using brooms every day and will keep footwear outside the premises of the Keni.

A villager collecting water from Keni for drinking purposes. Travelers also drink from the Keni by collecting water using leaves of the taro plant (Colocasia esculenta) which is big enough to hold a little amount of water due to its conical shape.

Keni renovated with cement ring. Initially the villagers used the Keni for drinking water purpose and now they are using it for washing. The reason for this shift is the availability of drinking water supply schemes in the villages.

Women and Kenis

Women from these tribal communities have a very strong relationship with the Kenis. They may be considered the primary stakeholders of the Kenis as they are largely responsible for collecting water from them, and regularly cleaning the premises of the Kenis using brooms. While washing clothes in the premises of Kenis, they take utmost care that the wastewater does not enter the Kenis. Since women are directly associated with the Kenis on a daily basis, they are the ones who detect early signals of pollution and deterioration, such as turbidity in the water.

Their participation in paddy cultivation, especially in the context of male outmigration, also makes them vigilant about the conservation of Kenis. Paddy cultivation is linked to the conservation of Kenis as it helps in percolation and aquifer recharge. Women often have specific tasks such as transplanting, weeding, or harvesting and since they spend more time than men in the paddy fields, they are more careful about the health and protection of Kenis such as ensuring the bunding around the Kenis is secure.

Woman collecting water from a Keni. The overflow from the Keni helps irrigate the land further downstream. The Keni is used by the Mulla Kuruma tribes and it supports more than 20 households in terms of drinking water. The bund that can be seen in the picture helps to avoid the entry of surface runoff and also helps to keep a required level of water above the top most portion of the Keni.

A women belongs to Mulla Kuruma community is collecting water from a Keni in Mundanadapp colony, Meenangadi Wayanad.

Woman uses cloths as a primary filter while collecting water from a keni in Muthanga, Wayanad.

Women collecting water from a Keni in Thirumugham Colony in Pakkam, Wayanad, claimed to be more than 300 years old.

Most of the households take water from the Keni for drinking water purpose. The actual location of the Keni is inside the forest land but the department allows the community to collect and conserve the precious resource. The community members especially woman will collect water from the Keni every day. Since even elephants also visit the area, the Keni premises are surrounded by electric fencing. Women normally collect water from 5 am to 9 am in the morning.

Women collecting water from a Keni. The overflow water helps irrigate land further downstream. The Keni is used by the Mulla Kuruma tribe and it supports more than 20 households in terms of drinking water supply.

Villagers carrying water in pots from a Keni

Woman filling water from a Keni in Pakkam, Wayanad.

Woman filling water in a pot from a Keni, Pakkam, Wayanad.

Brooms kept in Thirumugham Keni to clean the keni premise every day.

Quality of Water in the Kenis

Water harvested from the Keni is mainly utilized for culinary and drinking purposes. Hence, in order to maintain the water quality, Kenis are protected with earthen bunds around them to arrest the entry of surface runoff and other contamination. Water quality testing undertaken by the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management, Kozikhode also showed that water from the Kenis is fit for daily consumption. However, there are rising concerns regarding the water quality of Kenis. Changes in farming methods and the shift from cultivation of paddy to other crops like banana, ginger etc. has attracted many pesticides, insecticides and herbicides. Since Kenis normally tap the unconfined aquifer, agricultural runoff can easily contaminate aquifers.

A villager collecting water from a Keni made of cement ring which was initially a wooden Keni.

Water from the Kenis is fit for daily consumption.

Water collected in a pot through a wooden pipe from a Keni.

Water collected in a pot through wooden pipe from a Keni.

Reasons for Disuse of Kenis

“I don’t know the exact age of this Keni. Elderly people here in the colony say that it was built about 300 hundred years back. See, the size of the well itself shows it is difficult to find such big trees these days. We consider these wells as sacred and hence, will take utmost care to keep the premises clean. In the older days, only people living in the colony used the Keni. Now everyone collects water from the Keni. At times, wild animals also will come to quench their thirst. I am seeing this Keni from my childhood. I did not see any change in terms of quality and discharge of water. In the monsoon period, a slight change in the water color will be seen. But it is still drinkable without any further filtering. In the past our settlements were very near to the Keni. Now it is part of forest land but the forest department allow us to take water,” Saneesh, a Mulla Kuruma tribal in his thirties, at the Pakkam tribal colony near Pulpally, Wayanad, describing changes in people’s relationship with Kenis. At Pakkam, the top portion of the Keni started deteriorating recently, and there are cracks too. But nobody, including Saneesh, had any doubt about the yield from the Keni at their hamlet. The Keni is continuously overflowing during summer season and even in drought years.

Over the years, many Kenis have started falling into disuse due to a number of reasons. The traditional knowledge system used to build Kenis is slowly fading away, while new technologies are being implemented to harvest, conserve, store and distribute water. Construction of Kenis is largely a skill-based task. However, a readymade cement ring serves the same purpose as the stone or tree-lined Keni, while being less labor intensive. Even though there is a considerable change in water quality, local residents have eventually adopted it due to ease of installation. Residents from the Mulla Kuruma community now collect drinking water from five open dug wells as part of the Rajiv Gandhi Drinking Water Mission. Members of the Kurichya tribe have been provided individual tap connections by the “Jalanidhi” Scheme (a World Bank-funded project being undertaken by the Kerala Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency) which has greatly reduced their dependency on Kenis. At the same time, raw material availability is also a big concern for the locals since only a limited number of timber varieties can be used to construct the Kenis. Also the terrain of Wayanad district comprises hillocks separated by flat areas such as paddy fields. Thus, climbing up the hill, particularly for women, carrying even one or two pots of water from the Keni becomes a tedious task.

An open dug well in in Aneri, Wayanad. in which toddy palm stem was inserted previously. Later, to increase the depth of the well due to groundwater depletion the locals removed the wooden stem and inserted a cement ring of smaller diameter instead.

Farmer in front of an old wooden keni in Chethalyam, Wayanad. This is one of the few kenis that still exists even after modification of land for cultivation of bananas.

Children from a tribal hamlet playing around a keni which was initially a wood stem based one and now changed into cement ring. This keni supported the water requirement of one hamlet years before and now it is used for washing purpose only. Hamlet is now supplied by water from open dug well.

Keni in deteriorated condition in Karthumkalai Colony, Sulthan Bathey Wayanad. Residents in the area only collect water in the time of water scarcity. Villagers claim that water will be clear within days after the cleaning of the Keni.

Changing Technology

and Management challenges

Originally, local farmers followed the traditional rice planting method in the region, which helped in infiltration of water into the ground. Rice cultivation arrests the immediate runoff of water to the nearby rivulets with properly maintained bunds. This acts as a buffer area and improves the percolation of water. However, in recent times, farmers who have started cultivating newer crops such as banana, ginger etc. try to drive water away from the field since the excessive water causes damage to the plant. Hence, they create channels towards the stream in order to pull monsoon runoff out of the field and direct it to nearby rivulets. This reduces the ground water recharge, creates shallow aquifers and in turn, affects the water level in the Kenis.

Wooden keni transformed into a cement ring wall.

A villager trying to show an abandoned keni which they used for drinking water purpose few years before. Paddy fields have been converted to banana cultivation in the area over the last couple of years, and this could have affected the water quality in the keni

Algae growth in wall of cement ring. This were initially wooden kenis and later converted into cement mini wells

Keni renovated with the help of cement rings in Vakeri, Wayanad.

Wooden keni converted into cement ring based one. The new road constructed disturbed the nearby stream and the surface runoff water could easily enter into the keni and contaminate it. Hence, the villagers converted the keni to a cement-based ring so that runoff water will not enter it.

Algae growth in the wall of the cement ring. These were initially wooden kenis and later converted into cement mini-wells.

Conservation of Kenis :

Springshed Management

Conserving the traditional water harvesting techniques like the Kenis is extremely important, since they are reliable sources of water for the tribal communities living in highlands. However, Kenis cannot be conserved by focusing only on a few hamlets. The whole conservation process needs to be seen through a wider lens and a holistic approach needs to be implemented for the same. Each Keni is linked to an aquifer beneath, and for the recharge of the same aquifer, there exists a watershed above. This constitutes the recharge area for the aquifer. Hence this whole area needs to be considered for effective management of the water resource. The concept of springshed management takes into account the aquifer, the spring as well as the recharge area for effective conservation, governance and management. This process requires mapping of water drainage patterns in the whole region, which includes mapping land cover, understanding land use changes over the years, socio-cultural linkages, as well as the knowledge about the aquifer system, identification of the recharge areas for the aquifer and discharge measurement and monitoring.

Since extreme climate variability, water scarcity and agrarian distress are some of the major issues Wayanad currently faces, effective conservation and management of Kenis becomes extremely important. This benefits both direct and indirect users of water who tap the aquifer associated with the Keni. Government support is also necessary for the conservation of Kenis as well as associated systems, since this involves participation of a variety of stakeholders including technical experts such as geologists, hydrogeologists, water experts, forest department, agriculturalists, people, local government agencies, NGOs and civil society.