Bank Holidays in Kerala 2016

About Kerala

The state has highest literacy rate in the entire country and also boasts the highest life expectancy in the country. The capital of the state is Thiruvananthapuram. Kerala is also very rich in natural resources. Apart from this, the state also has significant amounts of agricultural presence with rubber, coconut, coffee and tea output.

 
Kochi, Kozhikode Trivandrum are some of the major cities of Kerala. A number of spices are also grown in the state. In fact, spices was exported from the country, which is why it was also called the garden of spices.

Onam Celebrations in Kerala?

Onam is the most important and biggest festival in Kerala. This day is a bank holiday in Kerala. This festival is celebrated all over Kerala regardless to the community with enthusiasm and joy. Onam is the harvest festival and also the Malayalam new year. The Malayalam calendar which is called Kollavarsham starts with Onam.

Onam is a ten-day festival of which the first day is called atham and the tenth day is called as Thiruonam. Though it is a ten-day festival only the tenth day of the Onam is a bank holiday in Kerala. The government of India promoted Onam as the National Festival, and a lot of tourist from around the world comes to Kerala during Onam to see the rich culture of the state. During Onam, there will be feasts, folk songs, elegant dances, energetic games, etc.

There will be a very special meal or feast called Onasadya during Onam which will be served in banana leaves and it's a nine-course meal with 11 to 13 essential dishes. There will be a boat race called Vallamkali on the river Pampa.

In this race hundreds of boatmen take part. This will be a colorful sight to watch not only the race but also the way they decorate their boats.