Cliff House (Kerala)
Encyclopedia
Cliff House, is the official residence of Chief Minister of Kerala
, located at Nanthancode in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram
, Kerala
. The Cliff House is part of Cliff House compound, which houses 4 other ministerial residences and is in general part of state ministerial residential zone.
However the house is the statutory official residence, as Indian laws and protocols donot stipulate ministers to stay any particular residence, rather define their residence whether owned by government or private, as official residence. Cliff House was preferred as official residence by most of Chief Ministers of Kerala.
as the official residence of Diwan Peshkar (Secretary of the state) in charge of Devaswom affairs. Since the headquarters of Travancore Devaswom Office was commissioned at Nanthancode, it was decided to construct official residence of the Peshkar near to it. Post independence, the state PWD took over the house and surrounding land and refurnished as state Guest house. In 1956, it was reclassified as a ministerial residence.
When Kerala was formed in 1957, the first Chief Minister, E. M. S. Namboodiripad
chose the house as his official residence, citing its location advantage, instead of Ross House which were used by Chief Ministers of Travancore-Cochin
.
Most of the Chief Ministers, choose Cliff House as their official residence, primarily motivated by its location. The house rose into a cult status as a center of power, during tenure of K. Karunakaran as Chief Minister. Since 1979, the house has unbroken history of being official residence of Kerala Chief Minister
The house has 4 large verandas, with East Veranda being the largest. East Room is the main formal room where guests are welcomed, though, there are 2 other private formal rooms. A private office, library room, conference room and private staff offices are located in east side. A private living room and dining room are located in west side along other rooms. Most of the bedrooms are located in second floor.
Quarters for Ministerial staff like private secretaries, assistants, security staff etc are built outside the main house
. K. Karunakaran's wife Kalyani ensured that a large vegetable garden is there in Cliff house for their private use, during Karunakaran's tenure as Chief Minister. During tenure of A. K. Antony
as Chief Minister, he was much interested in setting a banana farm. After K. Karunakaran met accident in early 1990s, a swimming pool was commissioned as advised by doctors for his better health. A security office is located inside the facility to garrison security officials.
Chief Minister of Kerala
The Chief Minister of Kerala is the elected head of government of the state of Kerala, India. By the Constitution of India, the Chief minister is appointed by the Governor of the state....
, located at Nanthancode in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...
, Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
. The Cliff House is part of Cliff House compound, which houses 4 other ministerial residences and is in general part of state ministerial residential zone.
However the house is the statutory official residence, as Indian laws and protocols donot stipulate ministers to stay any particular residence, rather define their residence whether owned by government or private, as official residence. Cliff House was preferred as official residence by most of Chief Ministers of Kerala.
History
Cliff House was constructed during the monarchy days of TravancoreTravancore
Kingdom of Travancore was a former Hindu feudal kingdom and Indian Princely State with its capital at Padmanabhapuram or Trivandrum ruled by the Travancore Royal Family. The Kingdom of Travancore comprised most of modern day southern Kerala, Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of...
as the official residence of Diwan Peshkar (Secretary of the state) in charge of Devaswom affairs. Since the headquarters of Travancore Devaswom Office was commissioned at Nanthancode, it was decided to construct official residence of the Peshkar near to it. Post independence, the state PWD took over the house and surrounding land and refurnished as state Guest house. In 1956, it was reclassified as a ministerial residence.
When Kerala was formed in 1957, the first Chief Minister, E. M. S. Namboodiripad
E. M. S. Namboodiripad
Elamkulam Manakkal Sankaran Namboodiripad, , popularly known as EMS, was an Indian Communist leader and the first Chief Minister of Kerala. As the first non-Congress chief minister in independent India, he became the leader of the first democratically elected communist government in the world...
chose the house as his official residence, citing its location advantage, instead of Ross House which were used by Chief Ministers of Travancore-Cochin
Travancore-Cochin
Travancore-Cochin or Thiru-Kochi is a former state of India . It was created on 1 July 1949 by the merger of two former princely states, the kingdoms of Travancore and Cochin....
.
Most of the Chief Ministers, choose Cliff House as their official residence, primarily motivated by its location. The house rose into a cult status as a center of power, during tenure of K. Karunakaran as Chief Minister. Since 1979, the house has unbroken history of being official residence of Kerala Chief Minister
The Compound
The 4.2 acre campus known as Cliff House Compound, houses the main structure known as Cliff House apart from 4 other ministerial residence. The other 4 ministerial residences; Ushus, Ashoka, Nest, Pournami shares common facilities of the compound.The House
The two storied Cliff House is built in traditional Kerala architecturewith slight influences of colonial English styles. The house has a built up space of of 15,000 sqft with 7 bedrooms apart from other quarters for official ministerial staff. Like any other Indian Official residences, no office facility is located inside the house as the house is meant for purely private use of Chief Minister and his family. However a conference room is there inside Cliff House, mainly meant for informal meetings, though no cabinet meetings have ever been conducted here.The house has 4 large verandas, with East Veranda being the largest. East Room is the main formal room where guests are welcomed, though, there are 2 other private formal rooms. A private office, library room, conference room and private staff offices are located in east side. A private living room and dining room are located in west side along other rooms. Most of the bedrooms are located in second floor.
Quarters for Ministerial staff like private secretaries, assistants, security staff etc are built outside the main house
The Exterior
Cliff House compound is spread around 4.2 acres which also includes other ministerial residences. There is no formal gardens inside Cliff House, though a small lawn is well maintained in Eastern side where private tea-parties are conducted. A large part of land is used for farming, started during second tenure of E. K. NayanarE. K. Nayanar
Erambala Krishnan Nayanar was a prominent Indian political leader of the Communist Party of India . He held the post of Chief Minister of Kerala three times; during 1980-81, 1987–91 and 1996-2001. He is the longest serving Chief Minister of Kerala, having been in office for a total of 4009 days,...
. K. Karunakaran's wife Kalyani ensured that a large vegetable garden is there in Cliff house for their private use, during Karunakaran's tenure as Chief Minister. During tenure of A. K. Antony
A. K. Antony
Arackaparambil Kurien Antony is an Indian National Congress politician, a former Chief Minister of Kerala, and the current Defence Minister of India....
as Chief Minister, he was much interested in setting a banana farm. After K. Karunakaran met accident in early 1990s, a swimming pool was commissioned as advised by doctors for his better health. A security office is located inside the facility to garrison security officials.