[45] RURAL EMPOWERMENT IN K.P. POORNACHANDRA TEJASWI’S KARVALO

How to Cite the Article: Shalini S (2026). Rural Empowerment in K.P. Poornachandra Tejaswi’s Karvalo. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research & Reviews, 5(s2), 387396.

Abstract

This paper examines the theme of village development as seen in the famous novel Karavalo written by celebrated Kannada novelist K.P. Poornachandra Tejaswi. This novel is written in the background of the Western Ghats mountain range of India. The main themes of Karvalo is the new sense of awareness among the village people because of awareness of nature and the need to protect it. The knowledge of science and technology among the younger generation of the villagers has changed their attitude and now they know that the fate of their poverty-ridden villages can be changed by making use of the knowledge of sustainable development. The central characters of the novel are a scientist called Karvalo and Ponnayya, a smart hunter. This novel shows us how village people can change their own lives by actively engaging in scientific attitudes and direct action. This novel focuses on the upliftment of the rural community with the awareness of nature and urgent need to preserve it. This paper analyses the framework of the novel and its role as an instrument of eco-criticism. The novel goes beyond the usual themes in rural fiction such as the beauty of nature or the poverty of the tribal people. This novel is written in a more democratic way emphasizing the ability of the rural youth to look into their own affairs and to give clear leadership in the field of conservation. What is important here is that ecological preservation becomes the priority of the village people not through external interference but by their own sense of awareness. They have started pressurizing for nature using methods of dialogue and communication with the outer world. They have understood the value of preserving nature from their own observation and they have applied this knowledge to protect Mother Nature which gives them food and nourishment. The respect given to nature by the village people is far superior to the same given by city people. For the village people, nature is something real with which they are associated with on a daily basis. For the city people, nature is something they learn from the text books and their eagerness for conservation comes from a high-level civic sense rather than personal experience. This paper finds out that Karvalo gives us a new insight into the theory of empowering village people because the village people uses their indigenous knowledge for understanding rather than copying from city models. This paper challenges the tradition divide between the rural people and the intellectuals. Rural people have now reached a level of awareness that makes them able to generate their own intellectuals who can contribute equally well compared to the city intellectuals. This paper also emphasizes the role of literature in reshaping village life. The villages of India have reached a level of awareness that makes them able to look at nature in a more comprehensive view which helps them to redefine their relationship with nature resulting in a greater level of conservation of our resources.