Education is destroying Kerala! In Lawrence Gable's article, "Kerala Turns into a Machine", the promise of free education is slowly demolishing the coconut industry. For years, India's caste system has been a dominant force in Indian society, but it is crumbling in the coconut capital of the world: Kerala. This system controls the lives of Indians, controlling who they should associate with, the quality of their lives, and whether or not they receive the coveted privilege of education. However, in recent years, the Indian government has provided free education to people from lower castes, opening the door to opportunities for minimum-wage Kerala coconut pickers. Instead of working in coconut plantations, schooling would offer workers who climb the skies a better life. This may seem like a positive subject, but the sudden departures of coconut pickers do not bode well for the harvest, with each harvest bringing even less fruit each time. Although education can help some communities thrive, in some cases it can be determined by culture and economics. Kerala relies on its powerful coconut industry, and as education causes its decline, its economy also sinks with it. The sudden integration of education “threatens Kerala's coconut industry” (Gable, 1). The opportunity to go to school and have a better lifestyle drives the industry's most sought-after pickers away, leaving behind a dramatic shortage of workers. Suddenly, there is no one left to pick enough fruit, leaving workstations open, and no one to fill them. This sudden labor shortage weighs heavily on Kerala's economy, which is entirely based on coconut production. People in Kerala's communities are focused around...... middle of paper......the scenario of economic devastation. Prices of everyday items would increase, from the gasoline used in the truck to transport the fruit to higher local market prices, in order to meet transportation costs. This series of events would catapult every nation into another great depression from which it would take years to recover. Coconuts may seem like just a small piece of the puzzle, but they actually contribute greatly to the economy. Education is a privilege valued in every country, but its effects are devastating to the economy of the coconut king, Kerala. The possibility of an easier life attracts low-paid but valued coconut pickers who climb huge trees to reach the coconuts. These inconveniences are gradually affecting the global economy, which worries governments. This dilemma leaves the country divided and exasperated over its attempt at equal rights.