The educational character of the city also sets it apart: Thiruvananthapuram district houses 25 colleges, which include institutions for medicine, engineering, law and fine arts. It also houses over 40 departments of Kerala University, from the department of aquatic biology to zoology.

One of these departments was my alma mater. It was also known as the Institute of English. Since the Institute was the best place to study English, it attracted some of the brightest and best students from all over Kerala. We were probably the most enthusiastic users of the British Council Library and future students of the Institute have the most to lose from its closure.

Students who used the facilities of the British Council went on, like me, to successful careers in India and abroad. Every year, several passed competitive examinations like the IAS and IPS and became competent administrators.

The bottom line: if you view Thiruvananthapuram by the size of it population, you may conclude that it is an insignificant city that can be deprived of its British Council Library without hurting the interests of the Queen. However, any thinking person who understands Kerala’s role in making India will conclude that closing the British Council Library is a strategic error that can still be fixed.