Honour for man who drove Tirur’s last bullock cart
Ahmed Bava Thekkepeediyekkal, the last bullock-cart driver in Tirur, was honored by a cultural organization for his decades of service. The event celebrated his role in a traditional transport system that has been rendered obsolete by modern logistics.
Why it matters
This story documents the preservation of local cultural history and the transition from traditional labor to modern industrial transport.
For nearly four decades, Ahmed Bava Thekkepeediyekkal drove bullock carts through narrow roads and village paths around Tirur, carrying rice, coconut oil, betel leaves, areca nuts, copra and other essentials to places that larger vehicles could not reach.
On Sunday (September 13, 2026), 77-year-old Bava, the region’s last bullock-cart driver, was felicitated as a living link to a bygone era.
Re-Echo, a cultural and environmental organisation based at Tirunavaya, honoured Bava as part of its 36th anniversary celebrations. The felicitation was held under its ‘Nattinte naal vazhikal’ programme, which honours people who were part of traditions and events that have since faded from everyday life.
Bava, from Kunnumpuram, Edakkulam, began driving bullock carts when he was just seven. He continued until he was 42, spending more than 35 years behind the reins.
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