Kerala set up India's first state-run lottery in 1967. The idea was simple: give ordinary people a fair, transparent chance at a life-changing prize, while raising money for the state and creating work for small ticket sellers.
The beginning: a ₹1 ticket
The first tickets sold for ₹1, with a first prize of ₹50,000, a fortune at the time. P. K. Kunju Sahib, then Kerala's Finance Minister, is widely credited with the scheme. His aim was to run the lottery as a public service rather than a private business.
Why Kerala took the lead
- Lotteries in India were largely run by private operators, and disputes over fake tickets and unpaid prizes were common.
- Kerala placed the whole operation — printing, sales through licensed agents, draws and prize payment — under a government department.
- Income beyond prizes and costs supports the state's welfare spending.
- Selling tickets became a source of income for thousands of small agents.
From one draw to a daily schedule
What began as an occasional draw is now a seven-day schedule with a different lottery each day. The line-up shown on this site is:
- Monday — Win-Win
- Tuesday — Sthree Sakthi
- Wednesday — Fifty-Fifty
- Thursday — Karunya Plus
- Friday — Nirmal
- Saturday — Karunya
- Sunday — Akshaya
Alongside the weekly draws, Kerala runs several Bumper draws a year around festivals and seasons. The Thiruvonam (Onam) Bumper is the biggest, with a first prize of ₹25 crore in recent years. Read more in our guide to Bumper draws.
How draws are kept fair
Draws are held in public at announced times using mechanical draw machines, in the presence of officials. Results are published officially the same day, and printed tickets carry security features so a winning ticket can be verified before a prize is paid.
Lottery income and welfare
Part of the lottery's income funds public welfare. The best-known example is the Karunya Benevolent Fund, which helps patients from low-income families pay for treatment of serious illnesses.
Looking ahead
The idea from 1967 still holds: a lottery run openly by the state, with prizes paid by the government. If you play, buy only from authorized agents in Kerala, keep your ticket safe and check results against the official announcement.
