Alphons was born in Manimala, Kottayam District, to K. V Joseph & Brijith Joseph. His father was a World War IIveteran who became a school teacher after the war. His parents had nine children; they adopted two more from the orphanage. Alphons received his early education in Malayalam medium village schools near his place of birth. He passed SSLC with 42% marks. After the below average performance in the tenth class exam he decided to change himself and vowed to change the world. He completed his Master's in Economics and was one of the toppers of the Civil Services Examination in the year 1979. He also completed his LLB while he was the Commissioner for Delhi Development Authority DDA.
List of achievements
Alphons Kannanthanam was one of the toppers in the Civil Services Examination Won the best collector award thrice. As District Collector:- Kottayam became the first 100% literate town in India. Was instrumental in building a cancer hospital in Kottayam Medical College. Started mass contact program which later won award from the United Nations. As the Commissioner of DDA, demolished 14310 illegal encroachments earning him the name of 'Demolition Man'. Alphons worked full time for a year with Janshaktiin Nangal Machi slum in Delhi with his wife Sheela, who ran a hospital, school, toilet complex and a tailoring center for 6 years. As Commissioner for Entrance Examinations, declared result on the seventh day. As Secretary, Higher Education, was instrumental in setting up private professional colleges in Kerala. Won best MLA award. As MoS for Tourism, Govt of India triggered India to third rank in the World Travel and Tourism Council Report 2018.
Career
Alphons was recruited to the Indian Administrative Service in 1979 and served for 27 years. He resigned from the service in 2006 to join politics. He was later elected a Member of the Legislative Assembly, from Kanjirappally in Kottayam District, Kerala with the support of Left Democratic Front. He is also a practicing advocate in the High Court of Kerała at Kochi and the Supreme Court of India. Alphons first came into prominence when he served as the district collector of Kottayam in 1988. In his tenure as collector, Kottayam town became the first 100% literate town in India. During this period he was instrumental in building a Cancer hospital in Kottayam Medical College mobilizing contributions from 82 lakh people. He also started the mass contact program which eventually won a UN award. His national profile rose as the Commissioner of the Delhi Development Authority, he demolished 14,310 illegal buildings and reclaimed land worth more than Rs. 10,000 crores. These actions earned him the title, The Demolition Man. Times of India survey showed that 89.6% of Delhiites supported his action, the highest rating for any public official any time. In 2006, he resigned from the IAS to pursue a career in politics. He became a Left Democratic Front supported independent Member of the Legislative Assembly from Kanjirappally. On 24 March 2011, Alphons joined the BJP in the presence of erstwhile party president Nitin Gadkari, after having resigned from his assembly seat a couple of hours prior. He has been appointed as a Member of Committee constituted by Government of India on 26 June 2017 to prepare the final draft of National Education Policy. In a cabinet reshuffle on 3 September 2017, he was appointed as minister of state in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and minister of State of the Ministry of Tourism. On 9 November 2017, Alphons was elected unopposed as Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan.
