Kerala is on the southernmost tip of India. It stretches along the coast of the Arabian Sea and is separated from the rest of the sub continent by the steep Western Ghats. The state lies between 80 18 ' and 120 48 ' north latitude and 740 52' and 770 22' east longitude. The breadth if the state varies from 32 kms in the extreme north and south to over 120 kms in the middle.