John Munro was appointed as the British Resident of Cochin in 1811 and later, accepted his post as the Dewan of Cochin at the Raja's insistence. During this period. the State of Cochin was in a lot of turmoil. The war-torn State was saddled with heavy debts. Due to the lack of proper administration and law and order, the only recourse for  the people to find justice or favours was by bribing the authorities. Corruption and avarice was running rampant, especially, with a weak Raja in power, unable to properly govern his people. John Munro meticulously studied the situation, introduced significant reforms and in time, transformed Cochin into a civilized and productive society, which eventually grew to have even surplus amounts in the Treasury. He was ruthless in his fight against corruption, yet fair and just and was known to have treated the natives with respect. He was the greatest administrator that Cochin had ever had, in the 150 Years of British Dominion.

In Search of Munro :  From London, I flew to Inverness, Scotland. I had the good fortune to see a school, that was supposed to have been built in 1791, that might as well have been John Munro's School ; an old house pictured here where he could have stayed; and the Teaninich Distillary that belonged to him; and the red sandstone Church and graveyard, where traditionally, the Teaninich Munros were laid to rest. The Foulis Castle belonging to the Munro Clan is still around though the lineage of the Teaninich Branch could not be traced.