Born on 20 October 1923 to Sankaran and Accamma in Alappuzha district of Kerala state, Achuthanandan had to face poverty from a very early age.[citation needed]} He lost his mother when he was four years old and father when he was 11 years old. This forced him to give up his studies after finishing 7th standard in school . He started working by helping his elder brother in a village tailoring shop. Later he took up the job of meshing coir to make ropes at a coir factory.
