The Kukkal basin, Tamil Nadu, India, receives most of its rain from the southwest monsoon. A sediment core from Kukkal Lake, preserves a continuous sediment record from the Early Holocene to present (9000 yr BP to present). The present lake is artificial, situated at an elevation of ~1887 m a.s.l.,, in a small basin that appears to have alternated between a and wetland depositional environment. Climate proxies, including sediment texture, TOC, Total Nitrogen (TN), C/N, pollen and geochemical composition indicate a steady progression to wetter conditions, with two stepwise changes at about 8000, and between 3200 and 1800 yr BP. The change at 8000 yr BP appears to correspond to a brief (100-150 yr) dry spell to about 8000 yr BP, followed by grassland with palms, the appearance of ferns just prior to 3200 yr BP, and the establishment of forest between 3200 and about 1800 yr BP.