I highly doubt this is a Tourist Piece ....
Are the fittings Silver ?
The workmanship seems top notch .
Possibly a sacrificial knife ??
No one is going to stab with this blade; it seems much more suited to chopping or slashing; but a bit small for a Machete .
If I had to guess age ; late 19th - mid 20th C.
I'll see if I can hunt up that thread, but after finding out this blade is from India it kind of throws that idea out of consideration ....
I expect the stamping at the forte is British Colonial influenced ; therefore the Western style of mark .
Poor wandering thread; I think It should go to Ethnographic .
We will get more input there I think .
Here is the link to the discussion .
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ghlight=kerala
Best,
Rick