Karunagappalli
Encyclopedia
Karunagappally is a gramapanchayath and Taluk in Kollam
district, Kerala
, India
. Karunagappally is situated 27 km north to Kollam
.
Karunagappally Taluk consists of 12 Panchayats : Karunagappally, Thodiyoor
, Panmana
, Alappad
, Chavara
, Neendakara
, Thevalakkara
, Thekkumbhagom
, Kulasekharapuram
, Thazhava
, Clappana
and Oachira
. The taluk is bound on the north by Kayamkulam
, east by Kunnathur taluk, south by Kollam
and on the west by the Arabian Sea
.
There however is another claim that 'Palli' is a term with Buddhist roots and that Karungappally was a Buddhist settlement in early times and that the name has its origin in a famous Buddhist education centre in the area. It is also argued that nearby Karthigappally and Mynagappally too were Buddhist centres of learning. Remnants suggesting a Buddhist past of the place have been found in many locations here.
Padanayarkulangara, which forms part of the town, was once the military station of the Kayamkulam Rajas. An idol of Buddha, recovered from a local tank here, has raised speculations that Karunagappally was once a center of Buddhist teachings.
The area also receives substantial foreign remittances from the large number of people from here working in the Gulf countries. Fishing forms the major source of livelihood for the coast dwellers
The Pandarathuruth Church is believed to have been built by the Portugese. It is believed that a Portugese ship on a voyage got lost in the sea and the beleaguered sailors prayed to Jesus Christ and offered to construct a church where they would make landfall. The church is popularly known as Portugese Church locally.
The Oachira temple near Karunagappally is one of the prominent centres of worship for Hindus across the State. The annual festival of the temple is attended by tens of thousands of devotees.
Karunagappally Railway Station, situated in Edakkulangara falls on the Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam railway line. Kanyakumari-Bangalore Express, Parasuram Express, Venad Express, Malabar Express, Amritha Express and Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam Express are the main train connections.
Station Code: KPY.
Trivandrum International Airport is the nearest airport.
Lok Sabha
constituency.
(IRE), Kerala Metals and Minerals Limited (KMML) at Shankaramangalam, KERAFED
Puthiyakavu, House Boat Manufacturing Alumkadavu & Kozhikode.The state owned Kerala Feeds Ltd.located at Kallelibhagom is also a major industry. Cashew nut industry plays a vital role. Coconut, Paddy, tapioca, Banana etc. are the other main agricultural crops. Prominent small scale and cottage industries are based on bricks, well rings making, engineering and electronics items handicrafts etc.
adershdev 08:36, 31 May 2011 (UTC)
Kollam
Kollam , often anglicized as ', is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. The city lies on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake on the Arabian sea coast and is situated about north of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram...
district, Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Karunagappally is situated 27 km north to Kollam
Kollam
Kollam , often anglicized as ', is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. The city lies on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake on the Arabian sea coast and is situated about north of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram...
.
Karunagappally Taluk consists of 12 Panchayats : Karunagappally, Thodiyoor
Thodiyoor
-Demographics: India census, Thodiyoor had a population of 23123 with 11244 males and 11879 females. The famous temple MALUMEL SREE BHAGAVATHI is located in this village....
, Panmana
Panmana
-Demographics: India census, Panmana had a population of 29139 with 14360 males and 14779 females....
, Alappad
Alappad
Alappad is a coastal village in the Kollam District of the Indian state Kerala. It is situated on a narrow strip of land sandwiched between the Arabian Sea a few pecies of ham and the TS Canal - the village is approximately 16 km long and its narrowest point is as thin as 33 meters...
, Chavara
Chavara
Chavara is approximately 14 km north of Kollam City on the Kollam-Alappuzha highway in India. Tonnes of mineral sand, mainly titanium, are exported from Chavara to various countries. The Kovilthottam port is situated within the limits of Chavara Panchayat.Kovilthottam is a strip of land ...
, Neendakara
Neendakara
Neendakara is a village in Kollam district 9 km north of Kollam city in Kerala, India. It is Kollam district's intermediate fishing port....
, Thevalakkara
Thevalakkara
Thevalakkara is a village in Kollam district in the state of Kerala, India.-Demographics:The natives believe that word thevalakara is derived from devalokakara, i.e., the land of gods. The old name is Thevelikara like Mavelikara, Peruvelikara. Books written by foreigners quoted tevelikara...
, Thekkumbhagom
Chavara Thekkumbhagom
Chavara Thekkumbhagom or or is a village in Kollam district in the Indian state of Kerala....
, Kulasekharapuram
Kulasekharapuram
Kulasekharapuram is a village in Kollam district in the state of Kerala, India.-Demographics: India census, Kulasekharapuram had a population of 24538 with 11751 males and 12787 females....
, Thazhava
Thazhava
Thazhava is a village in Karunagappally taluk, Kollam district in the state of Kerala, India.-Demographics: India census, Thazhava had a population of 22075 with 10575 males and 11500 females....
, Clappana
Clappana
-Demographics: India census, Clappana had a population of 21169 with 10064 males and 11105 females....
and Oachira
Oachira
Oachira or Ochira is a small town located 32 km away from Kollam city in Kollam district in Kerala, India. It is one of the famous sacred places of Kerala and in India. Oachira is on the border of Kollam and Allappuzha Districts, next to the National Highway 47...
. The taluk is bound on the north by Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam is a town and a municipality in Alappuzha district of the Indian state of Kerala. It is an ancient maritime trading centre. One of the largest power plants in Kerala, run by the NTPC, is located in Kayamkulam. Krishnapuram Palace is located nearby and an old cashew factory.Kayamkulam is...
, east by Kunnathur taluk, south by Kollam
Kollam
Kollam , often anglicized as ', is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. The city lies on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake on the Arabian sea coast and is situated about north of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram...
and on the west by the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
.
Legend
About 400 years back there lived in Malabar (now North Kerala) a famous Muslim cleric. He had a disciple called Ali Hassan who was a mystic. With the blessings of the cleric Ali Hassan set out on a trip to the south. He first reached Oachira and from there a place called Puthiyakavu. The area was covered with dense forests and was believed to have been the preserve of a deadly black serpent. Fearing the serpent, people stayed away from the place. But Ali Hassan approached the king and requested that he be given some land here. The king gave him the area occupied by the black serpent. As Hassan was clearing the forests, the black serpent appeared but he skilfully caged it and took it to the king. The serpent escaped from the cage causing panic in the royal circles but Hassan again managed to cage it and took it back to the forest where he set it free. That was the last anyone had seen the serpent. A happy king allowed Hassan to build a mosque (Palli) at the place.There however is another claim that 'Palli' is a term with Buddhist roots and that Karungappally was a Buddhist settlement in early times and that the name has its origin in a famous Buddhist education centre in the area. It is also argued that nearby Karthigappally and Mynagappally too were Buddhist centres of learning. Remnants suggesting a Buddhist past of the place have been found in many locations here.
History
The area belonged to the ancient Ayi Kingdom and it subsequently became part of the Kayamkulam kingdom (originally called Odanad).Padanayarkulangara, which forms part of the town, was once the military station of the Kayamkulam Rajas. An idol of Buddha, recovered from a local tank here, has raised speculations that Karunagappally was once a center of Buddhist teachings.
Demographics
The 2001 India census puts the population of Karungappally Taluk at 610,514 of which 299494 are males and 311,020 females. As with the rest of the state the population of the Taluk is a heterogenous mix of Hindus, Muslims and Christians. The high literacy of Kerala is reflected in Karunagappally as well with 89.50% of the population classified as literate as against the national average of 60.50%.Economy
Karungappally used to be an agrarian economy until the late 19th century with coconut, banana, tapioca and paddy as the main crops grown. With rapid urbanization and the consequent pressure on land the reliance on agriculture has dwindled. Several cottage and small industries have now come up in the area in brick making, engineering and electronics. Proximity to Kollam (27 km) and the excellent road and rail infrastructure have helped in this transition.The area also receives substantial foreign remittances from the large number of people from here working in the Gulf countries. Fishing forms the major source of livelihood for the coast dwellers
Places of interest
Padanayarkulangara is an ancient temple in Karunagappally. The temple has two presiding deities, Lord Siva and Sri Krishna, which is a rarity. It is a prominent centre of worship among Hindus.The Pandarathuruth Church is believed to have been built by the Portugese. It is believed that a Portugese ship on a voyage got lost in the sea and the beleaguered sailors prayed to Jesus Christ and offered to construct a church where they would make landfall. The church is popularly known as Portugese Church locally.
The Oachira temple near Karunagappally is one of the prominent centres of worship for Hindus across the State. The annual festival of the temple is attended by tens of thousands of devotees.
Transport
Main transport is provided by State owned Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and private transport bus operators. Karunagappally Bus Station is on National Highway 47. Buses ply from Karunagappally to Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha, Kumily, Kollam, Chavara and Sasthamkotta. Local services are also available to various places in the district. The station operates super fast, fast passenger and ordinary buses. KSRTC Bus stand is situated in the heart of the town. Road transport is also supported by private taxis and autorickshaws also called autos.Karunagappally Railway Station, situated in Edakkulangara falls on the Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam railway line. Kanyakumari-Bangalore Express, Parasuram Express, Venad Express, Malabar Express, Amritha Express and Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam Express are the main train connections.
Station Code: KPY.
Trivandrum International Airport is the nearest airport.
Politics
Karunagapally assembly constituency is part of AlappuzhaAlappuzha
Alappuzha , also known as Alleppey, is a town in Alappuzha District of Kerala state of southern India. As per 2001 census Alleppey is the sixth largest city in Kerala with an urban population of 177,029. Alleppey is situated to the south of Kochi and north of Trivandrum...
Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...
constituency.
Industries
The major employers in the public sector are Indian Rare Earths LimitedIndian Rare Earths Limited
Indian Rare Earths Limited ' is a government-owned corporation in India based in Mumbai. It was incorporated as a private limited company and jointly owned by the Government of India and Government of Travancore Cochin. Government of India took control of IREL in 1963 under the administrative...
(IRE), Kerala Metals and Minerals Limited (KMML) at Shankaramangalam, KERAFED
KERAFED
KERAFED is the top-level co-operative federation of coconut farmers in the southern Indian state of Kerala. KERAFED is also a producer and marketer of various products based on coconut, and is the largest producer of coconut oil in India....
Puthiyakavu, House Boat Manufacturing Alumkadavu & Kozhikode.The state owned Kerala Feeds Ltd.located at Kallelibhagom is also a major industry. Cashew nut industry plays a vital role. Coconut, Paddy, tapioca, Banana etc. are the other main agricultural crops. Prominent small scale and cottage industries are based on bricks, well rings making, engineering and electronics items handicrafts etc.
External links
adershdev 08:36, 31 May 2011 (UTC)