Shanmugham Road is a major road of Kochi

Kochi

-Places:* Kochi, a city in the state of Kerala, India, formerly known as Cochin* Kingdom of Cochin, a former feudal city-state on Malabar Coast, India** Fort Kochi, one of the three main urban components which constitute the present day city of Kochi, Kerala, India...

, 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...

, named after R. K. Shanmukham Chetty

R. K. Shanmukham Chetty

Sir Ramasamy Chetty Kandasamy Shanmukham Chetty KCIE was an Indian lawyer, economist and politician who served as independent India's first finance minister from 1947 to 1949...

 who was the Diwan of the Kingdom of Kochi from 1931 to 1945. It runs parallel to Kochi Backwaters, and popularly known as Marine Drive

Marine Drive, Kochi

Marine Drive is a picturesque promenade in Kochi, Kerala, India. It is built facing the backwaters, and is a popular hangout for the local populace. Ironic to its name, no vehicles are allowed on the walkway. Marine Drive is also an economically thriving part of the city of Kochi. With several...

. It is a busy and highly commercialised street of the city, dotted with shopping centres and offices.

Initially, the road ran next to the backwaters. In the 70s, land was reclaimed close to the road, yielding a narrow strip of prime real estate. This strip of land currently houses shopping malls and apartments. A tree lined walkway now borders the backwaters, which is a tourist attraction. More than half of the reclaimed land is left as open space, often used for gatherings, demonstrations and shows.

The road begins at the High Court Junction on the north end and ends at the Ernakulam Guest House near broadway at the south. It continues further south as Park Avenue Road

Park Avenue, Kochi

Park Avenue, Kochi, is a famous tree-lined road starting from Gandhi Round to Broadway. The road is located in Park area where several famous historical buildings are located. It is the most beautiful road with more than 45 flowering trees planted on both sides of the roads, making a thick canopy...

.

It is a four lane city road with a wide median separating the two carriageways. The headquarters of the Archdiocese of Verapoly

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Verapoly

The Latin Catholic Archdiocese of Verapoly is located on the Malabar Coast in India. It became a metropolitan see in 1886. Verapoly is now officially named Varapuzha.-History:...

 is located on this road, as well as the Regional offices of State Bank of India

State Bank of India

The State Bank of India is the largest Indian banking and financial services company with its headquarters in Mumbai, India. It is state-owned. The bank traces its ancestry to British India, through the Imperial Bank of India, to the founding in 1806 of the Bank of Calcutta, making it the oldest...

, Federal Bank

Federal Bank

Federal Bank Limited is a major Indian commercial bank in the private sector, headquartered at Aluva, Kochi, Kerala. As of March 31 2011 it has 743 branches spread across 24 states in India and 803 ATMs around the country.-History:In the year 1931, Travancore Federal Bank was inaugurated at...

 and Indian Bank

Indian Bank

Indian Bank is a major Indian Commercial Bank headquartered in Chennai , India. It has 22,000 employees, 1923 branches and is one of the big public sector banks of India. It has overseas branches in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Singapore, and 229 correspondent banks in 69 countries...

. It is also home to The Gateway Hotel by Taj.