Teekoy
Encyclopedia
Teekoy is a Southern India
n village, situated in the eastern part of Kottayam district
in Kerala
, between Vagamon, Erattupetta
and Thalanadu
.
hill area, enveloped in greenery with a clean and unpolluted atmosphere. Teekoy as a village is medium- sized but as a panchayat, is quite long, covering many areas like Aniyilappu, Mavadi, vellikulam, Thalanad, Adukkom etc. and stretching about 20 kilometres reaching up to the Wagamon area, at about three thousand feet above sea level. This place is known for its agriculture and landscape. It is full of hills and valleys in the middle of which flows the Meenachil
river (made famous by Arundhati Roy
's novel, The God of Small Things
).
, jackfruit
, etc., found in the Western Ghats
region growing profusely besides coconut
, rubber
, arecanut and other crops. It is a very fertile area. The first large rubber plantation in India was established in Teekoy. Here most of the people are farmers and they cultivate rubber, elachi
, ginger
, cardamom
, clove
, nutmeg
, turmeric
, pepper
, cashew
and other spices. Considerable variety of medicinal plants also grow here which have been used in making the traditional home remedies. Most of the people are Christian
s, but there are also Muslim
s and Hindu
s. There are some third or fourth generation Tamil people
, descendants of workers who came to work in the rubber plantations in Teekoy many decades ago. Before Independence in 1947 Teekoy had some English people who had set up rubber plantation here. As a legacy of the colonial era a cantiliver bridge still connects the two banks of the Meenachil river two kilometres above Teekoy town.
People at Teekoy are educated and self employed or employed either in government, private or abroad. This place is blessed different kind of educational institution and various industries. St. Mary's High School, now more than six decades old has played a vital role in providing education to the sons of Teekoy. Compared to other villages, the infrastructure is also better.
has a heavy rain season and mild summer. Summer rains are not infrequent. With hills in the backdrop, it never gets very hot, and the climate tends towards windy and cool.
Teekoy can't be considered as a rural village, the people are educated and employed. This place is blessed with different kind of educational institutions and various industries. Compared to other villages, the infrastructure is also better.
circuits in Kerala. Rolling hills and hillocks dot Teekoy in abundance but some places are very steep. Teekoy is a gateway to the High Range region of Kerala and also to the famed Hill Station , Wagamon. Many tourists come to experience this breathtaking journey to Wagamon,by a highway cutting through the steep slopes of hills which gets covered in mist
on-and-off throughout the year. The central area of Teekoy is a narrow strip of zig zagging plain land with the Meenachil river on the eastern side. Both the river and the flat land are flanked by hills. Plantations such as Rubber in Teekoy displays excellent growth and suitable agro-climatic conditions.
Day picnickers and holidaymakers often come to Teekoy. There are trekking trails in and around Teekoy. One is the Marmala waterfall
in the Meenachil river where water cascades down from the hill over a rocky slope. Another trekking route is the Teekoy-Cherippad-Ayyampara. Ayyampara has a huge rock formation whose top is a flat expanse running into hundreds of acres. It is a place with many cliffs, a cave and panoramic views. People also visit this place in the evening to enjoy the cool breeze and see the sun set.
The nearby Illickan mountain
rises steeply to a height of more than three thousand feet, from its top with views extending up to 75 kilometres to the Alleppey port on a clear night. In the season tourists camp on its top. There is only one entry and exit point to the top. Legend has it that its rocky top is believed to have a mythical pond where the Neelakoduveli grows, a wonder plant that assures you perennial prosperity if you can collect its leaves when they flow down through the river Meenachil once a year.
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...
n village, situated in the eastern part of Kottayam district
Kottayam district
Kottayam is one of the 14 districts in the state of Kerala, India. The district has its headquarters at Kottayam town, located at 9.36° N and 76.17° E. According to the 1991 census, it is the first district to achieve highest literacy rate in the whole of India...
in 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....
, between Vagamon, Erattupetta
Erattupetta
Erattupetta is a town in Kottayam district in the state of Kerala, India.It is 38 km east of Kottayam, the District Centre. Erattupetta was known as Erappili and Erappuzha before the Advent of Tamil Muslims into this town. Erattupetta is situated in the foothills of High Ranges. It was the...
and Thalanadu
Thalanadu
Thalanadu is a Southern Indian village, situated in the eastern part of Kottayam district in Kerala, between Vagamon, Moonnilavu and Teekoy- Geoography :...
.
Geoography
Teekoy is a typical Kerala village, which is a mixture of the features of both midland countryside and the MalanadMalanad
Malanad is the hilly regions of Kerala, India, especially the Malabar region and high ranges of Kerala. It includes small hilly regions also. Kerala is divided into coastal areas Theera Desam, midlands Idanad, and high ranges or Malanad. In Kerala approximately 15 km eastwards from coastal...
hill area, enveloped in greenery with a clean and unpolluted atmosphere. Teekoy as a village is medium- sized but as a panchayat, is quite long, covering many areas like Aniyilappu, Mavadi, vellikulam, Thalanad, Adukkom etc. and stretching about 20 kilometres reaching up to the Wagamon area, at about three thousand feet above sea level. This place is known for its agriculture and landscape. It is full of hills and valleys in the middle of which flows the Meenachil
Meenachil
Meenachil is the name of the north-eastern region of Kottayam district in Kerala, south India. The name originates from Meenakshi the Dravidian goddess. Palai is the main town in Meenachil. The arterial river of the district is also named Meenachil...
river (made famous by Arundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy is an Indian novelist. She won the Booker Prize in 1997 for her novel, The God of Small Things, and has also written two screenplays and several collections of essays...
's novel, The God of Small Things
The God of Small Things
The God of Small Things is the debut novel of Indian author Arundhati Roy. It is a story about the childhood experiences of fraternal twins whose lives are destroyed by the "Love Laws" that lay down "who should be loved, and how. And how much." The book is a description of how the small things in...
).
People
Large scale settlement in Teekoy began more than 100 years ago. It has resemblance to a tropical rain-forest area with all kinds of trees like teakTeak
Teak is the common name for the tropical hardwood tree species Tectona grandis and its wood products. Tectona grandis is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Burma, but is naturalized and cultivated in many countries, including those in Africa and the...
, jackfruit
Jackfruit
The jackfruit is a species of tree in the Artocarpus genus of the mulberry family . It is native to parts of Southern and Southeast Asia. It is the national fruit of Bangladesh, . The jackfruit tree is believed to be indigenous to the southwestern rain forests of India...
, etc., found in the Western Ghats
Western Ghats
The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
region growing profusely besides coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
, rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
, arecanut and other crops. It is a very fertile area. The first large rubber plantation in India was established in Teekoy. Here most of the people are farmers and they cultivate rubber, elachi
Elettaria
Elettaria is a genus of one or two species of cardamoms, native to southeastern Asia from India south to Sri Lanka and east to Malaysia and western Indonesia, where it grows in tropical rainforests.-Species:...
, ginger
Ginger
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....
, cardamom
Cardamom
Cardamom refers to several plants of the genera Elettaria and Amomum in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to India and Bhutan; they are recognised by their small seed pod, triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds...
, clove
Clove
Cloves are the aromatic dried flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae. Cloves are native to the Maluku islands in Indonesia and used as a spice in cuisines all over the world...
, nutmeg
Nutmeg
The nutmeg tree is any of several species of trees in genus Myristica. The most important commercial species is Myristica fragrans, an evergreen tree indigenous to the Banda Islands in the Moluccas of Indonesia...
, turmeric
Turmeric
Turmeric is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is native to tropical South Asia and needs temperatures between 20 °C and 30 °C and a considerable amount of annual rainfall to thrive...
, pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
, cashew
Cashew
The cashew is a tree in the family Anacardiaceae. Its English name derives from the Portuguese name for the fruit of the cashew tree, caju, which in turn derives from the indigenous Tupi name, acajú. It is now widely grown in tropical climates for its cashew nuts and cashew apples.-Etymology:The...
and other spices. Considerable variety of medicinal plants also grow here which have been used in making the traditional home remedies. Most of the people are Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s, but there are also Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s and Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
s. There are some third or fourth generation Tamil people
Tamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
, descendants of workers who came to work in the rubber plantations in Teekoy many decades ago. Before Independence in 1947 Teekoy had some English people who had set up rubber plantation here. As a legacy of the colonial era a cantiliver bridge still connects the two banks of the Meenachil river two kilometres above Teekoy town.
Culture
Teekoy is a rural but modern village with a predominantly hilly topography. It has a dominant village culture, with celebrating the annual festivals, feasts in church etc. Kerala's own culture exists here in vibrant form. There is only a moderate level of political activity, Indian National Congress and Kerala Congress (M) are the dominant parties, hence hardly any social divisions over politics. Adv. Justine Jacob (Kerala Congress (M)) was the youngest President of Teekoy at his age of twenty seven.People at Teekoy are educated and self employed or employed either in government, private or abroad. This place is blessed different kind of educational institution and various industries. St. Mary's High School, now more than six decades old has played a vital role in providing education to the sons of Teekoy. Compared to other villages, the infrastructure is also better.
Climate
Teekoy's climateClimate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...
has a heavy rain season and mild summer. Summer rains are not infrequent. With hills in the backdrop, it never gets very hot, and the climate tends towards windy and cool.
Teekoy can't be considered as a rural village, the people are educated and employed. This place is blessed with different kind of educational institutions and various industries. Compared to other villages, the infrastructure is also better.
Tourism
Teekoy is naturally perched by its location in one of the busiest touristTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
circuits in Kerala. Rolling hills and hillocks dot Teekoy in abundance but some places are very steep. Teekoy is a gateway to the High Range region of Kerala and also to the famed Hill Station , Wagamon. Many tourists come to experience this breathtaking journey to Wagamon,by a highway cutting through the steep slopes of hills which gets covered in mist
Mist
Mist is a phenomenon of small droplets suspended in air. It can occur as part of natural weather or volcanic activity, and is common in cold air above warmer water, in exhaled air in the cold, and in a steam room of a sauna. It can also be created artificially with aerosol canisters if the...
on-and-off throughout the year. The central area of Teekoy is a narrow strip of zig zagging plain land with the Meenachil river on the eastern side. Both the river and the flat land are flanked by hills. Plantations such as Rubber in Teekoy displays excellent growth and suitable agro-climatic conditions.
Day picnickers and holidaymakers often come to Teekoy. There are trekking trails in and around Teekoy. One is the Marmala waterfall
Marmala waterfall
Marmala waterfall lies a few kilometres away from Erattupetta, in Kottayam district, Kerala, India inside a private estate. It is exactly 7 km from Teekoy rubber estate. From here a private vehicle can take you further 2 km after which the road is not motorable...
in the Meenachil river where water cascades down from the hill over a rocky slope. Another trekking route is the Teekoy-Cherippad-Ayyampara. Ayyampara has a huge rock formation whose top is a flat expanse running into hundreds of acres. It is a place with many cliffs, a cave and panoramic views. People also visit this place in the evening to enjoy the cool breeze and see the sun set.
The nearby Illickan mountain
Illickan mountain
Illickal Mala, located in Kerala, India, measures approximately 6000 ft. above sea level. Numerous mountain streams in this peak, flow down to form the Meenachil River. Tourists must trek 3 km to reach the summit of the peak....
rises steeply to a height of more than three thousand feet, from its top with views extending up to 75 kilometres to the Alleppey port on a clear night. In the season tourists camp on its top. There is only one entry and exit point to the top. Legend has it that its rocky top is believed to have a mythical pond where the Neelakoduveli grows, a wonder plant that assures you perennial prosperity if you can collect its leaves when they flow down through the river Meenachil once a year.