Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam is a Town of Kerala|municipality]] in the Alappuzha district of Kerala, India. It is located on the western coast of India, and was an ancient maritime trading center. One of the largest thermal power plants in Kerala, the Rajiv Gandhi Combined Cycle Power Plant run by the NTPC, is situated at Haripad. Kayamkulam is part of the Karthikappally tehsil. Krishnapuram Palace is located nearby.
Kayamkulam
Irravipattanam | |
|---|---|
Municipality | |
 Krishnapuram Palace | |
  Kayamkulam Location in Kerala, India  Kayamkulam Kayamkulam (India) | |
| Coordinates: 9.172°N 76.501°E | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Kerala |
| District | Alappuzha |
| Government | |
| • Body | Kayamkulam Municipality |
| • MLA | U Prathiba |
| Area | |
| • Total | 21.79 km2 (8.41 sq mi) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 74,567 |
| • Density | 3,400/km2 (8,900/sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Malayalam, English |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 690502 |
| Telephone code | +91-479 |
| Vehicle registration | KL-29(kayamkulam SRTO |
| Nearest city | Kollam (37 km), mavelikara(12km), Haripad (9km) |
| Sex ratio | 0.944 ♂/♀ |
| Literacy | 81.76% |
History
Kayamkulam was a medieval feudal kingdom known as Odanad ruled by the Kayamkulam rajas. Maha Raja Marthanda Varma (1706–58) conquered Kayamkulam and annexed its territories to Travancore.
Tourist attractions
The Krishnapuram Palace, built in the 18th century, now functions as a museum. Constructed in typical Keralan-style architecture, it has the largest mural painting in Kerala.[1] The palace museum houses the Kayamkulam double-edged sword.[2]
The Kayamkulam Boat Race[3] is held on the fourth Saturday of August every year.[4] Chinese fishing nets can be found on the banks of the lagoon.
Transport
Roads
NH 66 passes through Kayamkulam, connecting it to the major cities Alappuzha, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Kollam, Palakkad and Nagercoil. The Kayamkulam–Punalur road is a major road connecting it to the eastern parts of the state. The KSRTC bus station is located near the national highway.
Railways
Kayamkulam Junction railway station is a major railway junction located 1.5 km (0.93 mi) from the town on the Kayamkulam–Punalur road.
Demographics
According to the 2001 Census of India,[5] Kayamkulam had a population of 65,299. Males constituted 49% of the population and females 51%. Kayamkulam had an average literacy rate of 82%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. Male literacy was 84%, and female literacy is 79%. In Kayamkulam, 11% of the population was under 6 years of age.
Educational and research institutes
The Central Coconut Research Station (CCRS) was established in 1948 as a field station of the Agricultural Research Laboratory. Presently, it is a regional station of the Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI).[7]
KPAC drama troupe
Kerala People's Arts Club (KPAC) is a theatrical movement in Kayamkulam, Kerala. It was formed in the 1950s by a group of individuals that had close ties with the leftist parties of Kerala.
In 1951 KPAC staged its first drama, Ente Makananu Sari (transl. "My Son is Right"), whose songs were written by Punaloor Balan. Its second drama Ningalenne Communistakki (transl. "You Made Me a Communist") was first performed in 1952. The success of Ningalenne Communistakki brought KPAC to the forefront of a powerful people's theatre movement in Kerala.[8]
KPAC played a significant role in popularising the Communist Party in Kerala through its dramas, road shows and kathaprasangams (story telling).[9]
Power plant
The Rajiv Gandhi Combined Cycle Power Plant is a combined cycle power plant located in Cheppad, Haripad, Alappuzha district, Kerala.
Notable people
- Thopil Bhasi – Malayalam playwright, screenwriter, and film director
- K. M. Cherian – heart surgeon; founder of Frontier Lifeline Hospital and the Dr. K M Cherian Heart Foundation
- Kambisseri Karunakaran – journalist, politician, actor, satirist and rationalist
- P. Kesavadev – novelist, writer, and social reformer
- Kayamkulam Kochunni – highwayman based in Kayamkulam, active in Central Travancore in the early 19th century
- K. P. A. C. Lalitha – National Award-winning Indian film and stage actress
- S. Guptan Nair – Malayalam writer, critic, scholar and educationist
- K. Shankar Pillai – cartoonist, founder of Shankar's Weekly
- Resul Pookutty – Oscar-winning Indian film sound designer, sound editor and mixer
- Thachadi Prabhakaran – former Minister of Kerala
- Kayamkulam Philipose Ramban – Christian priest
- T. P. Sreenivasan - diplomat; former High Commissioner to Fiji and Kenya and Ambassador to Austria
See also
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kayamkulam. |
- Lonely Planet Things to do in Southern Kerala by Lonely Planet travellers.
- Department of Archeology WebsiteArchived 2011-01-22 at the Wayback Machine.
- First Kayamkulam boat race.
- Kerala boat races Archived 28 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
- "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
- "Assembly Constituencies - Corresponding Districts and Parliamentary Constituencies" (PDF). Kerala. Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2008.
- http://cpcri.gov.in/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=71&Itemid=97
- "Frontline article". Archived from the original on 30 December 2001. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - "First Ministry of Kerala Government". Archived from the original on 2 October 2008. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
External links
| Districts |
|  |
|---|---|---|
| Towns and cities |
| |