Palakkad Palghat | |
|---|---|
City | |
 From top Left to Right : Palakkad Municipal Office,IIT Palakkad,Government Victoria College, Palakkad,Chandranagar roundabout, Night view of Palakkad, Skyline of Palakkad | |
| Nickname: Gateway of Kerala | |
  Palakkad  Palakkad | |
| Coordinates:10°46′30″N76°39′04″E / 10.775°N 76.651°E /10.775; 76.651 | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Kerala |
| Region | South Malabar |
| District | Palakkad |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| • Body | Palakkad Municipality |
| • Chairperson | Prameela Sasidharan (BJP) |
| • Deputy Chairman | E. Krishnadas (BJP) |
| • Member of Legislative Assembly | Rahul Mamkootathil (INC) |
| • District Collector | B. Rahul,IAS |
| Area | |
• City | 26.60 km2 (10.27 sq mi) |
| • Metro | 123.32 km2 (47.61 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 84 m (276 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
• City | 130,955 |
| • Density | 4,900/km2 (13,000/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 293,533 |
| Demonym | Palakkadan |
| Language | |
| • Official | Malayalam |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Postal Index Number | 678 XXX |
| Area code | +91-(0)491 |
| Vehicle registration | KL-09 |
| Climate | Am/Aw (Köppen) |
| Website | palakkadmunicipality.in |
Palakkad (Malayalam:[pɐːlɐkːɐːɖɨ̆]ⓘ),also known asPalghat, historically known asPalakkattussery[citation needed][3], is a city and amunicipality in theIndian state ofKerala. It is the administrative headquarters ofPalakkad District. Palakkad is themost densely populated municipality and thefourth-most densely populated city in the state.[4] It was established before Indian independence underBritish rule and known by the name Palghat. Palakkad is famous for the ancientPalakkad Fort, which is in the heart of the city and was captured and rebuilt byHyder Ali in 1766 which later fell into the hands ofZamorin in 1784. The city is about 347 kilometres (216 mi) northeast of the state capital,Thiruvananthapuram.
The 18th-centuryPalakkad Fort has sturdy battlements, a moat, and a Hanuman temple on its grounds. North on theKalpathy River, the 15th-centuryViswanatha Swamy Temple is the main venue of the Ratholsavam chariot festival. The riverBharathappuzha flows through Palakkad.[5] Palakkad is on the northern bank of Bharathappuzha River.[5]
Palakkad was included in theSouth Malabar region ofMalabar District during the British Raj. The municipality of Palakkad was formed on 1 November 1866 according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850) of the British Indian Empire, along with the municipalities ofKozhikode,Kannur,Thalassery, andFort Kochi, making them Kerala's oldest modern municipalities.
Indian Institute of Technology, Palakkad is the first and onlyIndian Institute of Technology in Kerala.[6][7] It is also home toGovernment Victoria College, one of the state's oldest institutes of higher education, opened in 1888, andNSS College of Engineering, the fourth engineering college in Kerala, opened in 1960.Mercy College is a women's college located in the city which was established in 1964. It is the first Women's college in the Palakkad District.
Palakkad Railway Division ofSouthern Railway Zone, one of India's oldest Railway Divisions, is headquartered here. A residential colony of the railway employees of Palakkad Railway Division known asHemambika Nagar Railway Colony, one of the residential colonies under Southern Railway, is also near the office.[8] The only school in the state run bySouthern Railways is within the colony.[9] Multi-Disciplinary Divisional Training Institute (MDDTI) for Group C and D employees of the division is also inside the colony.[10]
The commonly held belief is that the name Palakkad is a fusion of twoMalayalam words:pāla, which is the local name forblackboard tree (Alstonia scholaris), andkāṭŭ, which meansforest.[11]
The region aroundCoimbatore was ruled by theCheras duringSangam period between the first and fourth centuries CE and served as the eastern entrance to thePalakkad Gap, the principal trade route between theMalabar Coast andTamil Nadu.[12] Palakkad city was ruled by the Palakkad Rajas (Tarur Swaroopam).[13]Palakkad Raja had the right over theTaluks of Palakkad,Alathur, andChittur.Chittur Taluk was part ofCochin Kingdom.[13] The original headquarters ofPalakkad Rajas were atAthavanad,Tirur Taluk, in present-dayMalappuram district.[13] It is said that their lands atAthavanad area were given to theAzhvanchery Thamprakkal and the Palakkad-Chittur areas were bought from them instead.[13] The territory of Palakkad Rajas had been under theZamorin of Calicut for sometime.[13]
In 1757, to resist the invasion of theZamorin of Kozhikode, the Palakkad Raja sought the help of theHyder Ali ofMysore.[14] In 1766,Hyder Ali defeated the Zamorin of Kozhikode – anEast India Company ally at the time – and absorbed Kozhikode into his state.[14] The Hyder Ali rebuilt Palakkad Fort in 1766.[15] The smaller princely states in northern and north-central parts of Kerala (Malabar District) includingKolathunadu,Kottayam,Kadathanadu,Kozhikode,Tanur,Valluvanad, and Palakkad were unified under Mysore and were made a part of the largerKingdom of Mysore.[16] His son and successor,Tipu Sultan,launched campaigns against the expandingBritish East India Company, resulting in two of the fourAnglo-Mysore Wars.[17][18]
Tipu ultimately ceded theMalabar District andSouth Kanara to the company in the 1790s as a result of theThird Anglo-Mysore War and the subsequentTreaty of Seringapatam; both were annexed to theBombay Presidency (which had also included other regions in the western coast of India) ofBritish India in the years 1792 and 1799, respectively.[19][20][21] Later in 1800, both of theMalabar District andSouth Canara were separated from Bombay presidency to merge them with the neighbouringMadras Presidency.[15] Palakkad was underBritish Raj until 1947.
The municipality of Palakkad was formed on 1 November 1866 according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850)[22][23][24][25] of theBritish Indian Empire, along with the municipalities ofKozhikode,Kannur,Thalassery, andFort Kochi, making them the first modern municipalities in the modern state of Kerala.
At the time of1951 Census of India, Palakkad was the second-largest city in the erstwhileMalabar District afterKozhikode.[26] At that time only two towns in Malabar was treated as cities:Kozhikode and Palakkad.[26] Following the formation of the state of Kerala in 1956, the erstwhileTaluk of Palakkad inMalabar District was divided into three: Palakkad,Alathur, andChittur.Chittur and few areas ofAlathur was part ofCochin Kingdom. and Palakkad district was formed by taking parts ofMalabar District andCochin Kingdom.[15]
Palakkad is the gateway to Kerala due to the presence of the Palakkad Gap in theWestern Ghats.[27] The city is in central Kerala. Malayalam is the official language in Palakkad. Two main tributaries ofBharathapuzha,Kalpathi River andKannadi River flows through the city. Of the numerous dams in Palakkad district, the largestMalampuzha dam is 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from Palakkad city.[28]
Palakkad is about 347 kilometres (216 mi) northeast ofTrivandrum,144 kilometres (89 mi) ofKochi, 50 kilometres (31 mi) southwest ofCoimbatore in Tamil Nadu, 66 kilometres (41 mi) northeast ofThrissur, and 127 kilometres (79 mi) southeast ofKozhikode, which are mainly connected byNational Highways, namelySalem-Kochi National HighwayNH 544, andKozhikode-Palakkad National HighwayNH 966
Palakkad has a tropical wet and dry climate. Temperatures remain moderate throughout the year, with the exception being March and April, the hottest months. A very high amount of precipitation is received in Palakkad, mainly due to the South-West monsoon. July is the wettest month, and the total annual rainfall is around 100 cm.
| Climate data for Palakkad (1991–2020, extremes 1943–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 37.6 (99.7) | 40.0 (104.0) | 41.4 (106.5) | 41.9 (107.4) | 41.6 (106.9) | 40.4 (104.7) | 33.6 (92.5) | 34.6 (94.3) | 35.9 (96.6) | 36.2 (97.2) | 38.0 (100.4) | 36.6 (97.9) | 41.9 (107.4) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 32.4 (90.3) | 34.7 (94.5) | 37.0 (98.6) | 36.7 (98.1) | 34.7 (94.5) | 30.4 (86.7) | 28.9 (84.0) | 29.3 (84.7) | 30.6 (87.1) | 31.5 (88.7) | 31.5 (88.7) | 31.0 (87.8) | 32.5 (90.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 22.5 (72.5) | 23.2 (73.8) | 24.6 (76.3) | 25.5 (77.9) | 25.3 (77.5) | 23.9 (75.0) | 23.1 (73.6) | 23.4 (74.1) | 23.6 (74.5) | 23.7 (74.7) | 23.8 (74.8) | 23.1 (73.6) | 23.8 (74.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 15.6 (60.1) | 15.8 (60.4) | 18.6 (65.5) | 18.8 (65.8) | 19.2 (66.6) | 19.0 (66.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 19.2 (66.6) | 19.4 (66.9) | 15.8 (60.4) | 16.1 (61.0) | 14.0 (57.2) | 14.0 (57.2) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 1.8 (0.07) | 6.2 (0.24) | 18.1 (0.71) | 52.3 (2.06) | 131.7 (5.19) | 376.6 (14.83) | 479.0 (18.86) | 374.1 (14.73) | 203.6 (8.02) | 197.2 (7.76) | 96.9 (3.81) | 13.4 (0.53) | 1,951 (76.81) |
| Average rainy days | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 3.3 | 5.6 | 16.5 | 20.2 | 16.2 | 10.8 | 9.6 | 4.8 | 0.8 | 89.3 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%)(at 17:30IST) | 44 | 39 | 38 | 51 | 60 | 78 | 82 | 81 | 75 | 72 | 63 | 56 | 61 |
| Source:India Meteorological Department[29][30][31] | |||||||||||||
The nearest international airport isCoimbatore International Airport, which is about 62 kilometres (39 mi) from Palakkad.Cochin International Airport andCalicut International Airport serve the city as well.
There has been a proposal for a mini domestic airport at EastYakkara with respect to setting up domestic airports for enhanced air connectivity by the civil aviation ministry of India. 60 acres has been identified for the project at East Yakkara Palakkad.[32]
ThePalakkad railway division is one of the six administrative divisions of theSouthern Railway zone ofIndian Railways, is headquartered in the city. Railways played an important role in framing of the city. It was established on August 4, 1956, making one of oldest railway division in India. It manages 588 route kilometers of track in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka andMahé (in the Union Territory of Puducherry).
The city is served by two railway stations –Palakkad Junction is abroad gauge railway junction (atOlavakkode, about 4 km from Municipal bus stand) andPalakkad Town railway station in the heart of Palakkad city. Recently, pitline installation has been started at Town Railway Station and is expected to be completed by March 2025. By the completion of this project, it could make not only the city a major railway in the state.[33]
Palakkad is well connected with all major cities. TheNH 544 fromSalem toErnakulam passes through the city.NH 966 starts from Ramanattukara inKozhikode and joinsNH 544 atChandranagar, one of the suburbs of the city.[34] Other important roads are the Palakkad – Ponnani road which connects toNH 66 .SH 52 begins nearChandranagar, which connects toPollachi, andSH 27 begins at the Civil Station and connects to Meenakshipuram (Kerala-Tamil Nadu State Border).
Palakkad City has four Bus Stations includesPalakkad KSRTC bus terminal and three Private Bus stands namedStadium Bus Stand, Municipal Bus stand, and Town Bus Stand.
| Religions in palakkad | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Religion | Percent | |||
| Hindus | 68% | |||
| Muslims | 27.9% | |||
| Christians | 3.8% | |||
| Others | 0.3% | |||
As per 2011 census, population of Palakkad is 130,955; of which male and female are 63,833 and 67,122 respectively.[35]
Total literates in Palakkad city are 112,479, of which 56,065 are males while 56,414 are females. The average literacy rate of Palakkad city is 94.20 percent of which male and female literacy was 96.83 and 91.73 percent. The literacy rate of the Palakkad Metropolitan Area is 92.14%, much higher than the national average of 59.5%.[36][37]
Hindus form 68% of the population with 89098 members.[35]Muslims constitute 27.9% of the population with 36620 members.[35]Christians constitute 3.8% of the population with 5006 members.[35]
Palakkad city is represented in theKerala State Assembly by two elected members, one fromPalakkad Assembly constituency and another fromMalampuzha Assembly constituency. Palakkad Municipality forms part of Palakkad Assembly Constituency. As of 2021,Shafi Parambil is the representative of Palakkad Assembly Constituency andA. Prabhakaran is the representative of Malampuzha Assembly Constituency.
The city is also a part of thePalakkad Lok Sabha constituency and elects a member to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India, every five years. The current MP isV. K. Sreekandan of the Indian National Congress.
Collectorate ofPalakkad district is located in the city. Many other offices including District Court Complex and District Panchayat Office are also in the city. Palakkad taluk office is also in civil station, and administers an area of 713 km2 with a population of 6,21,622, making it the district'smost populous taluk.
The city is the headquarters of Palakkad District Police.[38] Mainly, three police stations serve the city: North, South, and Traffic police stations.[39][40][41] Hemambika Nagar, Palakkad Kasaba, Malampuzha and Walayar Police Stations also serve the city.[42][43][44][45] Kerala Armed Police 2 Battalion is situated atMuttikulangara, one of the suburbs.[46] District Armed Reserved Police Camp of Palakkad district is inKallekkad, about 10 km from the centre of the city.[47]
The presence ofPalakkad Gap and proximity toCoimbatore makes Palakkad economically important.British Physical Laboratories (BPL) was founded in 1963 in Palakkad. Market Road is one of the oldest and longest roads devoted to trade and commerce. It stretches fromMelamuri Junction on the west to Shakunthala Junction on the east, covering 3 km, and was Palakkatussery's commercial centre and a major marketplace.[48] This stretch of the city is known as Valiyangadi or Big Bazaar. Many wholesale shops are along this road.Kanjikode area of Palakkad city is second largest industrial hub in Kerala afterKochi.[49] Kanjikode has many companies likeIndian Telephone Industries Limited (ITI), Instrumentation Limited,[50] Fluid Control Research Institute(FCRI),[51]Saint-Gobain India Private Limited(formerly SEPR Refractories India Private Limited), Patspin India Ltd,[52] Pepsi, PPS steel (Kerala) PVT Ltd,United Breweries, Empee Distilleries, Marico,Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), Rubfila International Ltd, Sitics Logistics, Arya Vaidya Pharmacy,[53] Kottakkal Arya Vaidya Sala[54] have production facilities. There are also many other steel manufacturing units and other production centres making it second largest industrial area inKerala.
The commercialization of Palakkad city is Picking up and growing at a steady pace in recent years, Nowadays Palakkad city and the suburbs are witnessing a rapid amount of commercial and public development activities.[55] The developments are mainly concentrated on the bypass roads, Both Stadium and Calicut bypass roads[56][57] passing through the city are getting major commercial projects. Major national and international branded Retail chains, food chains, Restaurants, Hotels, Shopping complexes, Textiles, branded jewellers, and Vehicle Showrooms, are functioning in and around the city. There are many housing colonies consisting of Villas and apartments also present in Palakkad City and its suburbs.[58][59][60]
On 3 July 1866, the Governor of Madras declared Palakkad as a city.[61] The municipality of Palakkad was formed on 1 November 1866 according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865. (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850).[62] On 11 September 1912, the system of electing the city father by the councillors began.[61] City Council expanded to 28 wards in 1938, 32 wards in 1973 and 36 wards in 1978.[61] During the period 1995–98 and in 2015 when Municipality celebrated 150 years, there were proposals to upgrade Palakkad Municipality to a Municipal Corporation.[63][64][65] Palakkad Municipality has 52 wards now, headed by Municipal Chairperson.[66] The current Chairperson of Palakkad Municipality is K.Priya Ajayan and E. Krishnadas is the deputy chairman.
The metropolitan area of Palakkad includes Palakkad Municipality,Hemambika Nagar,Marutharode,Mathur,Pirayiri,Pudussery West,Pudussery Central andPuthupariyaram.[37] Its urban / metropolitan population is 293,566 of which 143,650 are males and 149,916 are females. The proposed Palakkad Municipal Corporation has an area of 197.566 km2.[67] Following local bodies are the local bodies which supposed to be the part.
The city of Palakkad has number of Prominent Educational Institutions which provide a great platform for higher education.Government Victoria College, Palakkad was established in the year 1866, making it one of the oldest institution of higher learning in Kerala. First and the onlyIndian Institute of Technology in the state ofKerala,Indian Institute of Technology, Palakkad is located in the city. The campus currently functions in two campuses-temporary one atAhalia Campus and the Nila campus which are separated by 13 km. It is one of the five newIITs proposed in the2014 Union budget of India.
Government Medical College, Palakkad, started in 2014 is the first Government medical college in the district. It is the first medical college in country under Scheduled caste Development Department.NSS College of Engineering atAkathethara, is thefourth Engineering Institution established inKerala, India. It was founded in 1960 byNair Service Society.The college is one among the only three Govt-Aided Engineering college inKerala and is the first Govt-Aided Engineering college accredited by NBA of AICTE.Chembai Memorial Government Music College is one of the main center of excellence in teaching Carnatic music in the state. It was given the name of the legendaryCarnatic musicianChembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar from Palakkad.Mercy College is a women's college located in the city which was established in 1964. It is the first Women's college in the Palakkad District. The college is organized by theUniversity Grants Commission.
Ahalia Campus is the largest Edu-health campus in Kerala. It is located about 18 km from the centre of the city consisting of a number of educational institutions and medical institutes. It has three hospitals, one medical college, one school and five colleges which includes an engineering college, college of pharmacy, college of optometry, college of paramedical sciences and college of management.Basel Evangelical Mission Higher Secondary School, located in the city was established in 1858 making it one of the oldest schools in Kerala. Government Moyan Model Girls Higher Secondary School located in College Road was founded in 1917 and is one of the largest government schools in the state and one of the schools having large strength of students studying.[69]
First government medical college in the district (Government Medical College, Palakkad) is located in the city. District Hospital located in Court Road is one of biggest district hospitals inKerala. There are also some private hospitals for serving the city. Rajiv Gandhi Co-Operative Multispeciality Hospital is a Cooperative Hospital located atKallekkad, one of the suburbs of the city.[70]Ahalia Campus is the largest edu-health campus in Kerala located about 18 km from centre of the city, consists of 3 hospitals and 1 medical college includingAhalia Foundation Eye Hospital,Ahalia Ayurvedic Medical College and Hospital,Ahalia Diabetes Hospital andAhalia Women and Children's Hospital.[71]
Palakkad is a city where people from all religions live together with peace. Many temples, mosques churches and other religious centres are located in and around the city.[72][73]Manappullikavu Vela is one of the largest fests that takes place in the city. It is hosted by 8 sets of committees or deshams. Large crowds gather in front of the fort for witnessing the fest. Elephants and fireworks are the highlights.[74]Kalpathi Ratholsavam is an annual fest that takes place inKalpathy, which is the first heritage village in Kerala. Chariot is the main attraction of the fest.[75] There are also many other festivals in the city where people come and enjoy with unity by forgetting about religion.
Heritage villages or mostly called byAgraharams are important as far as the city is concerned. There are around 24 heritage villages in and around the city[76] where the Tamil Brahmins migrated from parts Tamil Nadu many years before live together.[77] AJain temple is located atJainamedu, one of the suburbs of the city and is one of the few places in Kerala where the vestiges ofJainism in Kerala have survived.[78] Sree Emoor Bhagavathy temple located atKallekulangara, another suburb of the city is believed to be consecrated by Parasurama for the safety of Kerala.[79] Holy Trinity English Church located nearPalakkad Fort was established in the year 1855.[80] The only Urdu Juma Masjid in Kerala is located at Diara Street.[81]
Some of the majorMalayalam and English newspapers from Kerala includingMalayala Manorama,Mathrubhumi,Deshabhimani, andSuprabhaatham Daily have printing centers in the city, and there are also few evening newspapers published in the city. Local news channels like (ACV) are also functioning in the city. Palakkad Press Club is located on Robinson road, Sultanpet. A private FM Station operating in Palakkad at Ahalya Campus. There is a long-term demand for setting up a government FM Station in Palakkad. At present total number of 8cinema halls are operational in Palakkad which screensMalayalam, English,Tamil, andHindi movies, there are few othermultiplex screens are under construction and expect to open near future in and around the city.
Palakkad has a rich history of producing some world class athletes in the state, Palakkad, Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium in the center of city was once used for Major sports meets and football matches in state, now the stadium is not in condition for conducting games due to the lack of maintenance, There is a proposal for the renovation of the stadium with international facilities by the Municipality,[82] The city hasFort Maidan[83] also known as Kota Maidanam, is a multi-use stadium in the center of the Palakkad, India. It is currently used mostly forcricket matches. Fort Maidan holds a maximum capacity of 10,000 people at a time. Up until 2002 the ground was considered for local cricket only.[84] In 2003,Ranji Trophy was introduced in Fort Maidan. The city has an indoor stadium[85] located nearGovernment Victoria College, Palakkad with a total area of 100,000 square feet (9,300 m2) with commercial establishments is still unfinished & incomplete. There is a Synthetic Track with Eight lines operational in the ground of theGovernment Medical College, Palakkad.[86]
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