Irinjalakuda

Irinjalakuda
varadanangalude nadu
—  municipality and town  —
Irinjalakuda Location of Irinjalakuda in Kerala and India
Coordinates	10°20′N 76°14′E
Country	India
State	Kerala
District(s)	Thrissur
Population	28,873 (2001)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 39 metres (128 ft)
Codes • Telephone • +0480 • Vehicle • KL-45

Irinjalakuda (Malayalam: ഇരിഞ്ഞാലക്കുട) is a municipal town situated in the Thrissur district of Kerala, India. The town is famous for the Koodalmanikyam Temple that has Bharata as the main deity. The town is also famous for the St Thomas Cathedral in the heart of the City. Irinjalakuda is known as the varadanangalude nadu.

History

According to Hindu mythology, Irinjalakuda was created by sage Parasurama. According to Keralolpatthi, out of the 64 gramas (villages) established in Kerala, Irinjalakuda was the head of 10 of them. Irinjalakuda was one of the most prominent among these villages. Like the other villages this ‘Grama’ also followed the ‘Chathurvarnia’ system of society which lay upon caste system based on the ‘Manusmruthi’.

The name Irinjalakuda has been derived from "Iru" and "Chaal" meaning two streams. According to another legend, the origin of the name Irinjalakuda came from 'Irinjalikoodal'. 'Koodal' simply means merge together, merging of two rivers. Two streams that start, one from Kurmalipuzha and the other from Kudapuzha, that belongs to Chalakudypuzha, and move through Konthipulam at North whereas, the other one through Velukara at South. Then these two streams merge together in the West. So it shows that Irinjalakuda may have gradually developed, from 'Irinjalikoodal', that derived from 'Inangikoodal', means - merge together. At present there is no river in Irinjalakuda, only but the myth of river.

Another legend suggests that the origin of the name Irinjalakuda were heard, "Irunnu Salayil Koodai”, and "Virinja Alu Kuda". There is a huge Banyan tree still standing in the centre of the Irinjalakuda spreading the branches to the sky like an umbrella. In 18th century the Ruler of Kochi, Sakthan Thampuran brought four Christian families for improving commerce and trade to the place known as ‘Chanthappura’(now Chandakunnu). When they struck gold in this field, more of this community migrated and settled in the area and now it became one of the strong hold of this community. Besides Hindu and Christian communities this area consists of a large number of Muslims.

A prominent Kerala mathematician-astronomer Mādhava of Sañgamāgrama who founded Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics was from Sangamagrama, a town in medieval Kerala believed to be the town of Irinjalakuda.

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, Irinjalakuda had a population of 32,873. Males constitute 48% of the population and females 52%. Irinjalakuda has an average literacy rate of 96% which is much higher than the national average of 74.65%. While male literacy stands at 97.12%, female literacy is 94.56%. 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Economy

In 18th century, the ruler of Kingdom of Cochin, Sakthan Thampuran, brought four Christian families for improving commerce and trade to the place known as 'Chanthappura' (now Chandakunnu) near Irinjalakuda. Economic development took place and Kochi Divan Shanmughan Chetty constructed a canal link known as ‘Shanmugham Canal’ to Cochin which improved the water transport of goods and hence the business. The canal still exists even it has lost the past glory. The ayurvedic soap, Chandrika, made by C. R. Kesavan Vaidyar originated in Irinjalakuda and was bought by the Bangalore company Wipro. Another company which had made it big is Bombay Stock Exchange listed is Kerala Solvent Extractions Ltd. The company manufacture cattle feed, edible oils and dairy products. KPL Oil Mills Private Ltd, a big name in packaged coconut oil industry is now national product which is available all over India.

Government

Irinjalakuda Court Complex

Irinjalakuda is governed by Irinjalakuda Municipality. The Municipality was formed on February 8, 1936 with an area of 11.24 square kilometres. C.K. Varunny was the first municipal chairman and the municipality was divided into 22 electoral wards. Now, the Municipality has 41 wards. Irinjalakuda is the headquarters of the Irinjalakuda Taluk and is a Grade-II municipality. There is a court complex inside the Civil Station that houses the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Additional Sub Court, Munsif Courts and Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal. (M.A.C.T.) Irinjalakuda also have a Sub Jail. Irinjalakuda assembly constituency was a part of Mukundapuram (Lok Sabha constituency). Now it is a part of Thrissur (Lok Sabha constituency). The MLA of the municipality is Advocate Thomas Unniyadan. Lonappan Nambadan was the last MP of Mukundapuram, now the MP is PC Chacko.

Transportation

Road

Irinjalakuda is located on State Highway 22 (Kerala), which links to major national highways NH 47 and NH 17 in the State. Two main roads State Highway 22 (Kerala) (Kodungallur-Shornur) Road and State Highway 61 (Kerala) (Potta-Moonupeedika) criss-crosses Irinjalakuda town. There is a private bus station in Irinjalakuda which serves local and inter-district travellers.

Railways

The nearest railway station is the Irinjalakuda Railway Station which is about 7 km East of the town at Kallettumkara. Irinjalakuda Railway Station is managed by the Southern Railways of Indian Railways. Most express trains stop at this station. Thrissur Railway Station is another major railhead around 20 km from Irinjalakuda. Guruvayoor–Chennai Egmore Express, Venad Express, Kanyakumari-Bangalore Express, Parasuram Express, Thiruvananthapuram-Mangalore Express and Chennai-Alappuzha Express are the some trains which stop at Irinjalakuda Railway Station.

Air

The nearest airport is the Cochin International Airport at Nedumbassery, which is 34 km away. The airport is well connected to all major airports in India and also connected to many foreign cities. Direct flights are available to Chennai, New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.

Healthcare

Irinjalakuda Co-operative Hospital

Irinjalakuda has several hospitals and health clinics. Govt Taluk Hospital, Marina Hospital, Sacred Heart Hospital, Lal Memorial Hospital and ESI Dispensary are few to name. Ayurveda Hospitals like Kandamkulathy Ayurveda Hospital and Govt Ayurveda Hospital are also available here.

Education

Christ College

Between the 14th and 16th Century, it was a center of learning. Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics which was believed to be founded here, made major contributions in Algebra, Arithmetic, Astronomy, Calculus, Geometry, Infinite Series and Linguistics.

In the present day there are lots of educational institutions which provides education from nursery to college level.

Irinjalakuda Municipal Office

Colleges

• Christ College
• St. Joseph's Girls College
• Jyothis College Irinjalakuda
• Namboodiris College of Teacher education
• Lisieux Convent & Home Science College
• Bharathiar University, off campus, Christ College
• PNS College of Engineering & KTES Industrial Training Center
• chemmanur academy irinjalakuda

Schools

• National High School
• Govt Girls High School
• Santhinikethan Public school
• Govt. Model Boys High School
• Don Bosco Higher Secondary School
• Don Bosco Central School (ICSE & ISC)
• St Mary's High School
• Little Flower Girls High School
• Mahatma UP School, Porathissery
• Christ Vidyaniketan.
• Sree Narayana Higher Secondary School
• Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's Vidya Mandir
• N.S.S. Sangameshwara English Medium School
• Prateeksha Bhavan (School for the mentally struggling children)
• N.S.S Public School,(CBSC)

External links

• Irinjalakuda Municipality : Official Website
• www.irinjalakudalive.com : Internet News Channel