Kannur

"Cannanore" redirects here. For other uses, see Cannanore (disambiguation).

This article is about the city in Kerala, India. For the former city state, see Kolathunadu. For the district, see Kannur district. For the town in Karnataka, see Kannur, Dakshina Kannada.

Kannur കണ്ണൂര്‍ Cannanore
—  City  —
Kannur
Coordinates: 11.8689°N 75.3555°E / 11.8689; 75.3555
Country	India
State	Kerala
District	Kannur
Talukas	Kannur, previously known as Chirakkal Taluk
Government
• Municipality Chairperson	M.C. Shreeja (INC)
Population (2011)
• City	63,795
• Metro	1,642,892
Languages
• Official	Malayalam, English
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	670 0xx
Telephone code	91 497
Vehicle registration	KL-13
Website	www.kannur.gov.in

Kannur (IPA: [kaɳɳuːr] ( listen) Malayalam: കണ്ണൂര്‍), also known as Cannanore, is a city in Kannur district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of the District of Kannur and 518 km north of state capital Trivandrum. During British rule in India, Kannur was known by its old name Cannanore (Land of lord Krishna^{[citation needed]}), which is used only by the Indian Railway as of now. Kannur is the sixth largest city in Kerala^{[citation needed]}, after Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode, Kollam and Thrissur. It is the largest city of the North Malabar region. Kannur Municipality was established in 1867 and is one of the oldest municipalities in Kerala.

Kannur is one of the Million Plus urban agglomerations in India with a population of 1,642,892 in 2011. Kannur is known as the Land of Looms and Lore, because of the loom industries functioning in the district and ritualistic folk arts held in temples. Kannur is famous for its pristine beaches, Theyyam, its native performing art, and its handloom industry.

Kannur is of great strategic military importance. It houses one of the 62 military cantonments in the country, the Kannur Cantonment, and is the current headquarters of the Defence Security Corps and Territorial Army’s 122 Infantry Battalion (under Madras Regiment). Ezhimala Naval Academy(INS) is situated 35 km north of Kannur City. It is Asia's largest and the world's third largest naval academy. An Indian Coast Guard Academy is approved to be built at Kannur. This Coast Guard Academy will be built on the banks of Valapattanam River at Irinave, east of Azhikkal. Kannur Cantonment is also one of the important cantonments in India.

Etymology

The name Kannur may have been derived from Kanathur, an ancient village. Another opinion holds that Kannur was originally a portmanteau derived from two Malayalam words: Kannan (Krishna), a Hindu deity, and Ur (place)—making it "the place of Lord Krishna". One support for this theory is that the deity of the Kadalayi Srikrishna Temple was originally installed in a shrine at Kadalayi Kotta in the southeastern part of the present Kannur town. During the British Raj, the city was known as Cannanore, the anglicised form of the Malayalam word Kannur.

History

Kannur is sometimes identified with Naura in Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. In the Middle Ages, Kannur was a port town of Kolathunadu, which was ruled by the Kolathiris. The city was an important port on the Arabian Sea and carried on trade with Persia and Arabia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. It also served as the British military headquarters on India's west coast until 1887. In conjunction with her sister city, Tellicherry, it was the third largest city on the western coast of British India in the eighteenth century after Bombay and Karachi.

St. Angelo Fort was built in 1505 by Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India. It is situated by the Arabian Sea about 3 km from Kannur town. In 1507, the fort was besieged by the local ruler in the Siege of Cannanore (1507). The ownership of the fort has changed hands several times. In 1663, the Dutch captured it. They subsequently gave the fort its present appearance. The Dutch sold the fort to the Arakkal royal family in 1772. During this time, the Arakkal sultanate began issuing coins. The British conquered it in 1790 and used it as one of their major military stations on the Malabar Coast. It is fairly well preserved as a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. A painting of this fort and the fishing ferry as a background is on display at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Kunjali Marakkar's head was removed from his body and exhibited in the fort after his assassination.

Town and bay of Kannur by Thomas Cussans

During the 17th century, Kannur was the capital city of the only Muslim Sultanate of Kerala, known as Arakkal. During the British Raj, Kannur was part of the Madras province in the District of North Malabar.

Administration

• District: Kannur
• Taluk/Tehsil: Kannur
• Block: Kannur
• Assembly Constituency: Kannur
• Parliament Constituency: Kannur
• Police Station: Kannur
• Post Office: 670001
• Telephone Exchange: Kannur 0497
• Nearest Railway Station: Kannur

Politics

Kannur is generally referred to as a strong left hold and has a strong presence of trade unions as well as leftist organizations. However, various other parties have come into power in the recent elections. Some also attribute Kannur with high incidence of political violence, and untoward political events.

Geography and climate

Kannur has an elevation of 1.02 metres (2.98 ft) along the coast of the Arabian Sea, with a sandy coastal area. The town has an 8 km-long seashore and a 3 km-long beach at Payyambalam. Kannur experiences a humid tropical monsoon climate under the Köppen climate classification. In April and May, the average daily maximum temperature is about 35 °C (95 °F). Temperatures are low in December and January: about 20 °C (68 °F). Like other areas on the Malabar Coast, this town receives heavy rainfall during the Southwest Monsoon. The annual average rainfall is 3438 mm, around 68 percent of which is received in July.

Climate data for Kannur
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	32.7 (90.9)	33.1 (91.6)	33.6 (92.5)	34.1 (93.4)	33.3 (91.9)	29.6 (85.3)	28.9 (84)	29.0 (84.2)	30.1 (86.2)	31.0 (87.8)	32.0 (89.6)	32.5 (90.5)	31.66 (88.99)
Average low °C (°F)	21.5 (70.7)	22.3 (72.1)	24.1 (75.4)	25.6 (78.1)	25.3 (77.5)	23.6 (74.5)	23.1 (73.6)	23.1 (73.6)	23.4 (74.1)	23.5 (74.3)	23.0 (73.4)	22.0 (71.6)	23.38 (74.08)
Precipitation mm (inches)	4.8 (0.189)	0.2 (0.008)	52.3 (2.059)	41.7 (1.642)	206.6 (8.134)	1,048.1 (41.264)	875.5 (34.469)	574.4 (22.614)	200.8 (7.906)	221.7 (8.728)	103.3 (4.067)	36.5 (1.437)	3,365.9 (132.517)
Source:

Demographics

According to the 2011 census of India, Kannur has a population of 1,642,892. Males constitute 48% of the population and females, 52%. Kannur has an average literacy rate of 96.23%, higher than the national average of 74.04%. Male literacy is 98% and female literacy is 94%. In Kannur, 12% of the population is under six years of age. Malayalam is the most spoken language.

Landmarks

Kannur City Centre on Fort Road

Shenoy Centre on Fort Road

• Caltex is the central junction of Kannur.
• St. Angelo Fort was built in 1505 by the first Portuguese Viceroy of India, Dom Francisco de Almeida. In 1663, the Dutch captured it and then in 1772, they sold the fort to the Arakkal King. In 1790, the British captured it and it was under the British until 1947.
• Payyambalam Beach is a famous Kannur beach with an unbroken coastline of a few kilometres. From the beach, one can see ships in transit along the Malabar Coast, from beyond Kozhikode moving towards Mangalore, Goa and Bombay (Mumbai). It contains a well laid out garden and the massive landscaped sculpture of Mother and Child erected by noted sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman. But now, rowdies have destroyed those sculptures.
• Arakkal Museum, located in Ayikkara, is a museum dedicated to the Arakkal family, the only Muslim royal family in Kerala, South India. The museum is actually a section of the Arakkalkettu (Arakkal Palace). The Durbar Hall section of the palace has been converted into a museum by the Government of Kerala. It was opened in July 2005 after a massive renovation and is managed by the Arakkal Family Trust.
• Sree Peralassery Temple is located 14 km from Kannur on the way to Koothuparamba.
• MGS Kalari Sangam is a martial arts and massage training academy founded in 1934.
• The Cannanore Lighthouse near the Sea View Park is another place of interest. The first lighthouse at Kannur was built in 1843 by the British at St. Angelo Fort. Over the years, the lighthouse was renovated and in 1948, it was moved to its current location. The lighthouse is still in use.
• The Cannanore Cantonment is one of the 62 cantonments in the country and the only one in Kerala. It was established by the British in the 19th century and is still an important location for Indian armed forces.
• Puthiyatheru, which is situated between Kannur-Taliparamba road, is one of the busiest streets in Kannur, which consist of three roads to Kattampalli and Panakavu and Chirakkal.
• The Defence Security Corps (DSC) Centre and DSC Records are located in Kannur town, on the road to Payyambalam Beach. The area is a part of the Cannanore Cantonment and is maintained by the Cantonment Board. The DSC centre at Kannur is the mother depot to all platoons in the country.
• Baby Beach is so called because it is smaller than its larger neighbour, Payyambalam Beach. St. Angelo Fort is adjacent to it. The baby beach is part of the Cannanore Cantonment and access may be restricted at times.
• Meenkunnu Beach is at Azhikode, just a few kilometres from the town.
• Mopla Bay in Ayikkara, near St. Angelo fort, is a major fishing harbor overlooking the Arabian Sea.

• The Azhikkal Ferry operates near Azhikode, about 10 km from Kannur town, where the Valapattanam river joins the Arabian Sea. The Azhikkal ferry gives a magnificent view of the sunset. There is a granite pathway here which stretches 2 km into the sea. Frequent passenger boats are available to Mattool, Parassinikkadavu and Valapattanam from here.
• The Fort road is the one of the busiest roads in kannur. There are many malls and shopping streets there. The Kannur City Center is a prominent shopping center on Fort Road.
• Sea View Park, near Payyambalam Beach, is overlooked by the Government Guest House. The park is elevated above the sea level and gives a magnificent view of the sunset.
• Kannur Central Bus Terminal is Kerala's biggest bus terminal. Located at Thavakkara, it is also India's first bus terminal to be developed on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.
• Thottada Beach is a beautiful beach in Kannur district. It is situated just about 2.5 km from the NH 17 connecting Kannur town and Thalassery.

Growing skyline of Kannur Payyambalam seashore

Education

In the 14th and 15th centuries, during the regime of the Kolathiri Rajas, Taliparamba was renowned in Kerala as a seat of learning, enlightenment and culture. In the early days, the Eshuthu pallies under the Ezhuthachan or village school master provided facilities to pupils to acquire elementary education. After undergoing the preliminary course of study in these institutions, the children were sent to the kalaries for acquiring training in gymnastics and in the use of arms and then they were sent to study Sanskrit in Vedic schools. This district had, in the past, its share of such kalaries and Vedic schools. The art of Kalaripayattu is particularly associated with this district.

The beginning of western education in the district may be traced back to the middle of the 16th century. The first English school, known as the Basel German Mission English School, was started on 1 March 1856 at Thalassery. The Brennen School at Thalassery, the nucleus of the present Government Brennen College, was started in 1862 with a generous donation made by Mr. Brennen, Master Attendant at Thalassery. Visit the website - www.brennencollege.org for more details and current activities of Brennen College.

Kannur District has five Kendriya Vidyalaya located at *Kannur, *Keltron Nagar, Taliparamba, *Payyanur, *Ezhimala, and *Peringome, Thalassery.

Kannur University was established by Act 22 of 1996 of the Kerala Legislative Assembly. The university by the name “Malabar University” had come into existence even earlier by the promulgation of an ordinance by the Governor of Kerala, on 9 November 1995. The university was inaugurated on 2 March 1996 by the Chief Minister of Kerala. The objective of the Kannur University Act 1996 was to establish in the state of Kerala a teaching, residential and affiliating university so as to provide for the development of higher education in Kasargod and Kannur revenue districts and the Mananthavady Taluk of Wayanad district. Kannur University is a multi-campus university.

Government College of Engineering, Kannur was established in 1986 near Taliparamba as a center for imparting engineering education in northern Kerala. Today the college is among the top ten engineering colleges of the state, providing higher studies in the field of technical education.

Pariyaram Medical College was established in 1999 near Taliparamba. The medical college is at a distance of 10 km from Taliparamba and 32 km north of Kannur. Kannur Medical College was established in 2006 at Anjarakkandy with a 500-bed hospital.

The thirteenth National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Campus in Kannur is located near Taliparamba in Dharmashala, 15 km north of Kannur town.

AKG Memorial Co-Operative College of Nursing is located at Poduvachery road Mavilayi, Kannur.

Kannur had the highest rate of passage in 2011–12 SSLC.

Transportation

Road

Central bus terminal – Kannur

Kannur is on National Highway 66 or NH 66 (formerly National Highway 17) between Kozhikode and Mangalore. This highway is scheduled to be expanded to four lanes soon. A bypass for Kannur city is also proposed under the NH widening project. Kannur is connected to Kodagu, Mysore and Bangalore in Karnataka through the Thalassery–Coorg–Mysore interstate highway.

Kannur has several private and KSRTC buses plying places inside and outside Kannur district. Kannur is well-connected to its suburbs through several city buses. Kannur city has four bus terminals namely Kannur Central Bus Terminal at Thavakkara which is Kerala's biggest bus terminal, Old Bus Stand near to Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, City Bus Stand near to the District HQ Hospital and the KSRTC bus stand at Caltex Junction (on NH-66). Being the busiest junctions in Kannur, the authorities have installed 3 traffic signal light systems at Caltex, Thana, Melechovva junctions. But the people face severe road blocks at Melechovva and Puthiyatheru junctions.

Railway

Kannur Railway Station is one of the major railway stations of the Southern Railway, under the jurisdiction of the Palakkad Division. All trains including the Trivandrum Rajdhani Express and Kochuveli Garib Rath stop at Kannur. Six daily trains and around 15 weekly or bi-weekly trains connect Kannur to the capital Trivandrum. There are a few express trains starting from Kannur to places like Yeshvantpur, (Bangalore), Alappuzha and Ernakulam. Kannur South, Chirakkal, Valapattanam and Pappinisseri are some minor railway stations near Kannur where only passenger trains stop. A survey for a railway line from Kannur South to Kannur International Airport in Mattannur is announced in the 2011–2012 Union Railway Budget.

Air

Two airports—one at Mangalore, Karnataka, in the north about 173 kilometer away and one at Calicut International Airport in the south—about 125 kilometres away from Kannur town, provide air services to the city.

A new international airport is under construction near Mattanur in Kannur district. Kannur International Airport's foundation stone was laid by V. S. Achuthanandan, Chief Minister of Kerala, on 17 December 2010. The airport is proposed to be completed by 2015.

Seaport

Kannur is an ancient sea port. The nearest all-weather sea port is Mangalore in Karnataka state. Azhikkal port in Kannur has been included for developing coastal shipping by the Government of India under the National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP). A Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been prepared by ICICI-KINFRA for the development of Azhikkal port.

Media

Malayalam movie actors Sreenivasan, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Vineeth, Vineeth Kumar, Samvrutha Sunil, TV Chandran, Manju Warrier, Archana Kavi, and Sanusha are from Kannur District, as are music composers Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri, K. Raghavan, Kannur Rajan, Ramesh Narayanan, Sathyan Edakkad, dancer Shamna Kasim and singer Erancholi Moosa , Sayanora.

Many local cable television channels are available in Kannur. The most popular cable channels are City Channel, City Gold, City Juke, Network Channel(s), Zeal Network, Kannur Vision, World Vision, Worldvision Music, Chakkarakkal, and Gramika channel Koothuparamba.

All India Radio is broadcast in Kannur at 101.5 megahertz. Private FM radio stations in Kannur include: Radio Mango 91.9 (Malayala Manorama Co Ltd), Club FM 94.3 (Mathrubhumi Printing And Publishing Co Ltd), Red FM 93.5 (Sun Network), and Best FM 95.0 (Asianet Communications Ltd).

A number of newspapers are published from Kannur, including the Malayala Manorama, Mathrubhumi, Madhyamam, Deshabhimani, Deepika, Chandrika, Kerala Kaumudi, News First, Janmabhumi, Veekshanam, , Thejas, and Siraj.

Temples

There are many temples and divine shrines in the coastal region of Kannur. The Annapurneshwari temple is believed to be the most divine shrine, which came up from the sea centuries ago.

Other temples are

• Kottiyoor Shiva Temple
• Kanhirangad Vaidyanatha Temple
• Parassinikadavu Sree Muthappan Temple
• Ramanthali Sankaranarayana Temple
• Thayyil Sree Venkataramana Temple
• Subramania Temple
• Trichambaram Temples
• Subramanya Temple
• Suryanarayana Temple
• Sree Vithobha Temple
• Thaliparambu Rajarajeswara Temple
• Kadalayi Sreekrishna Temple
• Peralassery Subrahmanya Temple
• Thiruvangad Sriram Temple
• Kandamthalli Sreekrishna Temple

See also

Taliparamba
Thalassery
Kannur District
Malabar District
Kannur International Airport
Kannur University
Indian Naval Academy
Defense Security Corps

External links

• Official website
• Official website (Alternative URL)
• Kannur Airport
• Kannur Facebook Page