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Pathanamthitta

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Pathanamthitta
PATHANAMTHITTA
town
Population
 (2001)
 • Total37,802
Websitehttp://www.pta.kerala.gov.in/intro.htm
For the district with the same name, see Pathanamthitta district

Pathanamthitta is a town situated in the very heart of the Central Travancore region of Kerala State, India.It is the administrative capital of The Pathanamthitta District. The town has a population of 38,000. It is known as the 'Pilgrim Capital of Kerala'. Pathanamthitta is a fast-developing town and business center. It is the main transport hub to the famous Hindu pilgrim center of Sabarimala. The main trunk road to Sabarimala is from Pathanamthitta. The Main Eastern Highway (Punalur-Pathanamthitta-Muvattupuzha Road/SH-08) and T.K.Road (Thiruvalla-Pathanamthitta-Kumbazha Road/SH-07) pass through Pathanamthitta. Pathanamthitta is a cosmopolitan town, with people of different faiths like Hindus, Christians, and Muslims live in harmony. Pathanamthitta District has a communal break up of Hindus 55.58%, Christians 40.35%, Muslims 4.03%.

Etymology

The name Pathanamthitta is derived from two Malayalam words Pathanam and thitta, which together mean "houses by the riverside".

Pathanamthitta town is located on the fertile banks of the River Achankovil.

Geography

Pathanamthitta is located at 9°16′N 76°47′E / 9.27°N 76.78°E / 9.27; 76.78[1]. It has an average elevation of 19 metres (62 ft) above sea level.

A sign-board that indicates the direction to Sabarimala. The multilingual board is written in English, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Kannad

Pathanamthitta district is bordered by Alappuzha district on west, Kottayam and Idukki districts on north, Kollam district on south and Tamil Nadu on east.

Major townships around Pathanamthitta

Pathanamthitta is the gateway to the world-renowned pilgrim centre Sabarimala.

Climate

File:RingRoad.jpg
City Street after a monsoon shower

The town enjoys a tropical climate, the monsoons start in June. The months of April-May can get pretty humid. The best weather is from October to February.

Pathanamthitta experiences three distinct seasons: summer, monsoon and winter. Typical summer months are from March to May. The warmest month in Pathanamthitta is April. Although summer doesn't end until May, the city often receives locally developed heavy thundershowers in May (although humidity remains high).

The monsoon lasts from June to August, with moderate rainfall. Most of the heavy rainfall in the city fall between June and July, and June is the wettest month of the year. Last weeks of June is also days of floods. The three major rivers viz Pampa, Achankovil and Manimala swell with rainwater.

Winter begins in December. December and February are the winter months. The lowest temperatures are experienced during January.

How to get here

Air

Thiruvanathapuram International Airport (113 km) and Cochin International Airport, at Nedumbassery, Kochi (142 km) are the nearest airports. The proposed Aranmula national Airport is just 14 km from Pathanamthitta.

Rail

Chengannur (26 km) and Thiruvalla (30 km) are the nearest railway stations. Direct Bus services to Pathanamthitta are operated right from the Chengannur railway station Arrival Gate.

The list of daily trains from Coimbatore to Chengannur.

Train No. Train Name Route Coimbatore Departure Time Chengannur Arrival Time
6391 Kanyakumari Express Palakkad-Thrissur-ErnakulamJn.-Kottayam 00:20 06:38
2626 Kerala Express Palakkad-Thrissur-ErnakulamJn.-Kottayam 05:20 11:43
6526 Kanyakumari Express Palakkad-Thrissur-ErnakulamJn.-Kottayam 05:40 12:08
7230 Sabari Express Palakkad-Thrissur-ErnakulamJn.-Kottayam 08:40 15:54
2695 Trivandrum Express Palakkad-Thrissur-ErnakulamJn.-Kottayam 23:30 05:08


The General Hospital Road stretch of the T.K.Road

Road

Pathanamthitta is the meeting point of two major State Highways T.K.Road (SH - 07) and Main Eastern Highway ( Punalur-Muvattupuzha Road / SH - 08 ). The town is well connected to major towns and cities inside and outside Kerala by the State run K.S.R.T.C and private buses as well as Luxury Services. Both KSRTC and Pvt Buses play equal role to satisfy the transportation needs of the town. The cities like Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Thrissur etc are connected by KSRTC whereas Hi-range townships like Punalur, Kumali, Pala and the Malabar Area of Northern Kerala are connected by Pvt Buses. Plenty of A/C Luxury Bus Services are operated from Pathanamthitta to Bangalore, Chennai, Mangalore, Mumbai on a Daily basis.

The Drive Route

Cochin - Cherthala - Alappuzha - Changanasserry - Thiruvalla - Kozhencherry - Pathanamthitta 128 km

Thiruvananthapuram - Kilimanoor - Kottarakkara - Adoor - Pathanamthitta 99 km

or Thiruvananthapuram - Kilimanoor - Kottarakkara - Adoor - 'Pandalam' - Pathanamthitta - 115 km or Thiruvananthapuram' - Kilimanoor - Punalur- Konni- Pathanamthitta - 112 km

Kumily/Thekkadi - Mundakkayam - Erumeli - Ranni - Pathanamthitta 102 km

Munnar - Thodupuzha - Muttom - Erattupetta - Kanjirappalli - Erumeli - Ranni - Pathanamthitta 160 km

Tirunelveli/Thenkasi - Shenkottai - Punalur - Pathanapuram - Konni - Pathanamthitta

Kottayam - Changanasserry - Thiruvalla - Kozhencherry - Pathanamthitta 56 km

Culture Zone

Places around Pathanamthitta town within a distance of 15 km include Kadammanitta, Vazhamuttom, Pandalam, Manjinikara, Omallur, Malayalappuzha, Kodumthara, Muloor Smarakam, Kodumon, Cherukolpuzha, Kaipattoor, MylapraThumpamon, Maroor, Pramadom, konni and Valamchuzhy. The places beyond these are Nilackal, Parumala, and Maramon. Pathanamthitta town lies on the road route to the pilgrim town of Sabarimala, which is 65 km away. The famous Chettikulangara temple, at Mavelikkara is about 35 km from Pathanamthitta.

Refresh Zone

Pathanamthitta is abundantly blessed by nature with lush green plains, majestic water falls, mystic woods and sky high mountains. Every nook and corner here is a feast for the eyes.

Only a selected few must see places are mentioned below.

  • Konni 11 km from Pathanamthitta Town

Konni is village township near to Pathanamthitta Town. The acres of thick forest with wild animals has now made Konni emerge as another tourist spot for safaris and trekking. The animals make the forest safari very exciting. The trek to hill top and the view from the hill-top gives amazing pleasure and sights.

Located on the Western Ghats of Sahyadri Range, perunthenaruvi is famous for the water fall there.

Notable people from Pathanamthitta

Demographics

As of 2001 India census[2], Pathanamthitta had a population of 12.34 lakh. Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. Pathanamthitta has an average literacy rate of 93%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 96%, and female literacy is 92.5%. In Pathanamthitta, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.

There are five engineering colleges and one medical college in Pathanamthitta District.

The Pathanamthitta district is home for a number of famous South Asian religious spots.

Sabarimala, around 65 km away from the district headquarters is famous for the Lord Ayyappa temple where lakhs of worshippers gather every year during the season from November to January. The temple shrine is also open for five days from 15-20 every English month. Maramon on the banks of the Pampa river is famous for the yearly Christian convention attended by thousands during February, is just 12 km away. Cherukolpuzha is also famous for another Hindu religious convention during February. It is also held on the banks of Holy River Pamba.

File:CentralJn.jpg
Busy commercial street near Pathanamthitta Central Jn.

Religion

Various sections of Christianity, Muslim and Hinduism co-exist harmoniously.The Ezhavas, Nairs, Viswakarmas and the Scheduled Class & Tribes constitute the major sections of the Hindu religion. Followers of Catholic Church, Orthodox church, Jacobite Church, Knanaya, Marthoma Church, St. Thomas Evangelical Church, CSI Church, Pentecostal Churches, and Bretheran form major christian sects. Moreover few churches are having their head quarters in Pathanamthitta district. The Mar Thoma Church, the St. Thomas Evangelical Church and the Indian Pentecostal Church of God (IPC) have their headquarters in and around Thiruvalla, which is the prominent part of the district. Niranam Church(Niranam St.Marys orthodox church)is one of the Seven churches by St.Thomas.It was built in AD 54.Parumala church is another famous church which reminds the memory of Parumala Thirumeni(St.Gregorios).Manjinnikkara, which is just 7 km away near Omalloor, is famous for another Christian religious convention held yearly during second week of February in the memory of the Antioch Bishop who visited the church, but unfortunately died during the short visit and was buried there latermanjinikara. The other religious places are Pandalam Ayyappa Temple the early childhood place of God Ayyappa, Malayalappuzha Devi Temple, Kodumon spider temple, Chakkulathukavu Devi Temple, Thazhoor Sree Bhagawati Temple at Vazhamuttom, Neervilakom Sree Dharama Sastha Temple, Kadammanitta Devi Temple, Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple, Kodumthara Sree Subramanya Temple, Vallicode Sree Padmanabhswami Temple also known as Thrikkovil, Vallicode Thrippara Mahadevar Temple, INDILAYAPPAN TEMPLE (Vayala Vadakku), PUTHIYEDATHUKAVU DEVI TEMPLEVallicode, Omallur Sree Rakthakandaswami Temple, Mathoor Kaavu Bhagavathi Temple, Vettoor Sastha Temple, Achankovil Sastha Temple, Ranni Devi Temple, Sree Bhuvaneswary Temple, Valamchuzhy, Omallur Devi Temple, Pathanamthitta Sastha Temple, Thadiyoor Sastha Temple, Pathanamthitta Amman Kovil, Parumala Church, Niranom Church, Trinity Marthoma Church Mekozhhor, Thiruvalla Shri Vallabha temple and a host of other temples and churches. 6 km away from Pathanamthitta, there is a place called Kadammanitta that is famous for its Devi Temple, and is also the hometown of famous Malayalam poet Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan, another 1.5 km from Kadammanitta you can find the Marthoma Church, Kadammanitta. This church was established back in 1895 and also there is a place called Prakkanam here the, Prakkanam church (St.Marys orthodox church)is one of the famous church in the Pathanamthitta deistic. This church was established back in 1882.

Vivid Population

Pathanamthitta claims to be first district in India to achieve 100 percent literacy rate and lowest population growth rate in the country.

Pathanamthitta still has quite few settlements of aborigines called 'adivasis' deep in the forest area including areas like Thanithoddu, Chittar. The people from the settlements prefer not to be disturbed by the crowd from outside civilizations or lifestyles, but are indeed harmless.

Pathanamthitta is bordered by Idukki district on the east, Kottayam on the north, Kollam and Aalapuzha on west and south again by Kollam. The villages of Pathanamthitta provides great opportunity to develop, eco, cultural, health care, adventure, monsoon tourism.

Life in Pathanamthitta

Pathanamthitta is an important District Capital in the highrange map of Kerala. It is a meeting place for the agri based economy of the nearby townships like Ranni, Malayalappuzha, Konni, Adoor, Chittar, Kozhencherry etc. It is the market for cash crops like rubber, Coffee beans, Cocoa, pepper, Coconut, Ginger and other major products.

Pathanamthitta is the busiest "Idathaavalam" - Halt Point of Sabarimala Pilgrims. Thousands of devotees from various parts of India pass through this Town. During the pilgrimage season i.e. Dec-Jan, the town is fully active round the clock. Citizens of Pathanamthitta are known for their friendly attitude towards the pilgrims. In turn the economy of Pathanamthitta is getting boosted.

Pathanamthitta's Central Junction serves as the meeting place. It is the very heart of town as well as the District. The market place is also nearby. At night, a number of "ThattuKadas" - Street Food Merchants pop-up at the Central Jn. Most of the shopping centers, business ventures and a mini Civil Station that houses a large number of Govt. Offices are all located near to the Central Jn.

Politics

Pathanamthitta assembly constituency is part of Idukki (Lok Sabha constituency)but now Pathanamthitta separated from Idukki lok Sabha and now it is Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha.[3] Pathanamthitta is a part of Pathanamthitta Legislative assembly, but from the general elections in 2011 onwards Pathanamthitta town will be a part of Aranmula Legislative assembly. Pathanamthitta Assembly constituency is going to get a stop from then onwards.

See also

References

  1. ^ FallingRain Map - elevation = 17m (Red dots are railways)
  2. ^ Template:GR
  3. ^ "Assembly Constituencies - Corresponding Districts and Parliamentary Constituencies" (PDF). Kerala. Election Commission of India. Retrieved 2008-10-20.


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