Kundapur

This article is about the town in India. For its Taluk, see Kundapur Taluk.

Kundapura
Town
Clockwise from top: Kundapur River, Main Road, Shastri Circle, Coconut Tree, Anegudde Sri Vinayaka temple, Kollur Mookambika temple.
Kundapura Kundapura Town Kundapura Kundapura (Karnataka)
Coordinates: 13°37′42″N 74°41′20″E
india	India
State	Karnataka
Region	Kunda Nadu
District	Udupi
Municipality	Kundapura Town Municipal Council
Settled	1912
Government
• Type	Municipal corporation
Area
• Total	23.06 km2 (8.90 sq mi)
Elevation	80 m (260 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	30,444
• Density	2,415.11/km2 (6,255.1/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Kannada
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	576 201
Telephone code	91-(0)8254
ISO 3166 code	IN-KA
Vehicle registration	KA-20
Sex ratio	1.09 ♂/♀
Legislature type	Bicameral
Lok Sabha constituency	Udupi Loksabha Constituency (15th)
Vidhan Sabha constituency	Kundapur Vidhansabha Kshethra (124th)
Website	www.kundapurtown.gov.in

Kundapur, also spelled Kundaapra , kundaaprya , Kundapura, Kundapore, Coondapur and Coondapore is a coastal town in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is administered by the Kundapur Town Municipal Council and also serves as a headquarter of the Kundapura Taluk.

Kundapura railway station, along with the Konkan railway, is very useful for Kerala pilgrims who visit Kolluru Mookambika Temple as best transport connection to Kollur along with facilities like lodges, and many more tourist attraction such as beaches, temples, and resorts are very near to the station.

History

The name Kundapura can be traced to the Kundeshwar temple built by Kundavarma in the vicinity of the Panchagangavalli river. The name of the town may be derived from Kundavarma who ruled the area. Kunda means 'pillar' in kannada, which refers to the traditional method of constructing houses. Pura means town. Kundapura is surrounded by water from three sides. To the north lies the Panchagangavali river. To the east lies the Kalaghar river. To the west lie the Kodi backwaters and the Arabian Sea, leaving the south side as the main connecting land mass. All connecting roads to Kundapura enter the city from the southern direction. North side of the town is vast backwaters of Panchagangavali river and a bridge has been constructed across it.

Language

The town mainly consists of speakers of Kundagannada dialect of Kannada and a few Konkani and Tulu speakers. The Hindu and Christian populations speak Konkani. Muslim communities speak Urdu or Beary languages.

Demographics

As of the 2001 India census,

• Kundapur has a population of 30,450.
• Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%.
• Literacy rate of 92%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 94%, and female literacy is 88%.
• 9% of the population are under 6 years of age.

Transport

Kundapur is well connected to other parts of the country by NH66. SH52 is the main State Highway that connects to Shimoga District. This Highway connects cities and towns of different states. Kundapur is also connected to the Konkan Railway, which runs from Mumbai to Mangalore. The railway station is about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the town. The nearest airport is Mangalore International Airport, situated at Bajpe around 87 kilometres (54 mi) from Kundapur.

Kundapur is located at a distance of 38 kms from Udupi, 40 kms from Manipal,, 54 kms from Bhatkal, 91 kms from Mangalore and 181 kms from Karwar, which are the other major cities/towns in Coastal Karnataka.

The major part of transportation around the town are private local buses and some out of the town is serviced by government owned. A High frequency of buses can be found for Udupi and Mangalore. Another frequently used mode of transportation is auto rikshaw.