Aloor, Kerala

Aloor
Village and Panchayat
Aloor Location in Kerala, India Aloor Aloor (India)
Coordinates: 10°20′22″N 76°17′40″E
Country	India
State	Kerala
District	Thrissur
Languages
• Official	Malayalam, English
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	680683
Telephone code	0480
Vehicle registration	KL-45

Aloor is a panchayath in Chalakudy-Mukundapuram taluks in Thrissur district of Kerala, India. It is near the towns of Irinjalakuda and Chalakudi. The postal index number (PIN) of Aloor is 680683 since Aloor and a few other post offices fall under the Main Post Office of Kallettumkara. Since 1901, the name "Aloor" has been simplified to Alur by the Cochin state and the Central Government Departments. The telephone code (land connection) of Aloor is +480 followed by a seven-digit phone number.

Administration

Aloor is a revenue village in Chalakudy taluk of the Irinjalakuda Revenue Division in Thrissur district. Its sub registrar office is situated in Kacheriparambu, Kallettumkara. Aloor falls under the Thrissur Lok Sabha and Irinjalakuda Assembly constituency.

Aloor Police Station

Aloor Police Station is situated in Kallettumkara near Irinjalakuda railway station. Kottanellur, Muriyad, Kaduppassery, Thazhekkad, Aloor, and Kallettumkara are the six revenue villages included in its territorial limit.

Aloor Panchayat

Aloor Panchayath is part of Irinjalakuda legislative constituency. The area is much wider consisting of Aloor, Thazhekkad, and Kallettumkara revenue villages. This includes places like Kallettumkara, Thazhekkad, Kombadinjamakkal, Anathadom, Karoor, Vellamchira, Kuzhikkattussery, Porunnakunnu, Kannikkara, Vallakkunnu, Thuruthiparambu, Panjappilly, Urumbumkunnu, and Manattukunnu. Aloor Panchayat office is located at Kallettumkara, another census town located nearby.

Current seat distribution of Aloor panchayath

ALLIANCE	SEATS
LDF	17
UDF	4
BJP	1
Others	1
Total	23

History

The Aloor desom in Brahminical traditions is an integral part of Irinjalakuda grama and southern parts of Aloor Panchayat belong to Avittathur grama. From 800 AD to 1102 AD, this area was under the Mahodayapuram Chera dynasty. An inscription of Rajasimhaperumanadikal of the 11th century from the Thazhekad church in Aloor panchayath proved this fact. From 1342 to 1762 this area was part of Arunadu.

In 1762, the Kingdom of Cochin formed Mukundapuram taluk by adding Mapranam nadu (Velllos nad) and parts of Nandilathnadu to Mukundapuramnadu (Muriyanad); it also formed Kodassery taluk with headquarters at Chalakudy. Karoor Muir, consisting of Karoor, Vellanchira, and Thuruthiparambu, were part of Kodassery taluk; other areas were part of Mukundapuram taluk. Sakthan Thampuran divided old Mukundapuram taluk into six properties. They were Thazhekkad, Aripalam, Mukundapuram (Nadavarambu), Mapranam, Palathingal (Nandikkara), and Pudukkad. Pudukkad was used for administrative and revenue purposes.

Revenue villages in Aloor Panchayat, namely Kallettumkara, Thazhekkad, and Aloor, came into existence in 1080 M.E. (1905 A.D.). The Aloor village office is located in Vazhiyambalaparambu, Aloor, since December 1980; before that it was in Kacheriparambu, Kalletumkara.

At the time of Firka subdivisions villages in Aloor Panchayat fall into two Firkas—Irinjalakuda and Chalakudy.

Language

Malayalam is the mother tongue of almost all natives of Aloor. It has some similarities with the accent of Malayalam generally spoken in Thrissur district, but not as thick in an accent as the language spoken by Thrissur town natives. The vocabulary used is similar to other desoms of Aru. The literal meaning of the word "Aloor" signifies "place with people" or "place inhabited by people" ("Aal" in Malayalam means "human" and "ur" or "oor" means "town" in old Malayalam and Tamil).

Education

A primary school, managed by the parishioners, was established on the premises of the Aloor church in 1894; it is now St. John Berchmens Convent Lower Primary School. In 1942, the first high school, Rajarshi Memorial Higher Secondary School Aloor, was established; it was later upgraded to a higher secondary school in 1998. Other educational institutions in the area include Sree Narayana Vilasam Vocational Higher secondary School Aloor, St. Joseph's EMHS, Aloor (Thazhekkad village), St Marys UP School Karoor, Fathima Matha LP School Vellanchira, L F LP School Kombidijamakkal, CLPS at Sholayar near Vellamchira. For higher education, the main institutes nearby are Sahrdaya College of Advanced Studies and Sahrdaya College of Engineering and Technology. Parents with high ambitions send their children to schools in nearby towns like Irinjalakuda, Chalakudi, and Thrissur. The low capacity in the schools in Aloor is one of the reasons for children in Aloor to seek admission in nearby towns. Sangama Grama Madhava, a mathematician and astronomer, was from Irinjalappilly, Aloor.

Many Aloorians, quite similar to other Keralites, go abroad, or to other cities outside the state, to earn their means of livelihood. Many educated youths from Aloor have become successful business owners, IT professionals, skilled blue-collar workers, or unskilled workers, in places such as the Middle East, North America, or in Indian cities, like Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore.

Demographics

Christian, Hindu, and Muslim religions co-exist harmoniously in Aloor. Up to the census of Cochin State in 1901, there were no Muslims in Aloor, Kallettumkara, and the Thazhekkad muris of Mukundapuram taluk. There were 199 Muslims speaking Tamil in Kuzhikkattussery muri as per the census of Cochin state 1901.

98% of the Christians belong to Syro Malabar Catholic Church; it is in communion with the Universal Catholic Church.

Churches

Main article: St. Joseph's Church, Aloor

St. Joseph's Syro Malabar Catholic Church, Aloor, is the first parish church in Aloor muri of Mukundapuram taluk. The Nazrani community of Aloor built a small prayer hall made of bamboo and palm leaf in the land donated by its members in 1858 and used it for their usual prayer necessities. In 1868, the Aloor church was recognized by the Vicariate Apostolic of Verapoly. Aloor parish is one of the 83 parishes between the Bharathappuzha and Periyar rivers, during the erection of the syro-Malabar hierarchy, and Trichur Vicariate in 1887.

Temples

Irinjalappilly chengumkavu bhagavathy temple has a history over centuries. Sreedhanakkavu temple near kombodinjamakkal, Aanikkulangara Sri Durga temple at Sholayar, Palappetty temple near Vellamchira, Muthappan Bagavathy temple at the Edathadan centre, two kilometers from Aloor Junction are the important temples. Thalappoli, ulsavam, and shashti are celebrated with various festivities.

Kombodinjamakkal Jaram

The Jaram and masjid at Kombodinjamakkal (Thazhekkad village) date back to January 1790 of Tipu sultan, the ruler of Mysore. "Chandanakkudam Nercha" (on Makaram 16) to the jaram is very famous in this region.

Transport

Rail

Irinjalakuda railway station (IJK in railway lexicon) is located at Aloor and Kallettumkara villages. Aloor natives reach Irinjalakuda railway station to board trains leaving for Chennai (Alleppey-Chennai Express), Mumbai (Kanyakumari-Mumbai CST Jayanti Janatha Express), Bangalore (Kanyakumari-Bangalore Island Express), and many other places.

Road

The traffic intersection at Aloor, popularly known as Aloor Centre or Aloor Junction, is one of the liveliest areas in Aloor. From the intersection, the government-run or private buses can be boarded to major towns like Thrissur, Kodungallur, Chalakudi, and Irinjalakuda. State Highway 51, Kodungallur Road, and State Highway 61, and Moonupeedika Road intersects at Aloor. National Highway 47 is a few kilometers away from Aloor.

Public transport

Aloor is 25 km away from Thrissur town, the district headquarters of Thrissur; one can board the government-run bus (KSRTC bus) from Thrissur to Mala. Only government buses regularly use this route at full length. The Aloor Junction comes 12 km before Mala. In a KSRTC ordinary bus, it takes one hour from Thrissur; if the bus is a fast passenger, for which the ticket charge will be Rs.5/- to 10/- higher than the normal rate, it takes less than 45 minutes to reach the Aloor Junction. Coming from Thrissur, the order of bus stops within the limits of Aloor is Aloor Junction, Mala via junction, Aloor Gate, RMHS School, and English Medium School. Before entering Aloor, the bus passes through the territory of Kodakara; leaving Aloor, the bus enters the territory of Thazhekkad, Kombadinjamakkal. Starting from Kodakara to a long way after Aloor, this road is part of State Highway 51 of Kerala.

Aloor can be reached from Irinjalakuda and Chalakudi by private-owned buses that use this route between these two nearby towns between 5.30 am and 9 pm. State Highway 61 Chalakudi-Irinjalakuda route touches State Highway 51 at Mala via, and overlaps with the Highway till Aloor Junction, and the two diverge. While Chalakudi is at a distance of eight kilometers from Aloor, Irinjalakuda town is nine km away.

Air

Aloor is served by Cochin International Airport (Nedumbassery), which is about 35 kilometers away. Direct domestic flights are available to major Indian cities like Chennai, New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata. International flights to Middle East cities like Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Manama, Muscat, Jeddah, Riyadh, Doha, and Southeast Asian cities in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur are available. It has a dedicated heli-taxi service and chartered flights.

Geography and climate

Under the Köppen climate classification, Aloor features a tropical monsoon climate. The region lies in the southwestern coastal state of Kerala, resulting in a tropical climate; there are only minor differences in temperatures between day and night, and over the year. Summer lasts from March to May, followed by the South-west monsoon from June to September. From October to November, it is the post-monsoon or retreating monsoon season. From December to February, in the winter, it is slightly cooler and windy due to winds from the Western Ghats.

Festivals

Pindiperunnal-Ambuperunnal, or known as the feast of St. Sebastian, is a common festival in all churches in Aloor panchayath. Thazhekad church is known for the feast of Kurisu Muthappan (St. Sebastian) on 2 and 3 May every year. Irinjalappilly chengumkavu bhagavathy temple and Edathadan Muthappan Bagavathy temple celebrate Thalappoli with various festivities. Chandanakkudam Nercha on Makaram 16 at the Jaram and masjid at Kombodinjamakkal is widely known in this region.

Prominent personalities

Madhava of Sangamagrama

Main article: Madhava of Sangamagrama

Sangamagrama Mādhava was a prominent Kerala mathematician-astronomer who founded the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics. Saṅgamagrāma in medieval Kerala believed to be Irinjalakuda Brahminical grama, including Aloor. Sangamagrama Mādhava is described as "the greatest mathematician-astronomer of medieval India" or as "the founder of mathematical analysis". He was the first to have developed infinite series of approximations for a range of trigonometric functions, which has been called the "decisive step onward from the finite procedures of ancient mathematics to treat their limit-passage to infinity". His discoveries opened the doors to what has today come to be known as mathematical analysis. Mādhavan made contributions to the study of infinite series, calculus, trigonometry, geometry, and algebra in his works Mahajyānayana prakāra ("Methods for the great sines") and Venuaroham.

Mar Pauly Kannookadan

Mar Pauly Kannookadan (born 14 February 1961) is a native of Kombidy and a bishop. After his studies at LFLPS Kombidy & RMHSS, he joined at St. Mary’s Petit Seminary, Thope, Thrissur. He had his philosophical and theological formation at St. Thomas Apostolic Seminary, Vadavathoor, Kottayam. He was ordained as a priest on 28 December 1985. He obtained a Doctorate in Oriental Liturgy from the Pontifical Oriental Institute, Rome. He was also the Visiting Professor of Liturgy to various Major Seminaries, namely Mangalapuram, Alwaye, and Poonamallee. He is a prolific ecclesiastical writer and author of the books East Syrian Lectionary and Holy Eucharist. He was elected by the Synod of Bishops in the Synod held in January 2010, and with the approval of Pope Benedict XVI, it was officially proclaimed on 18 January 2010. The Episcopal Ordination and the Installation of the new bishop took place on 18 April 2010 in the St. Thomas Cathedral premises, Irinjalakuda. He is guided by the motto "Omnibus Omnia Fieri".

V K Joseph Master

V K Joseph Master was a native of Aloor and elected as MLC of Aloor Constituency of Cochin Legislative Council and as MLA in Travancore-Cochin Legislative Assembly. He was also the second headmaster of Rajarshi Memorial Higher Secondary School.