Kundapur

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

Kundapura ಕುಂದಾಪುರ
Town
Clockwise from top: Kundapura River, Main Road, Shastri Circle, Coconut Tree, Anegudde Sri Vinayaka temple, Kollur Mookambika temple.
Country	India
State	Karnataka
Region	Coastal Karnataka
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	30,450
• Density	2,415.11/km2 (6,255.1/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Kannada
• Regional	Kundagannada_dialect, Konkani
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	576 201
Telephone code	91-(0)8254
ISO 3166 code	IN-KA
Vehicle registration	KA-20
Nearest city	Udupi, Byndoor, Mangalore
Sex ratio	1.09 ♂/♀
Legislature type	Bicameral
Lok Sabha constituency	Udupi Loksabha Constituency(15th)
Vidhan Sabha constituency	Kundapura Vidhansabha Kshethra(124th)
Website	www.kundapurtown.gov.in

Kundapura is a coastal town in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is administered by the Kundapura Town Municipal Council and also serves as a headquarter of the Kundapura Taluk,Kundapura is one of the Major railway station along Konkan railway which is very useful for Kerala pilgrims who visit Kolluru Mookambika Temple as Best transport connection to Kollur along with fecilities like lodges, and many more tourist attraction such as Beaches, Temples,and Resorts are very near to Railway Station of Kundapura.

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 back waters and the Arabian Sea, leaving the south side as the main connecting land mass. All connecting roads to Kundapura enter the city from southern direction. North side of the town is vast backwaters of Panchagangavali river and a bridge has been constructed across it .

Culture

The town consists mainly of Hindus of many communities such as Goud Saraswat Brahmins, Bunts, Shivalli Brahmins, Vishwakarmas, Poojarys, Kota Brahmins, Havyaka Brahmins, Mogaveeras, Kulals, Madivalas, Vokkaligas, Devadigas, Billavas Namadhari Naiks, Ganigas, Ramakshatriyas, Daivajnas, Kunabis, Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmins, Padmashali (Shettigar)s, Kharvis, Christians and Muslims.

The town mainly consists of Kannadigas who speak the Kundagannada dialect. Others are Konkanis and Tuluvas. The Goud Saraswat Brahmins, the Kharvi community, the Christian community and some Muslim community people speak Konkani Language. A dialect of Kannada called Kundagannada is predominantly spoken in Kundapura town and Kundapura Taluk. In the olden days, Tulu was widely spoken in the region and the historical town of Barkur served as the capital city of Tulu Nadu.

Demographics

As of the 2001 India census,

• Kundapura 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

Kundapura 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. Kundapura 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 Kundapura.