Pathanamthitta district

Infobox Indian Jurisdiction
native_name=Pathanamthitta
type=district


hq=Pathanamthitta
latd = 9.27 | longd = 76.78
state_name=Kerala
abbreviation=IN-KL-
collector=
area=2,642
area_magnitude=9
population_total = 1234016
population_year= 2001
population_density= 574
footnotes=

:"For the District Capital with the same name, see Pathanamthitta"

Pathanamthitta is one of the fourteen districts of Kerala state in South India. It was formed on 1 November, 1982 with headquarters at Pathanamthitta.

Pathanamthitta is a landlocked district situated in the southern part of the state, and is bordered by Kottayam and Idukki districts in the north, Alappuzha in the west, Kollam in the south and has a border with Tamil Nadu in the east. The district was made up from combining areas from the Alappuzha, Idukki and Kollam districts.

The district is part of the historical Central Travancore region of Kerala. The Central Travancore consists of the South-Central districts of Pathanamthitta and (parts of) Kottayam, Alappuzha, Idukky and Kollam.

Major towns in the district are Pathanamthitta, Thiruvalla, Omallur, Aranmula, Kozhencherry, Kumbanad, Konni, Pandalam, Adoor, Ranni, Vadaserikara, Sabarimala, Mallappally and Parumala. More than 50% of the district is covered by forests.

The district's name is a combination of two Malayalam words "pathanam" and "thitta", which together mean "houses by the riverside".

Pathanamthitta is a pre-dominantly agricultural district with major crops being coconut, rubber, paddy, pepper and tea. The hilly terrain coupled with high humidity make it suitable for rubber and tea plantations.

Hydroelectric power plants situated in the district provide one-third of the electricity demands of the state. Three important rivers, the Achankovil River, Manimala River and Pamba River flow through the district. River Pamba originates from Sabarimala and is considered a holy river. It is considered as the Ganga of South India.

Pathanamthitta holds the distinction of being declared the first polio-free district in India. It is 10.03% urbanised. [http://www.censusindiamaps.net/page/India_WhizMap/IndiaMap.htm]

Kerala's first Airport in private sector is developing in Aranmula, near Kozhencherry in this directory by promoted by FOKANA, and other US-Canada Malayali organizations and Middle-East based Malayalis.

Municipalities in Pathanamthitta District

* Pathanamthitta- Zakirhussan(Chairperson)
* Tiruvalla
* Adoor - Annamma Abraham (Chairperson))

Other fast-developing towns in Pathanamthitta district are:
* Kozhencherry
* Aranmula
* Maramon-Thottappuzhasseri
* Kumbanad-Koipram
* Ranni
* Pandalam
* Mallapally
* Konni
* Parumala

Taluks in Pathanamthitta District

Pathanamthitta district is divided into 5 Taluks:

* Kozhencherry ( Pathanamthitta)
* Adoor (Adoor)
* Ranni (Ranni)
* Mallapally (Mallapally)
* Tiruvalla (Tiruvalla)

District Panchayath Office Bearers

*Appinazhikathu Santhakumari Amma- President
*A. P. Jayan- Vice President

Assembly Constituencies And its Representatives

* Pathanamthitta- Adv. K.Sivadasan Nair. M.L.A
* Adoor-Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan. M.L.A
* Ranni- Raju Abraham. M.L.A
* Aranmula- K.C.Rajagopal. M.L.A
* Thiruvalla - Mathew.T.Thomas. M.L.A
* Pandalam- K.K.Shaju. M.L.A
* Konni - Adoor Prakash. M.L.A
* Kalloopara- Joseph.M.Puthussery. M.L.A

Proposed Assembly Constituencies

* Adoor
* Ranni
* Aranmula
* Thiruvalla
* Konni

Proposed Loksabha Constituency

* Pathanamthitta

Major Political Parties and its District Chiefs in Pathanamthitta

* Indian National Congress- Adv. K.Sivadasan Nair. M.L.A-( District President)
* Kerala Congress-M- Victor.T.Thomas (District President)
* Kerala Congress-J- Kunjukoshy Paul (District President)
* NCP- Mathews George (District President)
* CPM (M)- Adv.K.Ananthagopan (District Secretary)
* CPI- Mundappally Thomas ( District Secretary)
* Janatadal-S- Adv. S.Jithesh (District Secretary)
* BJP- T.R.Ajith Kumar (District President)
* RSP- Prof. V.S. Madhavan Nair (District Secretary)

Burning Issues

There is a demand of Tiruvalla districts, comprising parts of Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts.

There are demands for trifurcating Kozhencherry taluk, one of the largest taluk in Kerala state, into 3 namely - Konni, Pathanamthitta, and Kozhencherry.

There are also demands for creating Pandalam taluk comprising parts of Adoor, Kozhencherry, and Mavelikara taluks; and also Upper Kuttanad (Edathua) taluk comprising parts of Tiruvalla, Chengannur, and Kuttanad taluks.

There is a demand of Chengannur-Sabarimala Railway Line from Chengannur to Pampa via Aranmula, Kozhencherry, Elanthur, Pathanamthitta, Ranni, and Plapally.

The demand for a railway line from Chengannur to Thiruvananthapuram via Pandalam, Adoor, Kottarakkara and Kilimanoor much parallel to the M.C Road is also yet to be materialised.

Places of tourist interest

* Sabarimala - abode of Lord Ayyappa, which receives about 10 million pilgrims every year
* Konni - Elephant Cage.A hill town, Konni is famous for timber trade and wild elephant training centre.This is a town with meadows and hills stands on the bank of river Achakovil. It is surrounded by clove and pepper plantations. Elephants trapped from the forest area are also tamed here
*Niranam village is an early Christian centre of India. The [http://www.niranamchurch.com St mary's Church] here is founded by St Thomas, the Apostle. Niranam also has ancient temples and a mosque. Niranam poets lived here.
*Pandalam is famous for its ancient castles and also for its holiness. It is famous because it is believed to be the home of Lord Ayyapa of Sabarimala.Pandalam was the capital of the ancient Travancore kingdoms. It was established around 79 ME (903 AD).The World-famous Pilgrim Town of Central Travancore. Site of the Pandalam Palace. Golden Casket (the sacred ornaments of Lord Ayyappa) are kept here.
*Mannadi It is situated 13 km from Adoor. This is where Veluthampi Dalawa, the renowned freedom fighter of Travancore, spent his last days. The ancient Bhagavathy Temple here has some exquisite stone sculptures. The annual festival is held in February/March. The Kerala Institute of Folklore and Folk Arts functions here.
*Perunthenaruvi Water falls The spectacular waterfalls pludge down into a ravine from a rocky height of 60 - 100 ft. It is accessible by bus from Pathanamthitta
* Aranmula - venue of the annual boat race on the Pamba river; the place is also famous for its metal mirrors (Aranmula kannadi)
* Kakki - reservoir surrounded by forests abounding in elephants and tigers
* Kaviyoor - Famous for the Kaviyoor Mahadeva Temple and the Rock Cut CaveTemple
* Maramon - the river-bed of the Pampa here witnesses the annual Maramon Convention, the largest Christian gathering in Asia
* Manjinikkara - a bishop who came in early 1900s from Antioch to settle a dispute between two Christian congrgations later died and was buried here.Thousands of followers assemble on foot every year from various parts of the country during second week of February to commemorate the events and pay their respects.

External links

* [http://www.pta.kerala.gov.in/ Official website from the Govt. of Kerala]
* [http://www.pathanamthitta.nic.in/ Official website of Pathanamthitta district]
* [http://www.keraladays.com/Pathanamthitta.htm Information pages of Pathanamthitta district]
* [http://www.pathanamthitta.com www.pathanamthitta.com]
* [http://www.sabarimalatemple.org/ Official sabarimala temple site]
* [http://www.st-thomasthottamon.i8.com/ Information on St.Thomas Orthodox Church, Thottamon, Ranni, Pathanamthitta]
* [http://www.citinewsranni.com/ Website on Ranni, Pathanamthitta.]