Venice of the East: Alappuzha
The administrative headquarters of Alappuzha District in the Indian State of Kerala is Alappuzha, also known by its former name Alleppey. Alappuzha is a town and municipality in Kerala with an urban population of 174,164 and ranks third in the State of Kerala in literacy rates among the districts. In 2016, the centre for Science and general condition rated Alappuzha as the cleanest town in India. Alappuzha is taken into account as to be the most old made system design and the lighthouse made on the down slope of the great town is the first of its kind along the laccadive Sea go down slope.
The great town is placed 28 km from Changanacherry, 46 km from Kottayam, 53km from Kochi, 129.4 km from Thrissur and 155 km North of Trivandrum. A town with man-made waterways, backwaters, sands at edge of sea. Alappuzha was described by Lord Curson as the 'Venice of the East' for this reason, it is experienced as the 'Venetian Money' of Kerala. In Alappuzha, Malayalam is the most talked language.
It is an important tourist destination in India. Alappuzha's Backwaters is one of Kerala's most popular tourist attractions, attracting millions of domestic and foreign visitors to the district, and employing large numbers of private sector locals.It is possible to book a houseboat cruise in these backwaters. It links Kumarakom and Cochin to the north, and Quilon to the south. In addition to houseboat services, the Kerala State Water Transport Department provides district and Quilon (Kollam) government boat services that find the easiest and cheapest way to explore Alleppey's Backwaters.
It is also the entry point for the annual Nehru Trophy Boat Race, held each year on the second Saturday of August on the Punnamada Lake, near Alappuzha. This is India's most famous and competitive boat races. Mullackal Chirap is Alapuzha's biggest temple festival which takes place at the end of December every year for ten days.
Etymology
The district of Alappuzha was created from the former districts of Kottayam and Quilon on 17 August 1957 and initially consisted of seven
The name Alappuzha is a toponym. 'Allayam' means 'home' and 'puzha' according to the dictionary of Dr. Herman Gundert means 'river' or 'watercourse.' The name refers to Alappuzha's network of rivers and backwaters, and nearby areas.The district is bounded on the north by Ernakulam district Kochi and Kanayannur taluks, on the east by Vaikom, Kottayam and Changanassery taluks of Kottayam district and Pathanamthitta district Thiruvalla and Kozhencherry taluks, on the south by Kunnathur and Karunagappally taluks of district Kollam and on the west by Laccadive River.
The present district of Alappuzha consists of six taluks, namely Cherthala, Ambalappuzha, Kuttanad, Karthikappally, Chengannur and Mavelikkara. The district area is 1.414 km2 (546 sq mi). The headquarters of the District is in Alappuzha.
Geography
Alappuzha is situated at 9.54 ° N 76.40 ° E. The average elevation is 1 meter (3.3 ft). Alappuzha occupies an area of 1,414 square kilometers (546 sq mi) and is flanked by 2,195 square kilometers (847 sq mi) of Vembanad Lake, where six major rivers reach until entering the district's 80 km coast line.
The district is a stretch of sandy land that is interrupted by lagoons, rivers and canals. There are no mountains or hills in the district except for a few scattered hills lying in the eastern portion of the district between Bharanikkavu and Chengannur. This district contains no forest land. Alappuzha is bounded to its west by the Laccadive Sea. The town has a network of freshwater rivers, lakes and lagoons. The abundance of the coastal waters of Alappuzha is reflected annually in the blooming and consequent deposit on the coast of Alappuzha of a huge quantity of fish and prawns called '[Chakara].' This annual sandbank change occurs during the post-monsoon period and contributes to the local economy as well as being a festive season for the Kerala people.The annual floods rejuvenate and purify the soil and water resulting in an abundance of marine life such as prawns, lobsters, sharks, tortoises, and other sea flora.
Each year, the backwaters and wetlands host thousands of common teal migrants, ducks and cormorants that come here from long distances. A major feature of the area is the Kuttanad district, Kerala's 'granary.' Kuttanad is also known as Kerala's rice bowl, and is one of the few areas in the world where cultivation takes place below sea level. The paddy fields are roughly 0.6 to 2 m below sea level.
Climate
Alappuzha's climate is humid and hot during the summer, because of its proximity to the sea, although it remains fairly cool and nice during the months of October and November. The monthly average temperature is 27 degrees centigrade. The district, as in other parts of the state, gets the advantage of two seasonal monsoons. Alappuzha city experiences a long monsoon season with heavy showers as Alappuzha's weather is influenced by both the Southwest monsoon and Northeast monsoon. In the months from June to September the south-west monsoon influences the climate. The North-East monsoon, on the other hand, is bringing rain from October to November. The area has received average rainfall of 2763 mm.
Demographics
According to the 2011 census, the district of Alappuzha has a population of 21,21,943 with 10,10,252 men and 11,11,691 women with a population density of 1492 persons per square kilometre. The district of Alappuzha has 1,86,022 persons under six. Alappuzha's literacy rate stands at 96.26 per cent, 8.95.476 of which are males and 9.68.082 females. Alappuzha has a population growth of 0.61 percent over a decade. Alappuzha has a sex ratio of 1100 and a population of 282,675 in 2001 was in the metropolitan agglomeration.
The population is mainly Hindu and Christian, and Muslims are high in number. Malayalam is the most commonly spoken language while Konkani is spoken by many people.
The main dialect spoken by Malayalam is the Central Travancore dialect. Konkani is a spoken language in the Konkan region. During the 16th and 18th century Portuguese and Dutch invasions, many Konkanis migrated to the south in the state of Travancore to Thuravoor, Cherthala and Alappuzha as well as other places in Kerala such as Cochin, Kodungalloor and Kollam. Many of those people were settled in Alappuzha.
Economy
The district's economy is focused on the agricultural and marine products. The agricultural activities revolve primarily around Kuttanad area, Kerala's rice bowl. Although the district is industrially backward, some traditional industries were active from very early times, focused on coir and coir products, marine goods, handlooms, various types of handicrafts, kid tapping. The district is renowned for being Kerala's traditional coir industry home.
The Central Government created the Coir Board under the provisions of the Coir Industry Act, 1955. The roles of a coir research institute at Kalavoor. In 1965 the National Coir Training and Design Center was established in Alappuzha.
The tourism has been a big source of income in recent times. It is partly due to the presence of houseboats, which offers visitors a glimpse of the city's scenic backwaters. The proximity to other tourist spots such as Munnar, Varkala, Alappuzha and Wayanad is another explanation for this.
Transport
Road: National Highway 66 (India) is one of India's longest state highway. It links Panvel with Kanyakumari and criss-crosses the city of Alappuzha. National Highway 66 (India) connects the city of Alappuzha to other major cities such as Mumbai, Udupi, Mangalore, Kannur, Kozhikode, Ernakulam, Kollam and Trivandrum. There is a proposal to upgrade State Highway 11 (Kerala) to national highway to help link Alappuzha with Kodaikanal as part of promoting the tourism project on the coastal hill.
Water: Water Edit The existence of a lot of canals and backwaters makes water transport a common means of transportation. State Waterway-3 traverses Alappuzha. In the city there is a SWTD boat jetty, opposite the KSRTC bus stand. It is served by boat services to the town of Changanassery and to Kottayam, towns of Kollam along with other small towns and jetties. The provision of a SWTD boat is a cheaper option for visiting visitors to houseboats.
Rail: Alappuzha is linked by coastal railway line Ernakulam – Kayamkulam and connects with towns such as Trivandrum, Kollam, Cochin, Coimbatore, Chennai, Delhi, Bokaro and Mumbai. The railway station is 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) from the city centre. A total of four trains to cities such as Kannur, Chennai, Dhanbad and Tatanagar originate from Alappuzha. Many local trains run throughout the day, linking Alappuzha to other nearby cities. Since Alappuzha is a prime destination, this station is crossed by trains from major cities such as Delhi, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mangalore, Kozhikode and Amritsar.
Air: The nearest airport is Cochin International Airport, which is 78 kilometers (48 mi) to the north. The other airport that connects the district with other countries is Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, 159 kilometers (99 mi) to the South. Such airports are used by the foreign tourists to enter Alappuzha. Other nearest airports are at Kozhikode (236 km (147 mi)) and Coimbatore (254 km (158 mi)). A town helipad is reserved for use by the Government.
Sports
Alappuzha is known worldwide for the snake boat races, particularly the Nehru Trophy Boat Race held near Alappuzha in the Punnamada Lake. When India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, visited Kerala in 1952, the Alleppey people agreed to give their distinguished guest a special entertainment and conducted a snake-boat race. Jawaharlal Nehru was so excited about this occurrence that he jumped into 'Nadubhagam Chundan' (a snake boat) ignoring the officers of security. He donated a rolling trophy by this thrill of sailing in a snake boat to be presented to the race's winner. Cricket, football, basketball, and Rowing are among the most common sports in town apart from Snake boat race. In 2015, the Kerala Cricket Association inaugurated an A-class cricket stadium called KCA Cricket Stadium Alappuzha. Another stadium named EMS Stadium or municipal stadium is under construction in Alappuzha.
Education
In the district, there are schools, tech institutes, and colleges, with nine vocational centers, 405 lower primary schools, 105 middle schools, and 87 secondary schools.
The Church Missionary Society (CMS) School, first school in Alappuzha, was founded in 1816. The school was founded by the first CMS missionary to India, Rev. Thomas Norton. The school is run by the Church of Christ CSI, Alappuzha.T first high school in Alappuzha was the Leo XIIIth Higher Secondary School, opened by the Portuguese Bishop John Gomes Pereira of Cochin on 1 June 1889. The Carmel Polytechnic College was the first polytechnic college in Alappuzha, founded by Fr. Gilbert Palaekunnel, and it is run by the Congregation of the CMI. Carmel is still the state's academically top-ranked polytechnic.
Universities in Alappuzha offer their students both graduate and postgraduate courses.
