Kalpetta

Kalpetta
കല്‍പ്പറ്റ
Municipality and town

Civil Station, administrative headquarters of Wayanad District, at Kalpetta
Kalpetta

Location in Kerala, India

Coordinates: 11°37′21″N 76°04′53″E / 11.622550°N 76.081252°ECoordinates: 11°37′21″N 76°04′53″E / 11.622550°N 76.081252°E
Country  India
State Kerala
District Wayanad
Area
 • Total 40.74 km2 (15.73 sq mi)
Elevation 780 m (2,560 ft)
Population (2011)
 • Total 31,580
 • Density 780/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
Languages
 • Official Malayalam, English
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 673121 (Kalpetta Head PO), 673122 (Kalpetta North), 673123 (Chundale)
Telephone code +91 4936
Vehicle registration KL12
Website http://www.kalpettamunicipality.in

Kalpetta is a town and a municipality in the Wayanad district, state of Kerala, India. Kalpetta is the headquarters of Wayanad district[1] as well as the headquarters of Vythiri taluk.[2] It is a bustling town surrounded by dense coffee and tea plantations and mountains. It lies on the Kozhikode-Mysore National Highway NH 766 (Old NH 212) at an altitude of about 780 m above sea level. Kalpetta is 72 km from Kozhikode and 140 km from Mysore.

Apart from the administrative capital of the district, Kalpetta is also the center of tourism activities in Wayanad due to its central location within the district and its proximity to most visited tourist sites.

Etymology

It is believed that the early Jain residents who migrated from Karnataka have named the place "Kalpetta". In Kannada, the words "Kal" and "Pettah" means "deposits of stones". Rocks -large and small- are found throughout the landscape of Kalpetta. Hence the name.

History

Kalpetta was under the rule of Western Ganga dynasty until AD930. Through ages this region fell into the rule of Hoysala Empire, Vijayanagara Empire, and Kingdom of Mysore. Pazhassi Raja was the next to rule the region. Kalpetta Nair administered the place as the representative for Pazhassi Raja. Mysorean invasion of Kerala made Kalpetta a part of Tipu Sultan's empire. This continued until the demise of Tipu Sultan. Along with the rest of Malabar, Kalpetta also came under British rule after Tipu Sultan's demise.

In Wayanad, the Indian independence movement started first at Kalpetta. The first political conference was held in 1921 under the leadership of Dharmaraja Iyer. K. P. Kesava Menon and A. K. Gopalan participated in this meeting. Formation of the committee of Indian National Congress also occurred around the same time. Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi visited Kalpetta on 1934 January 14.[3]

Kalpetta became the headquarters when Wayanad district was formed on 1 November 1980. Kalpetta was still a Village Panchayath when it became district headquarters and it attained Municipality status on 1 April 1990.

Demographics

As of 2011 India census,[4] Kalpetta had a population of 31,580. Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. In Kalpetta, 11% of the population is under the age of 6.

People

Being the district headquarters, Kalpetta is home to a large number of government offices. Besides, the district level offices of Media Houses, Political Parties etc. also function out of Kalpetta. Hence a large section of the population of Kalpetta are office-goers. Like elsewhere in Kerala, Hindus, Muslims and Christians live in harmony in Kalpetta. There is a significant Jain population also in Kalpetta.

How to Reach

Kalpetta has very good road connectivity with the rest of Kerala and neighboring South Indian cities. NH212 connects Kalpetta with Kozhikode and Mysore. State Highways connect Kalpetta with Ooty in Tamil Nadu and Madikeri in Karnataka.

Highways

Wayanad Ghat Road (Mountain Pass) on NH 212

All national and state highways passing through Wayanad District intersect at Kalpetta,[5] making it a strategic location and the "Gateway of Wayanad":

Night Traffic Ban on NH 212 at Bandipur National Park

En route to Mysore on NH 212, past Wayanad district boundary, which is also the Kerala state boundary, NH 212 passes through Bandipur National Park. There is a night traffic ban imposed on this stretch since 2009.[7] The alternate road to take is, leave NH 212 at Kalpetta and proceed to Mysore through Mananthavady, Kutta, Gonikoppal, and Hunsur.

Road routes

Kalpetta – Bangalore (280 KM): Sulthan Bathery – Gundlupet - Mysore(NH212)(Night travel not allowed)

Kalpetta – Bangalore (312KM): Mananthavady - Kutta- Mysore (Night travel allowed)

Kalpetta - Mysore : 140KM via Sulthan Bathery (NH212 - No Night Travel), 172KM via Mananthavady, Kutta (Use for Night Travel).

Kalpetta – Ooty (127KM) : Meppadi – Gudalur

Kalpetta – Madikeri (135KM): Mananthavady - Kutta

Kalpetta - Kannur (123KM) : Mananthavady - Koothuparamba

Kalpetta - Malappuram (99KM) : Thamarassery - Areekkode - Manjeri

Kalpetta - Kozhikode (72KM) : Vythiri - Thamarassery

Railway

Wayanad district is not connected by rail network. Nearest railway station is Kozhikode railway station (72KM from Kalpetta). Indian Railways' computerised reservation counter is available at the Civil Station. Reservation for any train can be done from here.

Airport

Nearest airport is Calicut International Airport, 100KM from Kalpetta.

Notable landmarks

Mahatma Gandhi Museum

The Gandhi Memorial Museum and Library in Kalpetta is a boarding house near the Jain Temple where Gandhiji took rest during his visit. The museum is located at Puliyarmala, about 4 km from Kalpetta town-center.

Puliyarmala Jain Temple

Anantnath Swami Temple at Puliyarmala is one of the very few present-day Jain temples in Kerala.

M S Swaminathan Research Foundation

Botanical Garden at the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation Regional Center at Kalpetta

A regional centre of M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) is located at Puthoorvayal, about 3 km from Kalpetta town-ceter. The Centre was established to promote community conservation systems of rural and tribal people through research, extension and advocacy. Centre works in partnership with rural and farming communities for sustainable agricultural and rural development. Operational area of the Centre is confined to the Western Ghats regions in Kerala. The Botanic Garden and Butterfly Garden at the centre attracts a lot of visitors and students. Many rare and endangered species as well as plants local to the Western Ghats can be found in the Botanic Garden.

Regional Coffee Research Station (RCRS)

The Regional Coffee Research Station, Wayanad is situated near Chundale within Kalpetta municipal limits. This establishment is under the Coffee Board of India. The primary objective of this station is to develop appropriate technologies to suit the region where robusta is the dominant crop. Kerala is reckoned as the second largest coffee producing state in the country with robusta variety of coffee, and majority of coffee production of Kerala is from Wayanad. The station covers an area of 116 hectares (290 acres) with 30 hectares (74 acres) of farm with an adequate laboratory support for research.

The RCRS is a sub-center of Central Coffee Research Institute based at Chikmagalur district of Karnataka.

Myladippara Trekking Centre

Myladippara

Myladippara is a cliff located to the east of Civil Station, adjacent to the new NH bypass road. Trek to the Myladippara offers a charming experience.

Tourist attractions

Wayanad Flower Show held at Kalpetta every December/January is a keenly awaited annual event

There are many attractions near Kalpetta.[8][9] Below is the list of attractions grouped by the road direction from Kalpetta:

Towards Vythiri:

Towards Padinjarethara:

Towards Meppadi:

Towards Sulthan Bathery:

Towards Mananthavady:

Major Institutions/Offices in Kalpetta

Industries

The Wayanad dairy of Milma (Kerala Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation) is situated at Chuzhali within Kalpetta Municipal Limits. This dairy processes over 100,000 liters of milk daily and markets it in Wayanad, Kozhikode, Malappuram and Kannur districts. The dairy also manufactures high quality ghee which is exported to the Middle East countries. Other products of the dairy are Butter, Buttermilk, Curd and ice-cream.

There is a Mini Industries Park promoted by Kinfra at Kalpetta. Several small scale industries function out of this Park.

Tourism and hospitality industry experienced a boom in recent years. This has led to mushrooming of resorts throughout Wayanad, with the largest concentration of hotels and resorts at Kalpetta and adjoining areas within Vythiri taluk.

Kalpetta is the banking capital of Wayanad. Lead District Bank of Wayanad is Canara Bank and the Lead Bank office is situated at Kalpetta. India's largest bank State Bank of India has two branches in the municipal area (Kainatty and Kalpetta). The premier bank of Kerala State Bank of Travancore also has two branches - Specialised Gold Point Branch apart from the regular branch. There is a total of 21 branches of scheduled banks in Kalpetta, excluding Gramin and Co-operative banks. Kerala Gramin Bank has a branch and a Regional Office at Kalpetta. The head office of Wayanad District Co-operative Bank is at Kalpetta. Kerala State Co-operative Bank has its Wayanad branch at Kalpetta. The Wayanad Region office of Kerala State Co-operative Agricultural and Rural Development Bank Ltd is also at Kalpetta.

Trade and shopping

Kalpetta is one of the major trade centers in Kerala for agricultural produces. Kalpetta is one of 18 markets that the VFPCK (Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam) tracks and publishes vegetable and fruit prices.[10] Coffee price prevailing at Kalpetta market is published in all Malaylam newspapers and also in business newspapers such as the Economic Times.

In recent times, major jewellery, electronics and hypermarket retail chains of Kerala have set up stores in Kalpetta. Well known store chains like Francis Alukkas, Malabar Gold, Chemmannur Gold, Grand Fresh Hypermarkets, Kannankandy Electronics, Whitemart Electronics, TBS Books and Beyond, Planet Fashion are present at Kalpetta.

All of Kerala's leading book publishers have outlets at Kalpetta. Outlets of Current Books, National Book Stall (NBS), Mathrubhumi Books, Deshabhimani Books and Poorna Publications (TBS) can be found there.

Car dealerships serving Wayanad are located in the Kalpetta North suburbs between Kainatty and Kakkavayal.

Politics

Local Administration : Kalpetta is the only municipality in Wayanad district. Currently, Mr PP ALI of UDF is the Chairman of Kalpetta Municipality. Kalpetta is also the headquarters of Kalpetta Block Panchayath and Wayanad District Panchayath.

Kerala Legislative Assembly : Kalpetta constituency is currently represented by Mr. MV Sreyams Kumar MLA.

Lok Sabha : Kalpetta is part of the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency. Mr. M I Shanavas is the current MP.

Education

University:

  1. Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Pookode (14KM from Kalpetta)

Professional Education:

  1. College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Pookode (14KM from Kalpetta)
  2. Oriental School of Hotel Management located at Lakkidi (15KM from Kalpetta)
  3. Oriental College of Hotel Management and Culinary Arts at Vythiri (8KM from Kalpetta)
  4. DM WIMS Medical College located at Meppadi (15KM) is the only Medical College in Wayanad district
  5. DM WIMS Nursing College located at Meppadi (15KM)
  6. Centre for Computer Science and Information Technology of Calicut University at Muttil offers MCA (Master of Computer Application) course
  7. B.Ed Centre of Calicut University is situated at Kaniyambetta (10KM from Kalpetta)
  8. Fatima Mata Nursing School, Kalpetta
  9. Government Polytechnic College, Meppadi
  10. KMM Government ITI, Kalpetta
  11. Face Psycho Clinic and Training Centre (functioning inside Shanthi Pain & Palliative Care Society building) offers Calicut University's Diploma Course in Psychological Counseling

Arts and Science Colleges:

  1. NMSM Government College, Kalpetta
  2. WMO Arts & Science College, Muttil
  3. Green Mount Arts & Science College, Padinjarethara
  4. PM Charitable Trust, Arts & Science College, Meppadi

Schools:

  1. Kendriya Vidyalaya, Kalpetta
  2. WMO English Academy, Muttil
  3. SKMJ Higher Secondary School, Kalpetta
  4. NSS English Medium School, Kalpetta
  5. De Paul Public School, Kalpetta
  6. MCF Public School, Kalpetta
  7. St Joseph's Convent School, Kalpetta
  8. Government Higher Secondary School, Munderi, Kalpetta
  9. Al Falah English Medium School, Kalpetta
  10. Kristhuraja Public School, Vellaramkunnu
  11. KeyPees International School, Ootty Road, Kunnumbetta

Hospitals

Ayurveda Hospitals:

Homoeopathy:

Others:

Banks

Renowned personalities

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Kalpetta". india9. Retrieved 2006-10-14.
  2. ↑ "Taluks of Kerala". wikipedia. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
  3. ↑ "Kalpetta History". kalpettamunicipality. Retrieved 2014-01-29.
  4. ↑ "Kalpetta Census 2011 data". censusindia. Retrieved 2014-01-29.
  5. ↑ "Road map of Wayanad district". Kerala PWD. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
  6. ↑ "Padinajrethara Poozhithode road". The Hindu. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
  7. ↑ "Bandipur-road-to-be-closed-at-night". DNA India. Retrieved 2014-05-11.
  8. ↑ "Wayanad Outdoor Trail". Wayanad Tourism Organisation. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
  9. ↑ "India Travel Blog". PaintedStork.com. Retrieved 2006-10-14.
  10. ↑ "Market Price". vfpck. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
  11. ↑ "AIMS Outreach". AIMS. Retrieved 2014-04-19.
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