Anthikad

Anthikad
village
Anthikad

Location in Kerala, India

Coordinates: 10°27′29″N 76°07′35″E / 10.457940°N 76.1263700°E / 10.457940; 76.1263700Coordinates: 10°27′29″N 76°07′35″E / 10.457940°N 76.1263700°E / 10.457940; 76.1263700
Country  India
State Kerala
District Thrissur
Population (2001)
 • Total 9,051
Languages
 • Official Malayalam, English
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 680641
Telephone Code 0487
Vehicle registration KL-08
Nearest City Thrissur
Lok Sabha constituency Thrissur
Vidhan Sabha constituency Nattika

Anthikad is a village in Thrissur district in the state of Kerala, India.It is in Thrissur Thaluk,Nattika constituency and Anthikad Block.Manalur and Thanyam are the nearest panjayaths. Anthikad is famous for toddy production and paddy fields.Anthikad won`Nelkathir' award for best paddy cultivation in kelara in 2008.[1] Anthikad is the headquarter for the Major Financial enterprise, Peringottukara Namboothiri Yogashkema Sabha Credit & Investment Company Ltd. (PNY Sabha) which is formed in the year 1907.

History

Anthikad is known as Moscow of kerala.

Kola Muri Samaram

It held an important position in shaping the political and the social perspectives of Kerala.The toddy tappers were organised by communists who were hiding from the police to avoid arrest for their role in freedom movement. Com. George Chadayanmuri,who working underground (evading arrest as per instruction of communist party) took pains to talk to the toddy tappers and bring them under the umbrella of a union.

The Communists converted the toddy tappers from slaves of brutal contractors to modern day human beings and these workers became the leaders of the society. The farmers, teachers and other people accepted the leadership of toddy tappers and together they took part in the freedom struggle and also fought for upliftment of lives.Comrade(Late) Chathu Master, K.R. Kelu, K.G. Kelan, K.S. Chathu Kutty, N.C. Shankaran, K.S. Kittunni, M.R.Shankaran kodapully, and many others who were several times arrested, jailed and tortured for their crimes of organising workers against contractors.Today's Revenue Minister Mr. K.P. Rajendran is son of a leader of toddy tappers who himself was once made a minister. He, late Mr. K.P. Prabhakaran is the product of the agitations toddy workers led relentlessly during the pre-and-post independence period.

The height of the Toddy Tappers agitation is remembered as 'Kola Muri Samaram'. There were several tappers who did not want to take risk and join the struggle. These people united under the banner of Congress Party and their trade union. This rival union activists acted as agents of the Contractors and the Police. When the agitating communists decided to go on an indefinite strike, the Contractors were hurt by the financial losses in business they suffered. At that time, the opposing union members decided to manufacture more toddy and supplement to the loss suffered due to the non-working agitators.

It was then, the strikers decided to cut the flower-buds of coconut trees from which the agents of the contractors were producing toddy. During night time, simultaneously at several places the flower-buds of their trees were cut off. This was later called 'Kola Muri Samaram'.

Very cruel suppression with all the forces of Police and Govt. Administration supported by Courts of Law followed. House searches, illegal custodies, lock up tortures of all kinds and forms, jailing, atrocities on women - everything the government and the Contractors tried to defeat the strikers failed. Finally, they had to call the Communist leaders for negotiation.

Socio- Economic conditions

The people in Anthikad area are mainly engaged in foreign employment in Middle East, farming, trading and service sector. The number of toddy tappers, a traditional employment, got drastically reduced due to the collapse of the traditional industry. The farming, especially green house cultivation has become a passion for many including those returned from abroad. The average per capital income of the affluent society members are more than 1000 USD. The land value is very high and real estate business is very lucrative business in the whole area of Thrissur Parliamentary constituency. Even though large area is under rice cultivation and coconut (the area is declared as Ramsar site), rice or coconut based agro-industry is far away in neighboring Ernakulam, Malappuram and Palagaht districts. But diary industry is developed like rural banking in cooperative sector since 1960s. In short the major source of income and cash flow is from foreign remittance, farming, diary and service sector. The people belong to Hindu, Muslim and Christian religions and co-exist very peacefully. Due to the influence of materialism and rational thinking since the Indian Independent Movement, socially people are advanced with 100% literacy and computer literacy. 

There are many worship places of pagan Gods and Goddess in the entire area of Assembly Constituency Manalur, whose administrative center is Anthikad. Earlier, during the historic Indian Independent Movement  and Communist Trade Union struggles, this area was known as Enammavu-Peringotukara Furka (Furka or Fourka  word etiology Greece-Macedonia) or rather Enamavu-Peringotukara Anthikad Furka. The pagan God was popularly known as "Chathan" and Goddess as "Kaly". Even though the place is a very strong hold of Indian Communists, the pagan worship places and the Shamans  are also very famous in entire Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

The Brahmin, Nair and Ezhuva community is very strong here in the so-called furka and adjoining Manappuram, but they do not show any interest in organizing under any community. The society is very secular and the pagan God "Chathan" itself is a symbol of the unity among different castes or religions. It is believed that the Power or Energy of Pagan God "Chathan" was an ancient gift from a Brahmin family to certain Ezhuva families. It is interesting to note that many old Ehuva families living on the coastal area of Kerala including Enamavu-Peringotukara Anthikad furka and Manappuram were either from Budha believers of migrants from ancient Ceylon, Malaya etc. The Nairs as a whole in Kerala were migrants from Iran and Central Asia.

Famous personalities

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Anthikad had a population of 9051 with 4204 males and 4847 females.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. "Census of India : Villages with population 5000 & above". Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
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