Munnar

Munnar
മൂന്നാർ
The Kashmir of south India
Hill station

Munnar town
Munnar
Munnar
Coordinates: 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E / 10.08917°N 77.05972°E / 10.08917; 77.05972Coordinates: 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E / 10.08917°N 77.05972°E / 10.08917; 77.05972
Country India
State Kerala
District Idukki
Named for Tea plantations, cool climate
Government
 • Type Panchayath
 • Body Munnar grama panchayath
Area
 • Total 187 km2 (72 sq mi)
Elevation[1] 1,532 m (5,026 ft)
Population (2001)
 • Total 38,471
 • Density 210/km2 (530/sq mi)
Languages
 • Official Malayalam, English
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 685612
Telephone code 04865
Vehicle registration KL-68, KL-06
Literacy 76%
Website keralatourism.org/destination

Munnar (Malayalam: മൂന്നാർ) is a town and hill station located in the Idukki district of the southwestern Indian state of Kerala. Munnar is situated at around 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) above mean sea level,[2] in the Western Ghats range of mountains.

Etymology

The name Munnar is believed to mean "three rivers",[3] referring to its location at the confluence of the Mudhirapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundaly rivers.[4]

Location

Geographic coordinates of Munnar is 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E. Munnar town is situated on the Kannan Devan Hills village in Devikulam taluk and is the largest panchayat in the Idukki district covering an area of nearly 557 square kilometres (215 sq mi).

Road

Munnar KSRTC bus stand

Munnar is well connected by both National highways, state highways and rural roads. The town lies in the Kochi - Dhanushkodi National highway (N.H 49), about 130 km (81 mi) from Cochin, 31 km (19 mi) from Adimali, 85 km (53 mi) from Udumalpettu in Tamil Nadu and 60 km (37 mi) from Neriyamangalam.

Distance from major cities

Railway

The nearest major railway stations are at Ernakulam and Aluva (approximately 140 kilometres (87 mi) by road). The Nearest Functioning Railway station is at Udumalaipettai.

Airport

The nearest airport is Cochin International Airport, which is 110 kilometres (68 mi) away. The Coimbatore and Madurai airports is 165 km from Munnar.

Administration

The panchayath of Munnar formed in 1961 January 24 is divided into 21 wards for administrative convenience. Coimbatore district lies in the north, Pallivasal in south, Devikulam and Marayoor in east and Mankulam, Kuttampuzha panchayaths in the west.

Flora and fauna

Tea plantations at Munnar

Most of the native flora and fauna of Munnar have disappeared due to severe habitat fragmentation resultant from the creation of the plantations. However, some species continue to survive and thrive in several protected areas nearby, including the new Kurinjimala Sanctuary to the east, the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Manjampatti Valley and the Amaravati reserve forest of Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary to the north east, the Eravikulam National Park and Anamudi Shola National Park to the north, the Pampadum Shola National Park to the south and the proposed Palani Hills National Park to the east.

Endemic species

A Nilgiri tahr (scientific name:Nilgiritragus hylocrius) at Rajamalai near Munnar

These protected areas are especially known for several threatened and endemic species including Nilgiri Thar, the grizzled giant squirrel, the Nilgiri wood-pigeon, elephant, the gaur, the Nilgiri langur, the sambar, and the neelakurinji (that blossoms only once in twelve years). [5][6]

Land ownership

There has been action to address the problems of property takeovers by the land mafia that have, according to successive governments, plagued the area. In 2011, the government estimated that 20,000 hectares of land had been illegally appropriated and it launched a campaign of evictions that had first been mooted in 2007.[7]

Places of interest

Munnar Tea Museum

Geography and climate

Mountain ranges covered by clouds at Munnar

The region in and around Munnar varies in height from 1,450 meters (4,760 ft) to 2,695 meters (8,842 ft) above mean sea level. The temperature ranges between 5 °C (41 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) in winter and 15 °C (59 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) in summer.[8] Temperatures as low as −4 °C (25 °F) have been recorded in the Sevenmallay region of Munnar.[9]

Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies it as subtropical highland (Cwb).[10]

Climate data for Munnar
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 22.4
(72.3)		 23.7
(74.7)		 25.3
(77.5)		 25.6
(78.1)		 25.6
(78.1)		 23.7
(74.7)		 22.4
(72.3)		 22.8
(73)		 23.2
(73.8)		 22.7
(72.9)		 21.8
(71.2)		 21.9
(71.4)		 23.42
(74.17)
Daily mean °C (°F) 17.6
(63.7)		 18.7
(65.7)		 20.2
(68.4)		 21
(70)		 21.4
(70.5)		 20.3
(68.5)		 19.3
(66.7)		 19.5
(67.1)		 19.6
(67.3)		 19.2
(66.6)		 18.3
(64.9)		 17.7
(63.9)		 19.4
(66.94)
Average low °C (°F) 12.9
(55.2)		 13.7
(56.7)		 15.1
(59.2)		 16.5
(61.7)		 17.3
(63.1)		 16.9
(62.4)		 16.3
(61.3)		 16.3
(61.3)		 16
(61)		 15.7
(60.3)		 14.8
(58.6)		 13.5
(56.3)		 15.42
(59.76)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 18
(0.71)		 29
(1.14)		 47
(1.85)		 129
(5.08)		 189
(7.44)		 420
(16.54)		 583
(22.95)		 364
(14.33)		 210
(8.27)		 253
(9.96)		 164
(6.46)		 64
(2.52)		 2,470
(97.25)
Average rainy days 2 2 3 6 8 9 10 9 10 12 8 5 84
Mean monthly sunshine hours 248 232 248 240 217 120 124 124 150 155 180 217 2,255
Source #1: Climate-Data.org, altitude: 1461m[10]
Source #2: Weather2Travel for sunshine and rainy days[11]
Hills around the tea plantations, Munnar

See also

References

Munnar travel guide from Wikivoyage

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