Chikkamagaluru district

Chikkamagaluru district
ಚಿಕ್ಕಮಗಳೂರು ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ
district

Kudremukh, the "Horse-faced Peak"

Location in Karnataka
Chikkamagaluru district

Location of the district headquarters in India

Coordinates: 13°19′N 75°46′E / 13.32°N 75.77°E / 13.32; 75.77Coordinates: 13°19′N 75°46′E / 13.32°N 75.77°E / 13.32; 75.77
Country  India
State  Karnataka
Headquarters Chikkamagaluru
Talukas Chikkamagaluru, Kadur, Tarikere, Mudigere, Shringeri, Koppa, Narasimharajapura
Government
  Deputy Commissioner B S Shekharappa
Area
  Total 7,201 km2 (2,780 sq mi)
Population (2001)
  Total 1,139,104
  Density 158.19/km2 (409.7/sq mi)
Languages
  Official Kannada
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Vehicle registration KA- 18, KA- 66
Website chickmagalur.nic.in

Chikkamagaluru is a district in the state of Karnataka. Coffee was first cultivated in India in Chikkamagalur. The mountains in Chikkamagaluru which are a part of the Western Ghats are the source of rivers like Tunga and Bhadra. Mullayanagiri, which is the highest peak in Karnataka is located in the district. It is also a tourist's paradise containing hill stations like Kemmanagundi and Kudremukh and waterfalls like Manikyadhara, Hebbe, Kallathigiri. Chikkamagaluru district has a rich history as is seen in the Hoysala temple at Amrithapura. Wildlife enthusiasts would be interested in the Kudremukh National Park and Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary present in this district.

Etymology

Chikkamagalur district gets its name from its headquarters of Chikkamagaluru town. It is alternatively spelt as Chickmagalur or Chikmagalur. Chikkamagaluru literally means "The town of the younger daughter" in the native Kannada language. The town is said to have been given as a dowry to the younger daughter of Rukmangada, the legendary chief of Sakrepatna and hence the name.[1] As one can guess, there is indeed a town called Hiremagaluru which means "The town of the elder daughter" which is about 5 km from Chikkamagaluru town.

History

Chikkamagaluru is the region where the Hoysala rulers started and spent the early days of their dynasty. According to a legend, it was at Sosevur, now identified with Angadi in Mudigere Taluk that Sala, the founder of the Hoysala dynasty, killed the legendary tiger, immortalised in the Hoysala crest.[2][3] It is known that Veera Ballala II (1173 – 1220 CE), the great king of Hoysala empire, has built the Amriteshwara temple at Amrithapura in Tarikere Taluk.

Coffee was introduced into India through the Chikkamagaluru district when the first coffee crop was grown in the Baba Budan Giri Hills during 1670 AD.[1] According to the article Origins of Coffee, the saint Baba Budan on his pilgrimage to Mecca travelled through the seaport of Mocha, Yemen where he discovered coffee. To introduce its taste to India, he wrapped seven coffee beans around his belly and got them out of Arabia. On his return home, he planted the beans in the hills of Chikkamagaluru.

In recent history, Chikkamagaluru was the centre of global attention in the year 1978 when the former Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi stood for elections here and got elected to Lok Sabha, the Indian Parliament.

Geography

Chikkamagaluru, the headquarters of Chikkamagaluru district, is 251 km from the state capital of Bangalore, and is surrounded by the Chandra Dronha hills and dense forests. The district is between 12° 54´ 42´´ and 13° 53´ 53´´ north latitude and between 75° 04´ 46´´ and 76° 21´ 50´´ east longitude. Its greatest length from east to west is about 138.4 kilometers and from north to south 88.5 kilometers. The district receives normal average rainfall of 1925 mm. The highest point in this district is Mullayanagiri, 1926 mts. above sea level which is also the highest point in the state of Karnataka. 30% of the district (2108.62 km²) is covered with forests.[4] The district borders Shimoga district to the north, Davangere district to the north-east, Chitradurga and Tumkur districts to the east, Hassan district to the south, Dakshina Kannada district to the south-west and Udupi district to the west. The rivers Bhadra, Tunga, Hemavathi, Netravati, and Vedavathi flow all year round. The district is rich in iron, magnetite and granite deposits. Black soil is found around Baba Budan Giri Hills whereas Red and Gravel soil are found in the southern parts of the district.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census Chikkamagaluru district has a population of 1,137,753,[5] roughly equal to the nation of Cyprus[6] or the US state of Rhode Island.[7] This gives it a ranking of 408th in India (out of a total of 640).[5] The district has a population density of 158 inhabitants per square kilometre (410/sq mi) .[5] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was −0.28%.[5] Chikmagalur has a sex ratio of 1005 females for every 1000 males,[5] and a literacy rate of 79.24%.[5]

81% of the population resides in rural area with the remaining 19% being the urban population. Among Taluks, Sringeri taluk has the least population whereas Chikkamagaluru Taluk has the highest population.

Kannada is the Dominant language spoken in this district.

Administration

Taluks of Chikkamagaluru district

Chikkamagaluru district falls under the Mysore Division of Karnataka. It is divided into two Revenue Sub-divisions, Chikkamagaluru Sub-Division and Tarikere Sub-Division. Chikkamagaluru Sub-Division comprises the taluks of Chikkamagaluru, Koppa, Mudigere and Sringeri whereas the Tarikere Sub-Division comprises the taluks of Tarikere, Kadur and Narasimharajapura. The Deputy Commissioner (also the District Magistrate) is the functional head of the district. Each Sub-Division has Assistant Commissioners and each Taluk has Tahsildars who work under the control and supervision of the Deputy Commissioner. The current administrative setup of the district can be viewed here .

Economy

chikmagalur tourist guide
Fresh beans of Coffee Robusta. Coffee is the cornerstone of Chikkamagaluru district's economy.

Agriculture is the economical back bone of the Chikkamagaluru district with coffee cultivation forming the major part of it. Agricultural production in the district is spread over three seasons — namely Kharif, Rabi and Summer. Important crops grown are cereals, i.e. rice, ragi, jowar, maize and minor millets, pulses like red gram, horse gram, green gram, avrekai (Hyacinth Beans), black gram and Bengal gram. Oil seeds like groundnut, sesamum, sunflower, castor and commercial crops like sugarcane, cotton, and tobacco are also grown here.[8]

The Coffee Board located in Chikkamagaluru town is the government authority that oversees the production and marketing of coffee cultivated in the district. Coffee is cultivated in Chikkamagaluru district in an area of around 85,465 hectares with Arabica being the dominant variety grown in upper hills and Robusta being the major variety in the low level hills. There are around 15000 coffee growers in this district with 96% of them being small growers with holdings of less than or equal to 4 hectares. The average production is 55,000 MT: 35,000 MT of Arabica and 20,000 MT of Robusta. The average productivity per hectare is 810 kg for Arabica and 1110 kg of Robusta, which are higher than the national average.[9]

Industries

Chikkamagaluru district unfortunately has not made good progress in terms of Industrial Development. Inadequate infrastructure, poor roads, poor rail network and investors preferring non-industrial ventures over industrial ones are quoted as some of the reasons for the backwardness of Industrial Development in this district.[10][11]

There is only one Large Scale industry in this district, i.e. M/s Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd. (KIOCL) in Kudremukh area of Mudigere Taluk. KIOCL was established in 1976 to develop the Kudremukh mine and to produce 7.5 million tonnes of concentrate per year. The facilities were commissioned in 1980 and the first shipment of concentrate was made in October 1981. A pelletisation plant with a capacity of 3 million tonnes per year was commissioned in 1987 for production of high quality blast furnace and direct reduction grade pellets for export.[12] KIOCL received a massive setback when its mining licence expired and operations were stopped by the Supreme Court with effect from 31 December 2005.[13] With many of the employees losing their jobs and the social backlash that may result thereof, efforts are being made to generate jobs for these workers in other areas.[14]

There is only one Medium Scale Industry, i.e. M/s Vignyan Industries Ltd. located in Tarikere town. A subsidiary of BEML, it produces steel castings.

There are 2 Industrial Estates in Chikkamagaluru district, one located near Chikkamagaluru town and the other near Birur in Kadur Taluk. The Chikkamagaluru Industrial Estate is spread over 13.20 acres (53,400 m2) of land where the one at Birur is spread over 11.1 acres (45,000 m2). Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) is also developing an Industrial Area of over 145 acres (0.59 km2) near Amble village of Chikkamagaluru Taluk.[15]

Education

According to 2011 census, the percentage literacy rate of Chikkamagaluru district is 79.25% with 85.41% of males and 73.16% of females being literate. The literacy rate of Chikkamagaluru is higher than the average literacy rate of Karnataka state which is 75.36%. Sringeri Taluk has the highest literacy rate of 92.68% and Kadur Taluk with 74.33% being the least literate one.[16]

Primary and secondary education

As of 2001, there are 1620 primary schools (with 151923 students) and 235 secondary schools (high schools with 34607 students) in Chikkamagaluru district.[17] Chikkamagaluru Taluk with 414 primary schools (42774 students) has the most number of primary schools with Sringeri Taluk having the least number of 80 primary schools (5822 students). Kadur Taluk with 74 secondary schools (9990 students) has the most number of secondary schools with Sringeri Taluk having the least number of 9 secondary schools (1492 students).

Higher secondary education

As of 2001, there are 46 colleges (with 4711 students) offering Higher Secondary (Pre-University) education in Chikkamagaluru district.[17] Kadur Taluk with 12 Higher-Secondary colleges (1324 students) has the most number of Higher-secondary colleges with Sringeri Taluk having the least number of 2 Higher-secondary colleges (160 students).

education

As of 2011, there are 13 degree colleges (with 4615 students) offering graduate education in Chikkamagaluru district[17] which are affiliated to Kuvempu University. Chikkamagaluru Taluk has the maximum 4 graduate colleges (with 1648 students) whereas kadur has 2 and Koppa, Mudigere, Narasimharajapura and Sringeri taluks have only 1 graduate college each.

Technical education

Medical education

A new medical college has been sanctioned to Chikmagalur city but the construction work has not yet been started. The only source of medical education in the Chikkamagaluru district is Arror Laxminarayan Rao Memorial Ayurvedic Medical college in Koppa. This college offers the Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) degree.

Transport

Road

Chikkamagaluru district is not known for well maintained roads.[19][20] The poor state of the roads has hampered development of this district to some extent; more so because of the absence of even a good rail network in this district.[21] The total length of roads in this district is 7264 km.[4] There are only two National Highways that pass through this district. The National Highway NH-13 (Sholapur to Mangalore) passes through the towns of Koppa and Sringeri whereas the National Highway NH-206 (Bangalore to Honnavar) passes through the towns of Kadur, Birur and Tarikere. There is a proposal to upgrade the existing state highways Tarikere-Belur, Sringeri-Hassan & Kadur-Mangalore to national highway status.[22]

Rail

Chikmagalur Railway Station (construction)

The Chikmagalur, Kadur and Tarikere taluks have railway lines passing through them. The total length of railway line passing through the district is 136  Birur is the main big Junction of Chikmagalur District. A new railway line connecting Chikmagalur to the main Hubli-Bangalore trunk line was newly inaugurated and the commencment of the new line connecting chikmagalur to the Bangalore – Mangalore trunk line has already been started.

Air

Chikkamagaluru district has a small airport near Gowdanahalli village about 10 km from Chikkamagaluru town. Its suitable for small charted planes. Airports at Mangalore, Bangalore and Hubli can be used as an alternative.[23]

Tourist spots

Hill stations

An example of the scenery en route to Kemmangundi.
Manikyadhara Falls near Baba Budan Giri Dattatreya Peetha.

Waterfalls and lakes

Hebbe Falls, near Kemmannugundi
Hanuman Gundi Falls

Temple towns

Annapoorneshwari Temple, Horanadu.jpg
Vidyasankara temple in Shringeri.
The mahadwara (main door) to Annapoorneshwari temple in Horanadu.

Wildlife

Gallery

Notes

  1. 1 2 National Informatics Centre. "About Chikkamagaluru". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 16 March 2007.
  2. Angadi village in Chikkamagaluru district, where it is believed that king Sala, founder of Hoysala dynasty killed the tiger, will be made a major tourist destination, reports the Staff Correspondent in (19 October 2006). "Angadi to be made a major tourist destination". Online Edition of The Hindu ePaper — Issue Thursday, October 19, 2006 (Chennai, India: 2006 The Hindu, From the publishers of the Hindu). Retrieved 16 March 2007.
  3. C. Hayavadhana Rao, J. D. M. Derrett, B. R Joshi call the Sala story a legend, Arthikaje, Mangalore. "History of Karnataka-Hoysalas and their contributions". 1998–2000 OurKarnataka.Com, Inc. Retrieved 16 March 2007.
  4. 1 2 Geographical details of Chikkamagaluru district are discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Perspective Industrial Plan of Chickmagalur District". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "District Census 2011". Census2011.co.in. 2011. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
  6. US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison:Population". Retrieved 1 October 2011. Cyprus 1,120,489 July 2011 est.
  7. "2010 Resident Population Data". U. S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 30 September 2011. Rhode Island 1,052,567
  8. Agriculture forms the major part of Chikmagalur's economy; as discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Agriculture". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. Dept. of Agriculture, District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  9. Coffee cultivation in Chikkamagaluru is discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Coffe board". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. Coffe Board, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  10. Poor development of Industries in Chikkamagaluru district is discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Present Industrial Scenario of the district and SWOT analysis". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  11. Glaring imbalances with respect to investments in the districts of Karnataka is discussed by Nagesh Prabhu. "Glaring regional imbalance in industrial investment". Online Edition of The Hindu ePaper — Issue Sunday, April 30, 2006. 2006 The Hindu, From the publishers of the Hindu. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  12. The history of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd. is discussed in "KIOCL: Company Profile". The website of KIOCL. Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd. Retrieved 17 March 2007.
  13. The Supreme Court permitted KIOCL to mine iron ore in Kudremukh area only till 31 December 2005 reports Ministry of Steel. "Press Release". The website of Press Information Bureau, Govt. of India, December 2, 2002. 2002, Press Information Bureau, Govt. of India. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  14. Faced with the threat of losing jobs due to impending closure of Kudremukh mines, the workers and management have appealed for allotting them an alternative mining site to eke out a living reports PTI. "Workers, Management of Kudremukh mines seek alternative mine". Mar 09, 2007 NewKerala.com. 2007, Press Trust of India. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  15. Industrial Estates and Industrial Areas in Chikkamagaluru district are reported by National Informatics Centre. "Present Industrial Scenario of the district and SWOT analysis". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  16. http://www.census2011.co.in/census/district/250-chikmagalur.html
  17. 1 2 3 Statistics related to schools in Chikkamagaluru district are discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Annexures.". Annexure IX, The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 19 March 2007.
  18. 1 2 Colleges offering Technical Education in Chikkamagaluru district are discussed in National Informatics Centre. "Socio-Economic Infrastructure". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 19 March 2007.
  19. The damage to roads in the district, including State highways and municipal roads is unprecedented reports the Correspondent in (25 September 2005). "BJP threatens stir over bad roads in Chikmagalur". Online Edition of The Hindu ePaper – Issue Thursday, September 25, 2005 (Chennai, India: 2005 The Hindu, From the publishers of the Hindu). Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  20. Deplorable condition of Chickmagalur roads and money being released to address the issue is reported by Correspondent in (5 January 2007). "Chikmagalur district gets Rs. 27 crore for road repairs". Online Edition of The Hindu ePaper – Issue Thursday, Jan 5, 2007 (Chennai, India: 2007 The Hindu, From the publishers of the Hindu). Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  21. In absence of good rail network, the roads play an important part for the industrial development. However, most of the roads in Chikkamagaluru district needs proper maintenance. Report by National Informatics Centre. "Present Industrial Scenario of the district and SWOT analysis". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 17 March 2007.
  22. Plans to upgrade some roads in Chikkamagaluru district is presented by National Informatics Centre. "Socio-Economic Infrastructure". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  23. Proposal to construct an airport in Chikkamagaluru district is discussed by National Informatics Centre. "Socio-Economic Infrastructure". The Official website of Chikkamagaluru. District Administration, Chikkamagaluru. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  24. Travel and Tourism Guide in India, Book Hotels for Tours and Travels – Native Planet. Gallery.holidaymakers.in (13 November 2015). Retrieved on 2015-11-19.
  25. Top Chikmagalur, India Things to Do on VirtualTourist. Virtualtourist.com. Retrieved on 19 November 2015.
  26. Narasimharajapura. Karnatakaholidays.com. Retrieved on 19 November 2015.
  27. Simhanagadde. Karnatakaholidays.com. Retrieved on 19 November 2015.
  28. Simhanagadde. Jain.org. Retrieved on 19 November 2015.

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