Ettumanoor

Ettumanoor ഏറ്റുമാനൂർ Ettumanur
Town
Ettumanoor Location in Kerala, India
Coordinates: 9°40′N 76°34′E / 9.67°N 76.57°ECoordinates: 9°40′N 76°34′E / 9.67°N 76.57°E
Country	India
State	Kerala
District	Kottayam
Area
• Total	24.78 km^2 (9.57 sq mi)
Elevation	4 m (13 ft)
Population (2011)
• Total	26,423
• Density	1,100/km^2 (2,800/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Malayalam, English
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	686631
Vehicle registration	KL-05
Nearest city	Kottayam
Literacy	Nearly 100%
Lok Sabha constituency	Kottayam

Ettumanoor is a major town and Municipality in the Kottayam District of Kerala, India, located 9.5 kilometers north-east of Kottayam city, 65 km from Cochin and 73 km from Cochin International Airport. The state Highway No.1 popularly known as the Main Central (MC) Road, passes through Ettumanoor, and is a major connecting link between Palai and beyond to the Western Ghats and to the commercial capital of Kerala - Kochi. Ettumanoor is en route to the tourist destinations at Wagamon and Poonjar.

History

The name of the place had its origin from the word 'man oor' in Malayalam, which means the place of deer as 'maan' means deer and 'oor' means place. Ettumanoor is a historical place as myths have says that the Pandavas and the sage Vyasa had established temple here.

Geography

Ettumanoor is located at 9°40′N 76°34′E / 9.67°N 76.57°E.^[1] It has an average elevation of 4 m (13 ft).

Trade links

Ettumanoor was a Taluk Headquarters till 1920. Hence a court and other government offices were constructed in 5.5-acre (22,000 m²) of land known as Kacheri kunnu (court hills) acquired from Pulingapally purayidom [Thazhathu Pulingapallil]. The main highway that passes through this town is Main Central road or M C road from Trivandrum to join National Highway 47 at Angamaly. Ettumanoor- Ernakulam road or E.E road as per PWD records was the only connection for people from Kottayam to reach Cochin. This road starts from Thavalakuzhy vadakke kavala of Ettumanoor and reaches Trippunithura Jn to join Kochi- Madurai National Highway 49 and connects to NH 17 to Mumbai at Edappally via Vyttila Jn. Ettumanoor neendoor road is being extended to Cherthala and shortly it will be upgraded as a state highway. A road linking Athirampuzha to Poonjar via Ettuamnoor is one of the best state highways in Kerala. The road is superb as it is made out of rubberised tar. The famous Ettumanoor fish market is one of the modern fish markets in the state which has modern building complexes, fish vending stalls, freezing units and Eco-friendly waste disposal plants. Lots of Eastern towns in Kerala depend on this Fish market. Ettumanoor has a private wholesale vegetable market which is a main distributor of vegetables imported from Tamil Nadu to other towns in the district.

The town has two bus stands. A KSRTC station master office with bus station and a well built private bus stand. All Deluxe,Express and interstate buses stop here. Direct buses are available to all places including Bangalore, Mangalore, Velankanni, Palani, Madurai, Tuticorin, Kanyakumari, Salem and Coimbatore. The bus stands are close and a big market is sandwiched between the bus stands, this has made Ettumanoor a convenient shopping place. Two state highways are crossing each other in the town and another two are starting from the town. This makes the town an important changing point for the commuters. Recent development in the nearby areas / start up of new institutions in the neighbour hood and easiness in conveyance has made the town the dearest location for migration. This has led to an increase in the population and change in demography.

Industrial Estate under government of Kerala and Government of India Production centre are major industrial centres in Ettumanoor.It is the only industrial estate in Kerala under the Ministry of Labor, Govt. of India. Rolling shutters, Bakery items, Rubber products, wood products etc. are main products. Ettumanoor was the main centre of building material trade since the 1950s in central Travancore. N T Paul and company was established in 1946 in Ettumanoor. Nearby areas of the town like cheruvandoor, koodallolor and kothanallore are famous for production of vegetables.Places in the east and south like kattachira and kandanchira are famous for pottery and bricks. During first half of last century Ettumaoor was famous for trading and some people like Hassan Rawther has become famous as a leading trader.

Education

Mahatma Gandhi University is situated 6.7 km southwest of the town. An industrial training institute called ITI, a Government Boys' H.S., SFS Public School and Junior College, Girls' model High School and a Teachers Training School and lower primary school are the schools. Colleges in Ettumanoor affiliated to M G University are Mangalam College of Engineering, Mangalam BEd College, and Ettumanoorappan College. There is more than dozen of colleges and professional institutions in Ettumanoor constituency. Etttumanoor is the headquarters of Kerala Chuvar Chithra Kala Kendram (Govt. of Kerala). There are also a number of private aided/un-aided schools in and around the town. E.g.: Town U.P.S School is Pvt. Aided and Established in 1918 is the oldest one.One of the best schools in Kerala, Ebenezer International Residential School, is located in here only. The school is under the leadership of Dr.T.T.Thomas. The school attracts students from all over the world. Athirampuha (2 km on the west side of Ettumanoor) was an ancient town and has got a water link with Alleppie port. Historically Allppie port was connected to western ghats and Palai via road and Athirampuzha jetty; Ettumanoor was the main town en route. Ettumanoor is place where the distance between Western Ghats and the western water body is minimal. The Pattithanam mala (on north east of Ettumanoor) is an extension of Western Ghats and Athirampuzha canal (on south west of Ettumanoor) is a water way connected to Vempanadu kayal. The distance between these two is only 4 km.

Culture and people

The population is diverse. Owing to the limited availability of land, new generation is mainly employed in professional fields like Technology/ medical or trading. People of Ettumanoor are generally calm and quiet and the place is known for its communal harmony. Ettumanoor is one of the few places where pure Malayalam(Written Malayam)is spoken without slang of different regions. In 1981 when there was a theft in the temple, the catholic youth conducted a dharna demanding for quick inquiry. People are well educated as evident from the qualification of their representatives. As long as the resident politicians remain or become more honest, there is tremendous scope for development both in terms of tourism and industrial development for this bustling town.
Unfortunately, off late goonda-raj has started taking its roots in Ettumanoor with police turning a blind eye towards corruption and strong-men who routinely harass and cause harm to the elderly and weak in the city. If this city needs to retain its serene climate conducive to peaceful living the police establishment needs to be more responsible and act in a non-corrupt and professional manner by holding the guilty accountable.

Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple

The ancient Siva Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple here has brought glory and fame to the place. Myths have it that the Pandavas and the sage Vyasa had worshipped at this temple. The name of the place had its origin from the word 'manoor', which means the home of deer.

The present temple building, with its gopuram and the fortress around it, was reconstructed in 717 ME (1542 AD). There are Dravidian mural paintings on the walls inside and outside of the main entrance. The fresco of Pradosha Nritham (Dance of Shiva) is one of the finest Wall painting in India. There is a golden flag staff inside the temple. On the top of it is the idol of a bull surrounded by small bells and metal leaves of the banyan tree. The temple roofs are covered with copper sheets and it has 14 ornamental tops. Bhagavati, Sastha, Ganapathy and Yakshi are installed here as subordinate deities. It is believed that the great philosopher, Sankaracharya wrote the 'Soundaraya Lahari' staying in the temple.

The famous Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple hosts the arattu festival celebrated on a grand scale on the Thiruvathira day in February–March every year. Lot of people come to this temple on the 8th and 10th day of the festival when seven and half elephants (in Malayalam: ezharaponnaana) made of gold (nearly 13 kg) will be held in public view.this statue was donated to the temple by a travancore maharaja. The temple, the wealthiest Devaswom in Kerala, has many valuable possessions.

The Thulabharam is one of the important rituals of this temple. People make offerings to God for favours received. On balance, the child or man for whom offerings were promised to God, is weighed against offerings ranging from gold to fruits. Ettumanoor is an important pilgrim Centre of Hindus.

The history of origin of ETTUMANOORAPPAN is from Kattampakk, a small village in Kottayam district.

Etumanoor was a temple town; so the great sage vyasa came to the temple as a mahamuni.

Other religious places

Christuraj church (Christ the King Church) is one of the famous churches in Kottayam district. This church is tall and beautiful; the church being renovated recently stands in the heart of the town. Then St. George Orthodox church, Koduvathanam Church etc. Another famous pilgrim center, Athirampuzha St. Mary's church, is just 2 km from this place. The fireworks on occasion of Athirampuzha Thirunal Festival on the night of 24 January used attract thousands of people every year, even from neighbouring districts. There are few mosques also. Main among them are Ettumanoor Town Juma Masjid, run by Nooraniya family, Parakandam al Madeena Juma Masjid and Parolickal Muhiyudheen Juma Masjid, run by Ettumanoor, and Athirampuzha Muslim Jamaath.

The history of the origin of Shiva Lingam in Ettumanoor Mahadeva Kshethram is related to Kottaram Devi Temple, Kattampakk.

Ettumanur railway station

Ettumanoor railway station was the hub for steel supply for Idukki dams during its construction. Express trains like Venad Express and Parasuram express stop at the railway station. During festivals at Ettumanur temple, express trains like Vanchinad Express have special stops here.

Politics

Ettumanoor assembly constituency is part of Kottayam (Lok Sabha constituency).^[2]

Increasing demands

There is an increasing demand for upgrading the KSRTC bus station into a depot station. The convenience for transport to every part of the state is making this place a migration hub. The demands for better living conditions and industrial development is in the air.

References

1. Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Ettumanoor
2. "Assembly Constituencies - Corresponding Districts and Parliamentary Constituencies" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2009. Retrieved 2008-10-19.

External links

• Details about services
• About Ettumanoor from Kerala Public Relations department