Sooranad

Sooranad
Sooranadu
village
Sooranad

Location in Kerala, India

Coordinates: 9°05′45″N 76°37′24″E / 9.0958676°N 76.6234589°E / 9.0958676; 76.6234589Coordinates: 9°05′45″N 76°37′24″E / 9.0958676°N 76.6234589°E / 9.0958676; 76.6234589
Country  India
State Kerala
District Kollam
Government
 • Body Sooranad village-as Sooranad South village and Sooranad North village
Population (2001)
 • Total 23,658
Languages
 • Official Malayalam, English
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 690522,690561
Telephone code 0476
Vehicle registration KL-61
Vidhan Sabha constituency Kunnathoor
Civic agency Sooranad village-as Sooranad South village and Sooranad North village
Climate hot and humid (Köppen)

Sooranad or Sooranadu is a village located in the northern extremity of Kollam district in Kerala, India. Sooranad North and Sooranad South are collectively known as Sooranad. Both are under separate local panchayats.

The main employment for men and women is cashew nut processing, which takes place in several factories. There are also workers who manufacture tiles and "country burnt" bricks. In addition, there are people who work as casual laborers.

Three Higher Secondary schools, the Government high school of Sooranadu and the Santhinikethan Model High School, and other Upper Primary and Lower Primary Schools provide basic education to both the local students and students from other administrative subdivisions (talukas).

Sasthamkottah Lake provides drinking water for the community. The village is accessed from both MC (Main Central) Road and NH 47. There are many markets in Sooranad like Kannamath chandha, Vayyankara chantha, and Parakkadavu chantha. Padmasree Dr. Sooranad Kunjhan Pillai, the renowned poet, writer, and linguistic Scholar who formulated Malayalam Lexicon, hailed from this Village. Barrister N. Padmanabha pillai of Panayamcherril veedu, of vayyankara was a member of Sreemoolam Assembly and was the Municipal Chairman, Kollam during whose time the famous clocktower in Kollam was built. Thennala Balakrishnapillai, renowned Congress leader, who was M.L.A, M.P and KPCC president was born and brought up here.

A tributary of the Kallada River flows through this village as well as the Pallikkal River. Across this there is a dam that can irrigate about 200 acres of paddy and other summer crops. Sooranad is blessed with many Temples, Churches and Mosques.

There are many temples in Sooranad including Kalarivadukal Temple, Kumaranchira temple, Komalavalleeswaram temple, Anayadi Pazhayidam Narasimha Sastha temple, azhakiyakavu sree kurumba kaalli devi temple, sree narayana puram temple and Puthiyidam Krishnaswami temple. The last two are under one administration and the former is famous for Anayadi pooram with hundred and odd elephants partaking to decorate the festival.

'Vayyankara chira' a freshwater lake with an extend of 150 acres, is a rectangular lake close to vayyankara junction which is more an attractive scene than a water collection.

The celebrated 'Sooranad Sambhavam' is one in which three police constables and one sub inspector were murdered in a paddy field in Sooranad north village by Communists in connection with a dispute of fishing from a pond, between a land lord and communists, in 1949 December 31.the famous theatre drama 'ningallenne communistakee' by thoppil bhasi was based on this issue. this helped the communist movements in Kerala.

Azhakiyakaavu Temple is a prominent among temples here .It is siyuated not far away from Sooranad Hovt.High School. Kumbha bharani mahotsavam is the main attraction apart from the famous 'Kalamezhuthu paattu & Kuruthi'. Temple is governed by Nair community from '04 Kara' in and around its place. Hundreds of years old 'Kalathattu' in front of the temple is also an attraction.

Vayanasala Junction in Sooranadu is located between Puthiyakavu and Chakkuvally. The junction draws its name from the library established here by Sri. Mudiyilthara V. Bhaskaran, an eminent Communist Party leader of the locality. The Vayanasala area is inhabited by families which have been here for many generations, with community ties running deep.

Anayadi Gajamela (Elephant Festival)

Anayadi pazhayidam Narasimha Swami temple at Sooranad North in Kollam district is famous for its elephant pageantry. The majestic Anayadi Gajamela, where a hundred-odd caparisoned elephants line up accompanied by traditional orchestra, is a virtual treat. The main deity of the temple is Narasimhan, the lion-headed incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Anayadi Gajamela is one of the most important Gajamelas held in Kerala which is loved and revered by all. Anayadi Gajamela is famous by the grand elephant pageantry alone. In order to please the god, elephants are offered to the temple deity and later lined up for procession. Through this offering, Anayadi Gajamela has become a favourite to all and also found a place in the tourism map. The ten-day annual festival of the temple is conducted on the Thiruvonam day in the month of Makaram. Devotees offer 250–300 elephants almost every year. Foreigners from America, Thailand, Australia, Britain, New Zealand and Switzerland arrive to witness the Gajamela.The temple can be reached from Adoor Charummoodu and Sasthamcotta. Anayadi lies at the north of Kollam and borders Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts and visitors can reach the temple via the Kayamkulam-Punaloor route traveling south, 17 kilometres (11 mi) from Charummoodu Junction.

Plaamukku and KCT junction are the known evening gathering centres for village men since ages, where the name' Plaamukku' is derived from a large shady umbrella shaped 'Plaavu' (jack fruit tree) that was existed till early eighties at the junction and provided relief for local folks and passersby from scorching Sun. The 'Plaamood City Council', is a vibrant social media group from Plaamukku to take up local issues actively as well to act as a pressure group for evolving constructive opinion among village men for local issues.

Main Hospitals

Main Temples

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sooranad.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, March 20, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.