Kalpeni

Kalpeni Atoll

Location of Kalpeni Atoll in Lakshadweep
Geography
Location	Arabian Sea
Coordinates	10°05′N 73°38′E / 10.09°N 73.64°ECoordinates: 10°05′N 73°38′E / 10.09°N 73.64°E
Archipelago	Lakshadweep
Adjacent bodies of water	Indian Ocean
Total islands	7
Major islands	Kalpeni Cheriyam Tilakkam Kodithala Pitti
Area	3.084 km^2 (1.191 sq mi)[1]
Highest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Administration
India
Territory	Union territory of Lakshadweep
District	Lakshadweep
Island group	Laccadive Islands
Tehsils of India	Andrott
Subdivisions of India	Kalpeni
Demographics
Demonym	Malayali
Population	4526 (as of 2014)
Density	1,467 /km^2 (3,800 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Malayali, Mahls
Additional information
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	682557
Telephone code	04895
Official website	www.lakshadweep.gov.in
ISO Code	IN-LD-08[2]
Literacy	84.4%
Avg. summer temperature	32.0 °C (89.6 °F)
Avg. winter temperature	28.0 °C (82.4 °F)
Sex ratio	1.122♂/♀
unit_pref	Metric

Kalpeni is an inhabited Atoll in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. It has a distance of 2,079 km (1,292 mi) south of the city of Delhi.

Geography

Kalpeni is 218 km west from the port of Kochi and lies 71 km south of Andrott and 201 km to the NNE of Minicoy, with the broad Nine Degree Channel between them. Suheli Par atoll lies 139 km to the east of Kalpeni.

Kalpeni forms a single coral atoll along with the uninhabited islands of Cheriyam, Tilakkam, Kodithala and Pitti islet.^[3]

The eastern and southern shorelines of the island have accumulations of coral debris, the result of a violent storm that hit the area in 1847. It has a lagoon area of 25.6 km² (9.9 sq mi).

List of Islands

• Kalpeni is the main island. it has an area of 2.482 square kilometres (0.958 square miles), and located at 10°04′34″N 73°38′46″E / 10.076°N 73.646°E.
• Kodithala is immediately to the north of Kalpeni, at , with an area of 0.01 square kilometres (0.0039 square miles).
• Cheriyam is the northernmost island, with a population of 10. The island has a water tank, a pond, a small 2.8 km road from the village to a lighthouse at the north point, constructed by MGNREGS at 2015. it has an area of 0.537 square kilometres (0.207 square miles), and located at 10°08′31″N 73°39′50″E / 10.142°N 73.664°E. It is the largest of Kalpeni's Satellite islands. The land in Cheriyam belongs to 49 families living in Kalpeni.
  MGNREGS is currently making an economic development on the island to accommodate a new village and resort like on Sentosa. It would impact the economic growth of Kalpeni Island.^{[4][5][6][7][8]}
• Tilakkam group are a group of islands off the west of Kalpeni. The land of these islands 0.055 square kilometres (0.021 square miles) belong to two different families of Kalpeni:^[9]
  • Koomel is a small islet off the west tip of Kalpeni. it has an area of 0.2 hectares (0.49 acres), and located at 10°04′23″N 73°38′06″E / 10.073°N 73.635°E.
  • Tilakkam east has an area of 0.88 hectares (2.2 acres), and located at 10°04′08″N 73°37′59″E / 10.069°N 73.633°E.
  • Tilakkam west has an area of 0.82 hectares (2.0 acres), and located at 10°04′08″N 73°37′52″E / 10.069°N 73.631°E.
  • Pitti islet has an area of 3.6 hectares (8.9 acres), and located at 10°04′26″N 73°37′41″E / 10.074°N 73.628°E.

Demographics

Kalpeni was the first island in the Union Territory where women were allowed to go to school and get an education.

Administration

The island belongs to the township of Kalpeni of Andrott Tehsil.^[10]

Tourism

Kalpeni has a beach at the northern tip of the island called Tip Beach where one can do snorkeling, sea bath and kayaking. Because of the coral reefs present in the sea near the beach, the water is shallow and calm, making it an excellent spot for beach activities.

There is a 37 m high lighthouse in Kalpeni from whose top one can see a bird's eye view of the island, the lagoon with the smaller islands, the reef and the surrounding ocean. From the top of the lighthouse, one can visualize the abundance of coconut trees and the ground is not visible due to dense packing of the tops of these trees.

Image Gallery

• Kalpeni
• 

  Light House

• 

  Island's Panoramic View From Lighthouse

• 

  Moideen Mosque a Panoramic View

• 

  A deep whirlpool in the Agatthiyatti Stone area

• 

  Sunset at Kalpeni

• 

  Tip Beach entrance at Kalpeni

References

1. "Islandwise Area and Population - 2011 Census" (PDF). Government of Lakshadweep.
2. Registration Plate Numbers added to ISO Code
3. Kalpeni - Oceandots at the Wayback Machine (archived December 23, 2010)
4. News
5. Cheriyam News
6. Cheriyam News
7. Cheriyam News
8. Official Plans
9. Kalpeni Official
10. Tehsils info

External links

• Hydrographic Description (Indian Ocean Pilot)
• Lagoon sizes
• List of Atolls
• An ornithological expedition to the Lakshadweep archipelago
• Sources towards a history of the Laccadive Islands