Malappuram

Malappuram (also Malapuram) (pronunciation) is a city[7] in the Indian state of Kerala, spread over an area of 58.20 km2 (22.47 sq mi). The first municipality in the district formed in 1969, Malappuram serves as the administrative headquarters of Malappuram district. Divided into 40 electoral wards, the city has a population density of 1,742 per square kilometre (4,510 per square mile).

This article is about the city in Kerala. For other uses, see Malappuram (disambiguation).

Malappuram

Malapuram
City
An aerial view of Downhill, Malappuram (Photographed in 2016)
Nickname(s): 
City of Hills, Soccer Capital[1]/ Mecca of Football
Location in Malappuram district, Kerala
Coordinates: 11.041°N 76.083°E / 11.041; 76.083
Country India
StateKerala
DistrictMalappuram
Government
 • TypeMunicipal Council
 • BodyMalappuram Municipality
 • ChairpersonC.H. Jameela
 • Deputy ChairpersonPerumpally Said
Area
 • City58.20 km2 (22.47 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[3]
 • City101,386
 • Density1,742/km2 (4,510/sq mi)
 • Metro1,729,522
Demonym(s)Malappuramite[5]
Language
 • OfficialMalayalam[6]
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
676505
Telephone code0483
Vehicle registrationKL-10
Literacy96.47%
ClimateAm/Aw (Köppen)
Precipitation3,100 millimetres (120 in)
Avg. summer temperature39 °C (102 °F)
Avg. winter temperature20 °C (68 °F)
Websitewww.malappurammunicipality.in

According to the 2011 census, Malappuram metropolitan area is the fourth urban agglomeration in Kerala and the 25th largest in India with a total population of 1.7 million.[8] It is the fastest growing city in the world with a 44.1% urban growth between 2015 and 2020 as per the survey conducted by Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) based on the urban area growth during January 2020.[9][10] Malappuram is situated 54 km southeast of Calicut and 90 km northwest of Palakkad.[11] It is the first Indian municipal body to provide free Wi-Fi connectivity to its entire residents.[12][13] Malappuram is also the first Indian municipal body to achieve the International Organization for Standardization certificate.[14] It is also the first complaint-free municipality in the state.[15]

Etymology

The word Malappuram means "terraced place atop the hills" or simply "hilltop", derived from the general geographical characteristics of the city.[16][17][18]

Downhill, Malappuram

History

Malappuram was a military headquarters from ancient times through the ancient history of the city is hardly seen recorded. However, there are some pre-historic relics, particularly Rock-cut caves found in some parts of the city like Oorakam, Melmuri, Ponmala, Vengara etc. manifesting the inhabitancy.[19] Locality named like Valiyangadi, Kootilangadi, Pallipuram etc. points to the Jain - Buddhist history of Malappuram. Notably, the 1500-year-old Jain Temple above 2000 ft sea level at Oorakam Hill of Malappuram undoubtedly proves the same.[20] During the Sangam period, Eranadan Malappuram was under the Chera Empire. Places like Pattar Kadav, Panakkad, etc. are possibly evolved out of Pattars and Panars having lived there. But no further details are available about the life and culture of the people either during the Sangam age or in the post-Sangam age.[21]

Archaeological relics found in Malappuram also include the remnants of palaces of the eastern branch of the Zamorin reign. Malappuram was the military headquarters of the Zamorin in the Eranad region. The Zamorins held sway over Malappuram and their chieftain Para Nambi, ruled the area in early days with headquarters at Downhill (Kottappadi), Malappuram.[22] Details of the rulers of erstwhile Malappuram, who were the ancestors of later Zamorins, figure in the Jewish copper plates of Bhaskara Ravi Varman (1000 AD) and in the Kottayam copper plates of Veera Raghava Chakravarthy (1225 AD). The later history of the city is interwoven with the history of Zamorin's rule.[23]

During the colonial era, Malappuram was the headquarters of European and British troops and it later became the headquarters of the Malabar Special Police (M.S.P) formerly known as Malappuram Special Force formed in 1885[24] The British established the Haigh Barracks on top of the hill of Malappuram, at the bank of the Kadalundi river to station their forces, where once Tipu had a fort. Main Barracks has now been turned into the seat of the district administration as Civil Station, Malappuram.[25][21] Malappuram was the headquarters of one of the five revenue divisions of erstwhile Malabar district, the others being at Thalassery, Kozhikode, Palakkad and Fort Cochin.[26] Apart from the District Board at Calicut, Malappuram Taluk Board were one of the local boards constituted to manage the affairs in Malabar District along with Thalassery, Palakkad and Mananthavady (Wayanad) with jurisdiction corresponding to the divisional charges of the same names.[27] Inscription of the Malappuram Taluk Board can still be seen on the wall of one of the remaining wells constructed in 1916, over 100 years ago at Valiyangadi in the city.[28][29] Offices of the Divisional Revenue Magistrate and Assistant Superintendent of Police of Malabar district were located at Malappuram.[30]

Geography
Kadalundi River, Malappuram

Malappuram is situated in the mid land area of the state. As the name suggests, it is covered with small mountains of lush greenery, bonded with several freshwater streams flowing through the city. Kadalundi Puzha, a major river in Kerala is flowing around the city.[31] Malappuram is one of the few municipalities in the state with a tremendous track record of keeping the city clean. The recognition as second 'best municipality in up keeping the cleanliness and health by state government in 2011[32] and Second prize for Swachhata Excellence Awards in 2019 by Government of India[33] acknowledges these sincere efforts of the municipality. Malappuram is the biggest potential nod of the district. Unlike other district headquarters, Malappuram holds a significant position in west–east transit along with north–south. It makes the city accessible for everyone in the district through either National Highway or State Highway.[34] The strategical location of the city is yet to be exploited in many aspects.

Climate

The city has more or less the same climatic conditions prevalent else-where the state. The climate is generally mild hot and humid in nature. However, the South West Monsoon is usually very heavy. The best season to visit Malappuram is during the months of September to March as the weather conditions are quite pleasant. Owing to its natural habitat, Malappuram is also a city of fresh air. According to the Central Pollution Control Board data for the year 2010, of the 180 cities monitored for SO2, NO2 and PM10, Malappuram was one of the two cities which met the criteria of low pollution (i.e. 50% below the standard) for all air pollutants.

Climate data for Malappuram, Kerala
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 32.0
(89.6)		 32.9
(91.2)		 34.0
(93.2)		 33.8
(92.8)		 32.7
(90.9)		 29.3
(84.7)		 28.1
(82.6)		 28.7
(83.7)		 29.7
(85.5)		 30.3
(86.5)		 31.1
(88.0)		 31.4
(88.5)		 31.2
(88.1)
Average low °C (°F) 21.8
(71.2)		 22.8
(73.0)		 24.4
(75.9)		 25.4
(77.7)		 25.1
(77.2)		 23.5
(74.3)		 22.8
(73.0)		 23.3
(73.9)		 23.3
(73.9)		 23.4
(74.1)		 23.1
(73.6)		 21.9
(71.4)		 23.4
(74.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 1
(0.0)		 9
(0.4)		 16
(0.6)		 101
(4.0)		 253
(10.0)		 666
(26.2)		 830
(32.7)		 398
(15.7)		 233
(9.2)		 281
(11.1)		 140
(5.5)		 24
(0.9)		 2,952
(116.3)
Source: Climate-Data.org[35]

Civic administration
Main article: Administration of Malappuram District
Malappuram townhall

Being the headquarters city, Malappuram comprises the Civil Station area which consists of administrative and other Government offices of the district such as District Collectorate, District Treasury, RTO, PWD Division Office, Jilla Panchayat, Town planning Office, Text depot, District Medical office etc. to name a few. The city is administered by the Malappuram Municipality, headed by a Municipal chairman. For administrative purposes, the city is divided into 40 wards, from which the members of the municipal council are elected for five years. The Chairperson of Malappuram Municipality is C.H. Jameela and the Deputy Chairperson is Perumpally Said. The present Malappuram District Collector is K. Gopalakrishnan.[36]

Malappuram Municipality Election 2015[37]
S.No.Party NameParty symbolNumber of Councillors
01UDF24
02LDF12
03Independents04

Law and order

City police are headed by a Dy SP Malappuram. And Office of Superintendent of Police is also at Malappuram. Apart from regular law and order, city police include the Malappuram Traffic Police, Malappuram Vanitha Police Station,[38] which is the only all women station in the district,[39] Crime Branch, Bomb Squad, Dog Squad, Women's Cell, Narcotics Cell, Malabar Special Police, Armed Police Camp, District Crime Records Bureau. Apart from these, there is 24/7 highway police patrol as well as a special pink patrol(Dial-1515) under Malappuram police division catering to women. [40]

Demographics

According to the 2011 Indian Census, Malappuram had a total population of 101,386, of which 48,957 were males and 52,429 were females. The population within the age range of 0 to 6 years was 14,629. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes population was 5,323 and 77 respectively. Malappuram had 19785 households in 2011.[3]

The major language spoken in the city is Malayalam. English is widely understood, while Tamil have considerable speakers.

Proposed Malappuram Municipal Corporation
Malappuram City Map showing proposed corporation limit
The headquarters of Kerala Gramin Bank

Malappuram is the only city in Kerala with a million-plus urban agglomeration that is yet to be upgraded to a Municipal Corporation. However, there is a demand to upgrade the Malappuram Municipality into a Municipal Corporation by incorporating the local bodies in the Greater Malappuram region.[41] The proposed Malappuram Municipal Corporation comprises:

Education
AI International College, Malappuram

The city has several educational institutions from the school level to higher education. Kendriya Vidyalaya, Malappuram, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Malappuram, Malabar Special Police HSS, Government Girls Higher secondary school, Govt. Boys, St.Gemmas HSS, Islahiya HSS, A.U.P School, Sree Arunodaya Vidya Nigethan etc. to name a few schools. Government College, Malappuram, which is the oldest college in the district started in 1972,[42] College of Applied Science Malappuram started in 1987[43] and Govt. College for Women, Malappuram[44] started in the year 2015 along with many other private colleges serves the higher educational purpose. Govt.TTI, Malappuram,[45] MCT TTI[46] and Fazfari TTI[47] are few teachers training institutes. MCT College of Legal Studies, one of the two law colleges in the district is located in the city.[48] The Regional Directorate of Higher Secondary Education[49] and Regional Office (Malabar) of State Open School[50] are located in the city inside the Civil Station. University of Calicut is located in the district at Thenjipalam around 29 km (18 mi) away from the city center. AMU Malappuram Campus is located at the hills of Chelamala near Cherukara in Malappuram district.

Media
A junction in the city
Passport office

Malayala Manorama, Mathrubhumi, Madhyamam, Chandrika, Deshabhimani, Suprabhaatham dailies have their printing centres in and around the city. The Hindu has an edition and printing press at Malappuram. A few periodicals-monthlies, fortnightlies and weeklies-mostly devoted to religion and culture are also published. Almost all Malayalam channels and newspapers have their bureau at Up Hill. There are some local cable TV channels including (MCV), (ACV) etc. Malappuram Press Club is also situated at UP Hill adjacent to Municipal Town Hall. Doordarshan has its major relay station in the district at Malappuram. Government of India's Prasarbharati National Public Service Broadcaster has FM station in the district, broadcasting on 102.7 Mhtz. Even without any private FM stations, Malappuram finds a place in Top Ten Towns with Highest Radio Listenership in India.[51] There is a multiplex and four standalone cinema halls that screen movies in Malayalam, Tamil, English and Hindi. Rasmi Film Society, one of Kerala's oldest film forums is from Malappuram. The 72nd International film festival of Malappuram was conducted in March 2011.[52]

Sports
MDSC Stadium

Malabar Special Police HSS is one of the best achievers in the Indian inter-school football tournaments.[53] It is also the runner up team of 53rd and 55th Subroto Cup international football tournament held at Delhi.[54] The Kottappadi Football Stadium is located right at the heart of the CBD of Malappuram.[55]

Notable persons
Main article: List of people from Malappuram district
Kottakkunnu
An area in the city

See also

References
  1. "Soccer Capital". The Indian Express.
  2. "Malappuram census handbook" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in.
  3. "Census of India: Malappuram". www.censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  4. "Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 million and above" (PDF). The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
  5. "Malappuram's first book stall bids adieu". The Hindu. 19 December 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  6. "52nd REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER FOR LINGUISTIC MINORITIES IN INDIA" (PDF). nclm.nic.in. Ministry of Minority Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  7. "Revised List of Classification Cities for HRA of central government employees - Govt. Employees India". 2 June 2015.
  8. "Trends of urbanisation in Kerala" (PDF). Census of India.
  9. "3 of world's 10 fastest-growing urban areas are in Kerala: Economist ranking". 8 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  10. "Malappuram is world's fastest-growing city; Kozhikode, Kollam also in top 10". www.newindianexpress.com.
  11. "malappuram Web". Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  12. "Malappuram of Kerala to log on to free Wi-Fi". www.thehindu.com. 30 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  13. "Malappuram Municipality To Be India's First To Offer Free Wi-Fi Connectivity". thelogicalindian.com. 22 August 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  14. Staff Reporter (24 February 2014). "First-in-India ISO tag for Malappuram". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  15. Abdul Latheef, Naha (2 November 2014). "Malappuram aims to be complaint-free". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  16. "District Profile". spb.kerala.gov.in. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
  17. Travel Guide from native planet
  18. Cultural Malappuram | Financial Express
  19. "History of Malappuram" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in.
  20. "Oorakam Mala". www.cpreecenvis.nic.in. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
  21. DISTRICT CENSUS HANDBOOK. DIRECTORATE OF CENSUS OPERATIONS, KERALA. 2011. p. 15.
  22. Logan, William. MALABAR MANUAL: With Commentary by VED from VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS (Volume 2 ed.). VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS, Aaradhana, DEVERKOVIL 673508. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  23. PART XII-A (2011). DISTRICT CENSUS HANDBOOK MALAPPURAM. DIRECTORATE OF CENSUS OPERATIONS, Kerala. p. 15.
  24. C.A., Innes (1908). Madras District Gazetteers: Malabar and Anjengo. Government Press, Madras. p. 371. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  25. Malappuram British History
  26. 1951 census handbook - Malabar district (PDF). Chennai: Government of Madras. 1953. p. 1.
  27. C.A., Innes (1908). Madras District Gazetteers: Malabar and Anjengo. Government Press, Madras. p. 373. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  28. Celebrating centenary of a public well
  29. Deshabhimani - 100 year old well
  30. C.A., Innes (1908). Madras District Gazetteers: Malabar and Anjengo. Government Press, Madras. p. 416. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  31. "Malappuram District Profile". Malappuram.
  32. Sivaramakrishnan, K. C. (4 August 2011). Re-visioning Indian Cities: The Urban Renewal Mission. SAGE Publishing India. ISBN 9788132119470.
  33. "Amrut Cities--Municipal Corporations of Raigarh, Ambikapur, and Kumbakonam Bag Top Swachhata Excellence Awards". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
  34. Work Study Report on Police Department 2013. P & A R (AR-VII) DEPARTMENT, Government of Kerala. 2013. p. 77.
  35. "CLIMATE: MALAPPURAM", Climate-Data.org. Web: .
  36. Reporter, Staff (27 May 2020). "New Malappuram Collector takes charge". Keralakoumudi. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  37. "Malappuram Municipality election 2015". lbtrend. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  38. Malappuram Police
  39. Malappuram Vanitha Station Inaugurated
  40. http://www.malappurampolice.gov.in/mlpol/
  41. "Proposed Malappuram Municipal Corporation". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  42. http://www.gcmalappuram.ac.in/history/
  43. CAS Malappuram
  44. GWC Malappuram
  45. GTTI Malappuram
  46. MCT TTI
  47. TTI Padinhattumuri Malappuram
  48. MCT Law College Address
  49. DHSE Portal
  50. SCOLE Kerala
  51. "Top Ten Towns with Highest Radio Listenership". Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  52. "Rasmi film fete concludes". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 15 March 2011.
  53. "MSP HSS emerges champion". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 10 January 2012.
  54. Press Trust of India (1 October 2012). "Dynamo Kyiv down fighting MSP Malappuram to win Subroto Cup". Business Standard India. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  55. "Where Malappuram learned to paly football". www.newindianexpress.com. 29 December 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
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