lappuzha district is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. It was formed as
Alleppey district on 17 August 1957, the name of the district being changed to Alappuzha in 1990,[5] and is the smallest district of Kerala.
Alleppey town, the district headquarters, was renamed Alappuzha in 2012, even though the anglicised name is still commonly used to
describe the town as well as the district.
A town with canals, backwaters, beaches, and lagoons, Alappuzha was described by George Curzon, the British Governor-General
of India in the beginning of the 20th century CE, as the "Venice of the Eastern world."[1] The district is best known for its
picturesque Kerala Backwaters, by which it is well connected to other parts of Kerala, including the tourist destination of Kumarakom
, the district being a well known tourist destination in India. It is also known for its coir factories, as most
of Kerala's coir industries are situated in and around the Alappuzha town.
The name Ᾱlappuzha is a toponym. ‘Ᾱlayam’ means ‘home’ and ‘puzha’, according to Dr. Herman Gundert's dictionary, means ‘watercourse’
or ‘river’. The name refers to the network of waterways and backwaters in Alappuzha and its surrounding areas. The district is bounded
on the north by Kochi and Kanayannur taluks of Ernakulam district, on the east by Vaikom, Kottayam and Changanassery taluks of Kottayam
district and Thiruvalla, Kozhencherry and Adoor taluks of Pathanamthitta district, on the South by Kunnathur and Karunagappally taluks of
Kollam district and on the west by Laccadive Sea
Must Visit Places
K U T T A N A D
uttanad is a region covering the Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts, in the state of Kerala,
India, well known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. The region has the lowest altitude in India, and is one of the few
places in the world where farming is carried on around 1.2 to 3.0 metres (4 to 10 ft) below sea level.[1][2] Kuttanad is historically important
in the ancient history of South India and is the major rice producer in the state. Farmers of Kuttanad are famous for Biosaline Farming. Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) has declared the Kuttanad Farming System as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) in 2013.
Four of Kerala's major rivers, the Pamba, Meenachil, Achankovil and Manimala flow into the region. It is well known for its boat race in the
Punnamada Backwaters, known in Malayalam as Vallamkalli.
Kuttanad has no recorded history on the origin of the land. But a blend of myths and legends is transferred from generation to generation
orally among local people. Kuttanad was once believed to be a wild forest with dense tree growth which was destroyed subsequently by a wild fire.
Chuttanad (place of the burnt forest), was eventually called Kuttanad. Until the recent past burned black wooden logs were mined from paddy fields
called as ‘Karinilam’(Black paddy fields). This fact substantiates the theory of Chuttanad evolving to Kuttanad. Ramankary, Puthukkary, Amichakary,
Oorukkary, Mithrakary, Mampuzhakary, Kainakary, Chathurthiakary and Chennamkary are some familiar place names in Kuttanad.
V A L L A M K A L I
allam Kali, also known as Snake Boat Race, is a traditional boat race in Kerala, India. It is a form of canoe racing, and uses paddled war canoes. It is mainly conducted during the season of the harvest festival Onam in spring. Vallam kali includes races of many kinds of paddled longboats and 'snake boats'. Each team spends about ₹6 lakhs for the Nehru Trophy Boat Race.[1] The race of chundan vallam ('snake boat', about 30-35 meter (100-120 feet) long with 64 or 128 paddlers aboard[2]) is the maj r event and a major tourist attraction. Other types of boats which do participate in various events in the race are Churulan Vallam, Iruttukuthy Vallam, Odi Vallam, Veppu Vallam, Vadakkanody Vallam and Kochu Vallam. The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is a popular vallam kali event held in the Punnamada Lake near Alappuzha, Kerala, India. In an effort to aggrandise this sport and showcase Kerala's backwaters to the world, the Government of Kerala initiated IPL style regatta[clarification needed]named Champions Boat League in 2019
V E M B A N A D
embanad is the longest lake in India,[1] as well as the largest lake in the state of Kerala.
The lake has an area of 230 square kilometers and a maximum length of 96.5 km.[2] Spanning several districts in the state of Kerala,
it is known as Vembanadu Lake in Kottayam, Vaikom, Changanassery, Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha, Punnappra, Kuttanadu and Kochi Lake in
Kochi. Several groups of small islands including Vypin, Mulavukad, Maradu, Udayamperoor, Vallarpadam, and Willingdon Island are located
in the Kochi Lake portion. Kochi Port is built around the Willingdon Island and the Vallarpadam island.
Kuttanad, also known as The Rice Bowl of Kerala, has the lowest altitude in India, and is also one of the few places in world where cultivation
takes place below sea level.[3][4] Kuttanad lies on the southern portion of Vembanad.
The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted in a portion of the lake. High levels of pollution have been noticed at certain
hotspots of the Vembanad backwaters.
The Government of India has identified the Vembanad wetland under the National Wetlands Conservation Programme.