CENSUS OF INDIA 1971 SERIES--9 KERALA PART IX-A ADMINISTRATIVE ATLAS K. NARAYANAN OF THE INDIAN ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICE DIRECTOR OF CENSUS OPERATIONS KERALA 1976 3/19-i FOREWORD In order to ensure complete coverage at a population count, the Census Organization obtains or prepares up-to-date detailed maps of all administrative units in the country on the eve of a census. Though in several parts of the country maps of the districts, taluks etc., are available with the State Revenue or Survey authorities, often times, they required to be brought up-to-date and they also varied greatly in scale. One also found it difficult to secure a complete or compact set of all these maps from State authorities. The Census Organization took upon itself the task of updating of the administrative maps and the standadization of scales essentially to meet its own requirements of coverage at the census and analysis of data. Standardization of symbol was also attempted to depict certain features such as the Statejdistrictjtaluk boundades, administrative headquarters, national and state highways and other roads, markets and mandis, post and telegraph offices, travellers' bungalows, hospitals, etc. In each of the District Census Handbooks (there are 356 districts in the country) the district map as wdl as the taluk maps will be printed. While these administrative maps, prepared with great amount of care and effort, served the purposes of the census extremely well, the 1971 Census Organization felt that these would be invaluable for many an administrative purpose and for planning and also to the scholars who might like t~! utilize these maps for various studies. Therefore, it was decided, after full consideration at the all-India Census Conferences of Courtallam (1970) and Pahalgam (1971) to publish all the district and taluk maps of each State together in a compact and handy volume entitled 'Administrative Atlas'. The Atlas also contains a few introductory State maps showing certain basic characteristics as the physiography, density of population, distribution of towns and the distribution of rural population. In order to make the Atlas somewhat self-contained statistical statements are also added giving data on the area, population size, growth rate, sex and age structure, literacy, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe popUlation and religion. The Census Organization, as is well-known, is one of the largest producers of maps in the country. Apart from the Administrative Atlas, the 1971 Census publication programme envisages the production of separate Census Atlases which will depict the physiographlc, demographic, economic, social and cultural characteristics of each State as derived from the census as well as other sources of data. I wish to place on record my appreciation of the dedicated services of Dr. B. K. Roy, the Map Officer of the Registrar General's Office and all his colleagues in the Map Unit and also of all the State Directors of Census Operations and the staff of their Map Units who have all worked together as a team and have succeeded in the production of this Admjnistrative Atlas which I hope will serve the needs of the administrator, the planner and the scholar alike. New Delhi, A. CHANDRA SEKHAR September 26, 1972 Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India PREFACE Besides the Survey of Illdia, State Survey Department and Geological Survey,. the Census Organization has a veritable heritage in producing authentic and well­ designed maps depIcting various aspects of the country and the states. The publication of Union and State Atlases, as part of the 1961 Census publication programme, was definitely an important landmark in the history of the development of maps in the country. The maps thus produced with meticulous care in the 1961 Census threw light on a variety of aspects-physical, demographic, economic, socio-cultural etc. The experience gained in the last census has helped the Census Organization to extend its realm and this volume viz. Admin1strative Atlas, which as the very llame suggests, depicts the administrative set-up of the Kerala State. This volume contains maps of all the districts and taluks of the Srate as on .1st April 1971. After the 1971 Census a new district by name Idikki was formed and the maps of this district are also included in this volume as an annexure. In the present era of economic planning an intimate know­ ledge of the districts and taluks is essential. Keeping this in view a good number of tables have [wen included in this volume, on various characteristics besides giving short 'lccounts of the state and districts. It is hoped that the present volume will be of immense use to the administrators, technocrats and scholars. I am deeply indebted to the Government of KCL-lla for agreeing to print and publish this volume as a State Government Public:ltion. I must specially acknowledge the valuable help given by the Director of Survey and Land Records, Kerala and his staff in the production of this volume. l\1y thanks are also due to Shri P. Kurian John, Superintendent of Government Presses, Trivandrum, Shri P. 1. Joseph, Deputy Superintendent of Government Press, Ernakulam and their diligent staff for completing this work with utmost care and in record time. I would like to place on record my appreciation of the very g,)od work done by Shri B. T. Pillai, Deputy Director, Shri S. Jayashanker, Assistant Director and Shri K. Gopinathan II, Tabulation Officer who gave final shape to this volume. They were ably assisted by Smt. N. Radha Bai, Statistical Assistant, Smt. S. Radhamoni, Smt. M. Parvathi Ammal, Smt. P. Kanakavally, Smt. Graceamma John and Shri A. V. Varghese, Assistant Compilers and. Smt. S. Saraswathy Amma, L. D. Clerk. The proof reading was ably attended to by Shri N. Aravindan, Printing Inspector, Sarvasree N. Madhavan and K. Vamadevan, Proof Readers. The services of the cartographic section consisting of Sarvasree K. Krishna Pillai, S. Krishna Pillai, _M. T. Pillai and R. Prabhakaran were also very valuable and I have pleasure in gratefully acknowledging the services rendered by the staff. I will be failing in my duty if I do not thank Dr. B. K. Roy, Map Officer and his colleagues for their valuable co-operation in bringing out this volume. Above all, I am grateful to Shri A. Chandra Sekhar, former Re~istrar General and Shri R. B. Chari, Registrar General, for their valuable guidance and help received jn taking up this important project. Trivandrum, K. NAR.'\. YANAN October 1, 1976. 3/19-ii CONTENTS PAGE. :FOREWORD PREFACE INTRODUCTORY NOTE Geographical position 3 Physical feature. 3 Forests 5 Rivers 6 Climate 7 Administrative Units 7 Distribution of population: S Growth of population 11 Density 12 Sex ratio 12 Age structure 13 Literacy 13 Religion 14 Scheduled Castel and Scheduled Tribes 15 Main activity 17 CANNANORE DISTRICT Fly-leaf 23 Tables 25 Maps 33 KOZHIKODE DISTRICT Fly-leaf 47 Tables 49 Maps 57 MALAPPURAM DISTRICT Fly-leaf 67 Tables 69 Maps 77 PALGHAT DISTRICT Fly-leaf 87 Tables 89 Maps 97 TRICHUR DISTRICT Fly-leaf 109 Tables III Maps 119 ERNAKULAM DISTRICT Fly-leaf 131 Tables 133 Maps 141 PAGE KO'ITAYAM DISTRICT Fly-leaf 157 Tables 159 :-"Maps ]67 ALLEPPEY DISTRICT Fly-leaf 185 Tables 187 Maps 195 ?pILON DISTRICT Fly-leaf 211 Tables 213 Maps 221 TRIVANDRUM DISTRICT Fly-leaf 235 Tables 237 Maps 245 Attnexure: mIKKI DISTRICT Fly-leaf 255 Tables 257 The maps included in this Atlas are bued UpOIl Survey of India Map with permlllSton of the S"rveyor General of IndIa. The territorial waters of India extend into the sea to il distance of twelve naudcal mUes measured from the appropriate base Hne. © Government of India copyright 1972. Vlll INTRODUCTORY NOTE ERRATA Page Item Column Line For Read 7 Paragraph 14 Right 2 of fog or fog 19 Paragraph 47 Ltft 2 chidren children 51 Table 2.3 6 Heading Lowlaad Lowland 52 Table 2.5 7 Kunaamanga1am 7 Kunnamangalam 55 Quilandy U )0 50.54 50.44 96 Pattambi Town 4 10,41 10,411 248 S1. No. in the map I VI 3/19-1 INTRODUCTORY NOTE ·Geographical Position areas lyinS 250 feet and over above the mean Kerala, the Spice Garden of India, is a sea-level, midland compris~ng of the areas ly:ng narrow strip of land in the south-west corner between 25 feet and 250 feet above the mean Df India hemmed between the mighty Western sea-level and the lowland w~ch has an altitude Ghats and the ArabIan Sea. Geographically it belQw 25 feet above the mean sea-level. Ii, s between 80 17' 30" and 12° 47' 40" north latitudes and 74° 51' 57" and 77° 24' 47" east 4. Highland stretches all along the eastern longitudes. The State is bounded en the north region of the State. The region is consp:cucu., and ncrth-east by South Kanara, Coorg and by the presence of the Western Ghats, otherwise Mysore districts of Mysore State, on the east by known as Sahyadri. It has an average height of Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Madurai, Ramanathapuram 1,200 metres and it runs about 1,600 km. from and Tirunelveli districts of Tamil Nadu, on 1he Tapti in the north to Cape Comor~n in the south by Kanyakumari district of Tamil N adu south. Sahyad'ri helps to shape the climate of the and en the west by the Arabian Sea. Kerala, State. It catches the moisture-laden monsoon as a single political en:ity, came into existmce winds and precipitates heavy rain in the region. cnly on 1st November 1956 as per the States Almost all the rivers in the State find their Reorganization Act, 1956 by integrating Travan­ origin in the Sahyadri.