Chathamangalam (Kannur)
| Chathamangalam ചാത്തമംഗലം (കണ്ണൂർ) | |
|---|---|
| Village | |
  Chathamangalam   Chathamangalam Location in Kerala, India | |
| Coordinates: 12°14′44.1″N 75°26′50.7″E / 12.245583°N 75.447417°ECoordinates: 12°14′44.1″N 75°26′50.7″E / 12.245583°N 75.447417°E | |
| Country |
 India |
| State | Kerala |
| District | Kannur |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Malayalam, English |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 670511 |
| Telephone code | 04985- |
| ISO 3166 code | IN-KL |
| Vehicle registration | KL-59- |
| Nearest city | Payyannur |
| Lok Sabha constituency | Kasaragod |
Chathamangalam (ചാത്തമംഗലം) is a small village in Kannur district. It is in Cherupuzha (Kannur) Grama Panchayat. Chathamangalam is situated at almonst 40 kilometers from the district headquarters.
History
Chathamangalam and its surrounding areas were ruled by many royal dynasties in the past, including the Mooshika dynasty of Ezhimala, Chirakkal Dynasty of Kolathunadu, Tipu Sultan of the Kingdom of Mysore, before it became a part of the British Raj. The original inhabitants of the area were primarily Hindus. Later on this region gained a sizable Christian and Muslim population. The economy was agrarian with strong feudal system - Janmi-Kudiyan system - permeating everyday life.
Transportation
The national highway passes through Perumba junction. Goa and Mumbai can be accessed on the northern side and Cochin and Thiruvananthapuram can be accessed on the southern side. The road to the east of Iritty connects to Mysore and Bangalore. The nearest railway station is Payyanur on Mangalore-Palakkad line. Trains are available to almost all parts of India subject to advance booking over the internet. There are airports at Mattanur, Mangalore and Calicut. All of them are international airports but direct flights are available only to Middle Eastern countries.
Geography
Major suburbs of Chathamangalam are Cherimavu, Maruthumpadi, Thevarkunnu, Alumbu, Pookkad and Munderithattu. It is located in the boarder of Alakode, Udayagiri and Cherupuzha panchayats as well as Thirumeni, Udayagiri and Vellad revenue villages. The highest populated suburb is Maruthumpadi followed by Pookkad. Maruthumpadi is in Cherupuzha panchayat. Cherimavu and Munderithattu are in Udayagiri panchayat whereas Alumbu and Pookkad are part of Alakode panchayat. Chathamangalam is also a village situated in the boarder of Kannur and Kasaragod Loksabha constituencies and Payyannur and Irikkur legislative constituencies.
Chathamangalam & Ente Vellithooval, the movie
Till mid 2015, areas including Chathamangalam and nearby places did not have any recognition as a tourist location. It was the stone crusher controversy that shot the place into fame all of a sudden and news items pertaining to the issue began gaining significant coverage in the local news of all dailies.
Later in the year, a few months after the operations of the crusher was banned by the district administration, the film project by name “ente vellithooval” penned by Sr. Jiya MSJ from St. Sebastian’s Hospital, Cherupuzha had Chathamangalam Theruvamala as the major location for it. The movie was directed by Mr. Jithin Francis, who also hails from Cherupuzha. James Edapally, a freelance journalist based at Cherupuzha is the assistant director of the movie.
The premier of the movie was held at St. Thomas mount, Kakkanad, Kochi on 3 July 2016 in the presence of eminent personalities like Cardinal Mar George Alanchery.
Roads
There are five major roads which connect Chathamangalam to various places. Thirumeni-Chathamangalam-Neduvode road is the major one. Other roads include Chattivayal-Chathamangalam road, Chathamangalam-Cherimavu-Thalathanni-Muthuserri road, Chathamangalm-Cherimavu-Munderithattu-Thabore road and Chathamangalam-Pookkad-Parappa road.
Cherupuzha-Prapoyil-Chathamangalam-Parappa-Karthikapuram Road : Bye-pass Road for Hill Highway
This road,though development is still underway, is very significant because it connects Cherupuzha to places like Karthikapuram, Parappa, Neduvode and Rayarome at the shortest distance. This is the only road that goes through the common meeting place of Cherupuzha, Alakode and Udayagiri panchayaths. Efforts are on to renovate the road completely and make it the bye-pass of Alakode-Therthaly-Cherupuzha Road. The advantage is in case of any complication on the major road, the bye-pass can be used. If developed properly, additional long route buses can make trips covering places like Prapoyil, Thirumeni, Chathamangalam, Parappa & Karthikapuram. All these places have only local bus services now and can act as a proper alternate route for the HIll Highway.
Crusher Controversy
In the year 2015, there arose big controversy over the decision of Udayagiri Panchayat to give license to a stone crusher at Chathamangalam, upon which there were continuous agitations by the Left Democratic Front (Kerala) led opposition. An action committee was formed at Thabore demanding the closure of the crusher unit. There were rumours that the panchayat administrative body received gifts from the crusher proprietors. When the protest reached its peak and complaints came heaping in at the district headquarters, the district collector banned all activities of the crusher. Since the crusher site was in the boarder of Cherupuzha, Alakode and Udayagiri panchayats, a decision taken by Udayagiri panchayat alone would not have been sufficient. None of the residents in the area approved of setting up a crusher in the area. People were really panicked that the trucks from the crusher unit would cause severe damage to Cherupuzha-Thirumeni road.
Landscape
Chathamangalam is situated at the convergence of two big hills by name Theruvamala and Thevarkunnumala. Theruvamala was the major location for a mainstream feature film in Malayalam titled "Ente Vellithooval".
Places of Worship
Chathamangalam St. Jude's Chapel
St. Jude's Church, Chathamangalam is an emerging pilgrim centre in Cherupuzha area. It is located at a distance of 10 kilometers from Cherupuzha via Thirumeni. The foundation stone of the church was laid by the present Cardinal of the Malankara Catholic Church,who was the Vicar General of the Bathery diocese then. Since the church is dedicated to St. Jude, the mediator for impossible matters, it attracts huge number of pilgrims. Situated at the convergence of two iconic hills in the area by name Thevarkunnumala and Alumbumala, the landscape near to the church is spectacular.
References
http://cherupuzhanews.com/?p=13941
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b6/Chathamangalam_Theruvamala.png
