Malappuram - The land of Mamamkam

Malappuram - The land of Mamamkam

Malappuram is a young district formed on June 16th 1969 by the division of the erstwhile Kozhikode district. It is at the Calicut –Madras road located south of kozhikode and north of Palghat districts. Malappuram has an area of 3350 sq.kms. This district has two revenue divisions- Perinthalmanna and Tirur, six taluks Ernad,Nilampur, Perinthalmanna, Tirur, Thirurangadi and Pannani. Malappuram district has five municipalities, 135 villages 14 blocks and one hundred panchayats. The formation of this district done on 1969 was intended for the smooth functioning of the administration as the gigantic size of the erstwhile Calicut(Kozhikode) was not conductive to efficient governance. There was one more reason that Malappuram was a separate cultural entity and the distinction of that had to be nurtured separately. The existence of the great river bharatha puzha which has witnessed much historical events going on it’s vast sand banks is it self in a state of dilapidation, And urgent care if the river should be there for the coming generation to behold it.

The ritual blood-bath by name « Mamankam « is a aberration in the history of kerala which gererally had a very peaceful type of co- existance. When the mighty zamorins (Samoothiri) ruled the northern part of kerala there where rebels here and there as it is in the case of every kings. It was ritual for the zamorin to visit the vast plains of Bharathapuzha at Thirunavaya with all his militia well equipped to counter any sort of attacks from any corner. And as the ritual progressed there will the group of youngmen born to die doing the job - assaulting the king. Whether they achieve their goal is a foregone conclusion as they were far out-numbered by the army of the mighty emperor, but these young men wre born to fight and die in the middle of millions of spectators who were assembled to witness the drama..

For a tourist there are a lot of places of interest. The rustic beauty of the place is perhaps the most important one. There are dense forests in the hilly eastern parts of the district. The great river that glides through the plains and the vast sand banks sorrounding it. Malappuram was ruled by Tippu sultan and the ruins of the fort built by Tippu is still there to seen The shiva temple at Thirunavaya, Kadampuzha Bhagavathi temple- which is just three k.m. north of Vettichira on the national high-way no.17.This temple was established by Jagad-guru Shankaracharya. Having a sizable number of Muslim population there are some Muslim pilgrim centers also available. The Mumburam shrine, Valiya Juma masjid. Pazhayangadi mosque at Kondotti, are just some of them. The Kottakunnu Shiva temple built by Zamorins also a place of tourist attraction.

Malppuram has seen scores of rulers of diffirent hues. Zamorins. Tippu, the British are just some of them. The Tippu sultan invaded and ruled thes land for a certain amount of time Later the British gained control of the land and the administrative blocks they built and the battery for the British army etc. are still in good shape . These batteries were used by the Malabar special police (M.S.P) . The MSP were used to suppress the rebellion that occured in the Malabar area – known as the Mopla lehala . The Mopla rebellion had all similarities of a freedom struggle, even though it was localised and detached from the main-stream freedom struggle. The great wagon tragedy is a part of the struggle in which around fifty freedom fighters were crammed in to wagon and took to jail-a journey too long for the occupants and when destination reached there were few survivors! All perished by suffocation.

Leaving history to rest let us see what is the shape of the modern Malappuram, which is very entirely a different picture very affluent very busines like and very hospitable. There are a considerable percentage of non-resedent keralites who earn petrodollars in the gulf countries and send lavish remittances to their home this money has a spill over effect which benefits each and everybody. Every nook and cranny of this place tell the same story A story of Malappuram is not complete witout a mention of Kottackal Arya Vaidya Sala which is very traditional ayurvedic centre which caters to the entire nations need for traditional ayurvedic medicines. They have very large gardens for medicinal plants and a lot of pharmacies which are known for their adherence to old values. Kottakkal has grown to a very large organisation and medicines are sold all over the world. The traditional treatments available there have a very long clientele. And in the field of charity also they are fore-runners.As long as there is Arya vaidya sala in Kottakkal Malappuram shall never be ill !!!!

Author: Sasi Kumar

Source: Naturemagics.com - website on Kerala Tourism

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