Kavathar is a small village in the northernmost part of

Dakshina Kannada Dakshina Kannada district is a district of Karnataka state in India, with its headquarters in the coastal city of Mangalore. It is part of the larger Tulu Nadu region. The district covers an area nestled in between the Western Ghats to its east ...

, close to the small town of Balkunje. Its postal code is 574154. Batta Benny muji kere is a pond located at kavathar that attracts migrated birds.

History

Butta Benny is an area of Bhuts populated by the

Goud Saraswat Brahmin Gaud Saraswat Brahmins (GSB) (also Goud or Gawd) are a Hindu Brahmin community of the north. The Konkani speaking Gaud Saraswat of Goa and southern India claim to be descendents of these Gaud Saraswat Brahmins of the north that migrated to K ...

community, who migrated from southern areas such as Kateel. They included Kamaths, Nayaks, Pai and other groups who were converted to

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

ism by

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

missionaries and were offered lands in remote areas such as Butta Benny. This area now has Christians with surnames such as D'Souza and Aroza. The place is known by the name Girijana Colony, since the northern half has been distributed among the

Scheduled Castes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...

and

Scheduled Tribes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...

by the government.

Religion

The D'Souza family of Kavathar made significant contributions towards St.Paul's Church, Balkunje. A temple named Siri Abbagha Dharagha Mahalingeshwar Temple was built under the aegis of Neena Nithyanand

Ajila Ajila is a common surname of the Bunt people, the landed gentry of Tulu Nadu region in the south west of India. It is also the name of the Jain Bunt Dynasty who ruled the principality of Venur for several centuries(1154 to 1786 C.E). The most not ...

. It is known for its annual Siri Jatra during the Pagu Purnima.

Description

People residing in the northern half visit markets of

Palimar Palimar is a village in the Udupi district of Karnataka, India. It houses one of the Ashta Mathas of Udupi founded by the Dvaita philosopher Madhvacharya. External links The Eight Tulu Monasteries of Udupi by Neria Harish Hebbar, MDaBoloji ...

and

Padubidri Padubidri or Padubidre or Padubedre in Tulu language is a small town in coastal district of Udupi in Karnataka state, India. Padubidri is on the way from Udupi to Mangalore route. National Highway 17 (now NH 66) passes through Padubidri. Padubi ...

Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...

District, while those who live in the southern half visit

Kinnigoli Kinnigoli is a major suburb in the outskirts of Mangalore Tehsil (Mangalore Township). It is located approximately 32 km from Mangalore City, 5 km from Kateel (a famous Hindu pilgrimage centre), 8 km from Mulki (5 km from ...

and Mulki. Nearby villages include Kirem, Damarskatte, Pompei(India-a village) Aikala, Panjinadka and Karnad. It has no shops, and hardly a few houses The place is partially famous for its Kavatharu Temple, where

Bhuta Kola Būta Kōlā,/buːt̪ʌ/ is the local pronunciation while the standardised Kannada pronunciation is /bʱuːt̪ʌ koːlɑː/ also referred to as daiva kōlā or nēmā, is a ritual dance performance prevalent among the Hindus of Tulu Nadu an ...

is held annually.

Demographics

Kavathar has an average literacy rate.

Education

The primary school in Kavathur celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2012.

Economy

Kavathar has no concrete roads. Farming was abandoned, as newer generations left the area and migrated to

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

or immigrated. Transport facilities are almost absent. The village has no bus service, because without a bridge between Balkunje and Kavathar, service was not economically feasible. The bridge was opposed by temple authorities who claimed that it would disturb the pilgrimage. The bridge was later constructed.

Nature

It has forest area with diverse species of birds and mammals.

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...

s are found in abundance, while

tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

, who once inhabited its forests have vanished. It has a wide range of snakes, and a number of

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

and

cashew The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus ''Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cult ...

trees. {{coord, 8, 56, 48.74, N, 77, 46, 16.96, E, type:city_region:IN, display=title Villages in Dakshina Kannada district