Kozhuvallur (Kozhuvalloor) is a small village in the Chengannur taluk of Alappuzha district in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is situated about 10 km south of the town of

Chengannur Chengannur (also spelled Chengannoor or Chenganur) is a Municipality in the Alappuzha district of Kerala State, India. It is located in the extreme eastern part of the Alappuzha district, on the banks of Pamba River. Chengannur is north of ...

and about 8 km northwest of

Pandalam Pandalam is a municipal town in Pathanamthitta district Kerala, India. Pandalam is considered a holy town due to its connection with Lord Ayyappa and Sabarimala. Rightly recognised to be the ''educational and cultural capital of Central Travan ...

. The road to Kozhuvallur from Chengannur deviates at Chammathu Mukku Junction on the Chengannur-Mavelikkara Road before Kodukulanji. From the Pandalam side, the road to Kozhuvalloor branches at Kulanada on the Main Central (MC) Road. Administratively, Kozhuvalloor lies under the jurisdiction of Mulakkuzha

Panchayat The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical ment ...

. It is separated from the nearby

Venmony Venmony is a village in Chengannur taluk of Alappuzha district of Central Travancore area in Kerala state, India. Venmoney is 18 km south of Thiruvalla, 11 km east of Mavelikkara and 9 km northwest of Pandalam. 12 km fro ...

village by a large strip of

paddy field A paddy field is a flooded field (agriculture), field of arable land used for growing Aquatic plant, semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in sout ...

called Changapadam. The physical features of the area follow the typical midland geographical pattern of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

, consisting of lush vegetation, fertile wet fields, and hilly terrain.

Demographics

The name Kozhuvalloor may be described as signifying a "Village of Peasants". Indeed, the village has a significant population of farmers and is famous for good quality

betel leaf The betel (''Piper betle'') is a vine of the family Piperaceae, which includes pepper and kava. The betel plant is native to Southeast Asia. It is an evergreen, dioecious perennial, with glossy heart-shaped leaves and white catkins. Betel plant ...

, arecanut, banana, rubber and tapioca. In addition to farming, many villagers have traveled to the Gulf countries after the Gulf boom to make their living, and many younger residents have joined the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

and

Border Security Force The Border Security Force (BSF) is India's border guarding organisation on its border with Pakistan and Bangladesh. It is one of the seven Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) of India, and was raised in the wake of the 1965 war on 1 December 1 ...

. The western side of Kozhuvalloor is a comparatively affluent area, and has recently been settled predominantly by Syrian Christians from Venmony and Kodukulanji. Hindus form the majority in the eastern regions of the village. The village's castes include

Nair The Nair , also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom histor ...

Ezhava The Ezhavas () are a community with origins in the region of India presently known as Kerala, where in the 2010s they constituted about 23% of the population and were reported to be the largest Hindu community. They are also known as ''Ilhava'' ...

Viswakarma Vishvakarma or Vishvakarman ( sa, विश्वकर्मा, Viśvakarmā, all maker) is a craftsman deity and the divine architect of the devas in contemporary Hinduism. In the early texts, the craftsman deity was known as Tvastar and the ...

Pulaya The Pulayar (also Pulaya, Pulayas, Cherumar, Cheramar, and Cheraman) is a caste group mostly found in the southern part of India, forming one of the main social groups in modern-day Kerala, Karnataka and historically in Tamil Nadu. Tradition ...

, and

Kurava The Kuravar is an ethnic Tamil people, Tamil community native to the Kurinji mountain region of TamilNadu and Kerala, India. Etymology The "Kuravan" is a Tamil word which means "uyarnthavan" or "Thalaivan" means "Leader" Ethnonym The "Kur ...

Major Landmarks

Kozhuvalloor Devi Temple is an ancient

place of worship A place of worship is a specially designed structure or space where individuals or a group of people such as a congregation come to perform acts of devotion, veneration, or religious study. A building constructed or used for this purpose is somet ...

for the Hindus. The grand celebration of Kumbha Karthika, an important festival at the Devi Temple during the Malayalam month of Kumbham (February–March) is an occasion for rejoicing at the village. SNDP LP School provides basic education till 4th grade. Villagers also worship in the Guru Mandirams commemorating the Saint, Sri

Narayana Guru Narayana Guru, , (20 August 1856 – 20 September 1928) was a philosopher, spiritual leader and social reformer in India. He led a reform movement against the injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala in order to promote spiritual ...

. The

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

of the

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

is a striking landmark with its majestic granite stone structure. The Salem Marthoma Church and the CSI St. Andrew's Church and CSI St. Thomas Church and St. George Orthodox church are also important churches with many years of history in the region. Salem school is an important identity mark providing education till high school where many of the residents studied and then moved up to higher education later. Parachantha is also a major landmark with many shops and markets. St. George Senior Secondary School situated near the St. George's Orthodox Church on the Kalarithara Hills imparts school education in the CBSE stream. Mount Zion Institute of Science & Technology and St. Thomas College Of Engineering are situated in Kozhuvalloor.

Transport

Most of the villagers have their own vehicles. There are also private and state transport buses connecting Chengannur and Pandalam through Kozhuvalloor and is available from Chengannur and Pandalam private bus stands and

Kerala State Road Transport Corporation Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is a state-owned road transport corporation in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the country's oldest state-run public bus transport services. The corporation is divided into three zones ( ...

bus stands.

Scenery

The village is surrounded by paddy fields, hills and greenery. Also lengthy rubber fields can be seen. Though the cultivation and farming has decreased, the whole village looks green.

References

{{Alappuzha district Villages in Alappuzha district