Kulasekharam is a town located in the district of
Kanyakumari
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland Ind ...
, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the most important business centres in the district, after
Marthandam
Marthandam is a major trade centre in Kuzhithurai municipality across National Highway (NH 47) in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu, India. Formerly known as Thoduvetty (another name for the Marthandam market region), it was a portion o ...
.
Kulasekharam has many
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, an ...
plantations that yield high quality
latex
Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well.
In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosperms ...
, which is the town's major revenue source. The town is making inroads and valuable contribution in the field of healthcare, by providing impeccable medical facilities to the semi-rural crowd from nearby places. Kulasekharam has three medical colleges for medical sciences, Homeopathy and Naturopathy. Kulasekharam has a mix of
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
,
Christian,
Dalits
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
and
Muslim communities and has historically been a peaceful town. Tamils and Malayalees form the majority of the population.
Etymology
Kulasekhara is the name of a dynasty that ruled over Kerala, from which the name may have been derived.
Administration
Kulasekharam is a town panchayat located in Kanyakumari district, and comes under
Thiruvattar Taluk. It has 18 wards in the
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 men ...
. The elected
Councilors
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
are responsible for the development of their wards. Drainage facilities, local roads, and water facilities are maintained by them.
Police station
The Kulasekaram Police station is located at Arasumoodu.
Fire control
The Fire Control Station is located in Mamoodu.
Tourism
Kulasekharam is named for its scenic views, but it doesn't have any important tourist spots within the town limits but it serves as a key place to reach various tourist destinations in Kanyakumari district, such as
Thirparappu,
Mathur Aqueduct
Mathoor Aqueduct is an aqueduct in Kalkulam taluk of Kanniyakumari district of Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is built over the Pahrali River and takes its name from Mathoor, a hamlet near the aqueduct, which is about 3 km from Thiruva ...
,
Pechipara dam,
perunchani reservoir, and
Kothayar dam. The Thripparappu waterfalls and Pechippara Dam are the main tourist attractions in the state. Kothayar has a hydroelectric power plant and is situated in a dense forest area. And it has one more nature viewed place called kalikesam. The kalikesam have water falls, rocks and historical temple.
Education
Kulasekharam holds a prominent place in the educational map of Tamil Nadu, especially in medical studies. The town is home to three medical colleges, four nursing colleges, and other colleges and schools.
Medical colleges
* Sree RamaKrishna Medical College of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences
* Sree Mookaambika Institute of Medical Sciences (SMIMS)
* Sarada Krishna Homeopathic Medical College
* Sree RAMAKRISHNA COLLEGE of Nursing
Dental colleges
* Sree Mookaambika Institute of Dental Sciences
Arts & science
* Sri Ramakrishna College of Education
Polytechnic college
* BWDA polytechnic college
Agricultural college
* TNAU Institute Of Horticulture Research Station
There are also more than 20 private education institutions in Kulasekaram, which offer education in various fields.
Location and significance
Kulasekharam is located 50 km south of the Trivandrum Metropolitan Region and 30 km from Nagercoil the nearest city. Kulasekharam is only 12 km away from the commercial towns of Marthandam, 18 km from Thuckalay, Kaliyikkavilai and 22 km from Monday Market. The younger generations of Kulasekharam either migrated or commute to Trivandrum due to its proximity to Kerala's state capital. Two major motorways connect kulasekharam to Trivandrum; the National Highway 66 and the Vizhinjam Harbour - Beach Road. The Hill Road which runs through Nedumangadu is also used by some commuters due to heavy traffic congestion in the 2 main roads particularly during peak hours.
Demographics
India
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
,
Kulasekaram had a population of 17,267. Males constitute 49.5% of the population and females 50.5%. Kulasekaram has an average literacy rate of 90%, higher than the state average of 80.09%: male literacy is 92.54%, and female literacy is 88.91%. In Kulasekaram, 9.39% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Medical facilities
Kulasekharam has one government hospital, 3 medical college hospitals and more than 15 hospitals, which serve people in almost all kind of treatments.
There is also a government veterinary hospital located within Kulasekharam. People also do visit medical facilities available in Nagercoil, Marthandam and
Trivandrum
Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populatio ...
in which it includes Trivandrum Medical College, General Hospital, Thar Salvation Army Catherine Booth Hospital (CBH), KIMS, NIMS, Ananthapuri, Cosmopolitan Hospital, PRS, Lord's Hospital, Aster Medicity, etc.
There is a homeo medical College
Namely Saradha Krishna homeopathy medical College with a 100bedded hospital.
Shopping
Kulasekharam Market is one of the important shopping centres for Kulasekharam and the nearby towns. Some 8000-10000 people gather there daily to buy their basic needs.
Climate
Kulasekharam has a pleasant, though humid, climate for a majority of the year. The maximum temperature during the summer hovers around or 30 °C, with extremely high humidity at times. Kulasekharam receives both the north-east monsoon and the south-west monsoon. It rains more often in Kanyakumari district than in any other part of Tamil Nadu, with the exception of Chennai.
Culture and religion
Tamil and Malayalam are spoken by the people. Tamil language along with English is used as a medium of teaching in all major schools. The Tamil spoken here is a mix of Malayalam and Tamil, sometimes unintelligible to the people of North Tamil Nadu.
The culture is a mixture of Tamil and Malayalam. Christianity, Hinduism and Islam are the major religions in the Kulasekharam. Food prepared here is also a mix of Kerala/Tamil Nadu traditions.
Idly
Idli or idly () is a type of savoury rice cake, originating from the South India,popular as breakfast foods in Southern India and in Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and rice ...
,
Dosa
Dosa may refer to:
People
* Bogoljub Mitić Đoša, Serbian actor
* Csaba Dosa (born 1951), Romanian athlete
* Dosa ben Harkinas
* Dosa ben Saadia (935 - 1018), Talmudic scholar and philosopher
* Dosa or Dossa Júnior
* Edward Dosa-Wea Neufville ...
,
Puttu
Puttu ( ml, പുട്ട്; ta, புட்டு; si, පිට්ටු) (pronounced ), alternatively spelled pittu ( ta, பிட்டு), is a dish native to the South Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and parts of Karnataka, ...
,
Appam
Appam is a type of thin pancake originating from South India. It is made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk, traditionally cooked in an ''appachatti'', a deep pan similar in shape to a wok. It is common in the cusine of Kerala and Tam ...
, and
Idiappam
Idiyappam ( ta, இடியப்பம்/இடியாப்பம், Malayalam: ഇടിയപ്പം), also known as string hopper, ''indiappa'' ( Sinhala: ඉඳිආප්ප), ''noolputtu'' ( ta, நூல்புட்டு, M ...
are popular food items, and so are
rice murukku and
achu-murukku.
Curries
A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included.
There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradi ...
here are made with
coconut and
coconut oil which is now considered
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 ...
style cooking.
Festivals
Some of the festivals celebrated here are
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
,
Pongal Pongal may refer to:
* Pongal (festival), an annual Tamil festival
* Pongal (dish)
Pongal, also known as pongali or huggi, is an Indian rice dish. In Tamil, "pongal" means "boil" or "bubbling up". The two varieties of pongal are ''chakarai pong ...
,
Onam
Onam ( ) is an annual Indian harvest festival celebrated predominantly by the Hindus of Kerala. A major annual event for Keralites, it is the official festival of the state and includes a spectrum of cultural events.
Onam commemorates Vamana ...
,
Deepavali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali (IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is on ...
,
Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
,
New Year's Day,
Ramzan (Eid ul fitr) and
Bakrid (Eid ul alha),
Ganesh Chaturthi (Vinayagha Chaturthi),
krishna Janmashtami (Krishna Jayanti), Ambedkar Jayanthi, Buddha Jayanthani
Sivalaya Ottam,
Vishu
Vishu (Malayalam: വിഷു), the traditional Malayali New Year, is a Hindu festival celebrated in the Indian state of Kerala, Tulu Nadu region of Karnataka, and Mahe district. The festival marks the first day of Medam, the first month of ...
,
Karthikai Deepam
Kartika Deepam () is a festival of lights that is observed mainly by Hindu Tamils, and also by adherents in the regions of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Sri Lanka. Celebrated in Tamilakam since the ancient period, the festi ...
,
Vavubali.
Transport
Road
The only mode of transport in Kulasekharam is by road.
SH90 &
SH45 pass through Kulasekaram from major spots like Aralvaimozhi and Marthandam.
SETC is operating a bus to Chennai daily at 3:00pm. It is also connected with
Coimbatore,
Madurai
Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...
,
Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tam ...
,
Nagercoil
Nagercoil, also spelt as Nagarkovil ("Temple of the Nāgas", or Nagaraja-Temple), is a city and the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District in Tamil Nadu state, India. Situated close to the tip of the Indian peninsula, it lies on an ...
,
Kanyakumari
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland Ind ...
,
Nedumangadu
Nedumangad is a town and municipality in Thiruvananthapuram metropolitan area of Thiruvananthapuram district in the Indian state of Kerala, and is the headquarters of Nedumangad tehsil and Nedumangad Revenue Division (RDO). It is a suburb ...
,
Thiruchendoor and
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
. In
Thumpacode there is a bus stand that serves the public.
Auto rickshaws, private cars, vans, and mini buses are the other modes of transport.
Train
The nearest railway station from Kulasekharam is Kuzhithurai (KZT) which is just 10 km away. Several trains to Trivandrum, Nagercoil, Chennai, Madurai, and Mumbai are operated. One must reach Nagercoil (NCJ) or Trivandrum (TVC) for getting long-distance train and the trains which don't have halt in Kuzhithurai.
Air
Kulasekharam is served by
Trivandrum International Airport
Thiruvananthapuram International Airport , is an international airport which serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and fifth international airport of In ...
which is approximately 45 km away. Kulasekharam Town is only 16 km away from the southern border of
Trivandrum Metropolitan Region and hence considered one of its suburbs even though it lies across the state border. Both Kerala and Tamil Nadu government operates several bus services between the two cities apart from numerous private bus and taxi operators.
Communication
Telecommunication
State owned
BSNL is offering land line, mobile, wireless and wired internet facility. Private companies include
Airtel
Bharti Airtel Limited, commonly known as (d/b/a) Airtel, is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. Current ...
,
Vi Vodafone">nowiki/>Vodafone_Idea_Cellular.html" "title="Vodafone.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Vodafone">nowiki/>Vodafone Idea Cellular">Idea
In common usage and in philosophy, ideas are the results of thought. Also in philosophy, ideas can also be mental representational images of some object. Many philosophers have considered ideas to be a fundamental ontological category of bei ...
] and Reliance Jio, Jio. Airtel is offering their 3G services in Kulasekharam from September 2011 & BSNL 3G from November 2013, Vodafone 3G and Aircel 3G (not in operation) has launched around May 2015, Reliance Jio 4G services are also available.
Even other network provider started up with 4G services
Kulasekharam head post office is in Arasumoodu Jn. Various services like postal, speed post, parcel service, and banking service are also offered here. The
for Kulasekharam post office is 629161.