Omalloor is a small town, about 3.5 km south of

Pathanamthitta District Pathanamthitta District (), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. The district headquarters is in the town of Pathanamthitta. There are four municipalities in Pathanamthitta: Adoor, Pandalam, Pathanamthitta and Thiruvalla ...

headquarters, in

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 ...

. Omalloor is famous for '' Vayal Vanibham'' which is an annual farming fair held in the month of Meenam (October). People from both within and outside the town participate in the fair. Kolam Thullall

Demographics

Various sections of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

co-exist, the

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 histo ...

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'' ...

s, Viswakarmas

Veerashaiva Veerashaivism is a sect within the Shaivism fold of Hinduism. According to tradition, it was transmitted by ''Panchacharyas'', ( kn, ಪಂಚಾಚಾರ್ಯರು, paṃcācāraya from sa, पंचचार्य, pañcācārya), or five ...

s and the Scheduled Class & Tribes constitute the major sections of the Hindu religion. Major Christian sects are

Orthodox church Orthodox Church may refer to: * Eastern Orthodox Church * Oriental Orthodox Churches * Orthodox Presbyterian Church * Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand * State church of the Roman Empire * True Orthodox church See also * Orthodox (di ...

Jacobite Church , native_name_lang = syc , image = St_George_Syriac_orthodox_church_in_Damascus.jpg , imagewidth = 250 , alt = Cathedral of Saint George , caption = Cathedral of Saint George, Damascu ...

, Marthoma Church, Malankara Catholic Church, St. Thomas Evangelical Church, Church of South India,

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

Churches, and Brethren.

Festivals

Temple festivals (Utsavam) and Church feasts (Palliperunal) are celebrated as village festivals. There are many historically important places of worship in Omalloor. The Rektha Kanda Swamy Temple is a grand temple situated in Omalloor, which dates back to the 8th century AD, is famous for its 10-day annual festival (utsavam). It is also a main pilgrim center for Sabarimala pilgrims. The St. Thomas Orthodox Valiya Palli (church) is another major place of worship for Christians.

Manjanikkara Dayara Manjanikkara Dayara is a monastery of the Syriac Orthodox Church. It is situated at the top of the hillock in Manjanikkara, near Omallur, Pathanamthitta District, in South Kerala, India. The monastery was established by Mor Yulios Elias Qoro, ...

is famous for its pilgrimage importance. Every year thousands of pilgrims come by foot to the tomb of Holy Patriarch

Ignatius Elias III Saint Ignatius Elias III (13 October 1867 – 13 February 1932) (Syriac: ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ ܐܠܝܐܣ ܬܠܝܬܝܐ) was the Patriarch of Antioch, and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1917 until his death in 1932. Biography Nasri was born o ...

at Manjanikkara. St. Peter's Jacobite church, St. Stephen's Jacobite Church, St. Thomas Malankara Catholic Church, Puthenpeedika, St. Peter's Malankara Catholic Church, Cheekanal and St. Thomas Mar Thoma Church, Cheekanal are some other important places worship at Omalloor. Mathoor Kaavu Bhagavathi Temple, situated on the banks of Achenkovil river, is a famous Hindu temple. The River Achankovil marks the eastern border of the Omalloor Panchayat. The Thazhoor Bhagavati Temple, famous for the annual Padayani rituals during the Malayalam month of Kumbham is located on the banks of the River Achankovil.

Schools

There are quite a few education institutions as Omallur is very close to Pathanamthitta town. These include Amrita Vidyalayam, Catholicate Higher Secondary School, Bhavan's Vidya Mandir and Arya Bharati High School. Aarsha Bharatha Vidyalaya is a prominent school in Omallur with classes from pre-KG to 7th grade.

Government Higher Secondary School Omallur Government Higher Secondary School Omalloor, also abbreviated as 'G.H.S.S. Omalloor' and locally referred to as 'Thalakanjiram school', is a state school in Omalloor, Pathanamthitta in Kerala, India, that follows the state syllabus with Malayalam ...

founded in 1805, offer education till grade 12. Madona International School, Puthenpeedika is another elegant institution at Omalloor.

Demographics

As per the

2011 Census of India The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...

, Omalloor had a population of 17611 with 8189 males and 9412 females. Like many other communities in central Kerala, Omallur has a relatively high proportion of working age adults. Non-resident Indians (NRIs) amount to 35% of cash flow . There are a number of small family-owned retail shops, and rubber plantations etc.

Noted Personalities

*Father

V. C. Samuel Vilakuvelil Cherian Samuel (Malayalam: വി.സി. സാമുവേൽ; Hebrew :שְׁמוּאֵל ; Greek: Σαμουήλ; Arabic: صموئيل; Latin:Samūēl Amharic: ሳሙኤል1912–1998), called ''Samuel Achen'' was an Indian Ch ...

- President

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

(Omalloor Valya Pally) *

Omalloor Chellamma Omalloor is a small town, about 3.5 km south of Pathanamthitta District headquarters, in Kerala. Omalloor is famous for '' Vayal Vanibham'' which is an annual farming fair held in the month of Meenam (October). People from both within and ou ...

- Malayalam drama and cine actress of 1950s. See

Premalekha ''Premalekha'' is a 1952 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by M. K. Ramani. The film stars Jose Prakash and S. P. Pillai. The film's score was composed by P. S. Divakar. Cast * Jose Prakash Jose Prakash (14 April 1925 – 24 March ...

* Omalloor Prathapachandran - Malayalam film actor * Late HG.Daniel Mar Philixenox - Former thumpamon diocese Metropolitan (Omalloor Valya Pally- Vaduthala Family) * Captain Raju - Malayalam film actor

References

{{Pathanamthitta district Villages in Pathanamthitta district