Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second largest metropolitan area in Kerala and the List of million-plus urban agglomerations in India, 19th largest in India. Kozhikode is classified as a Tier 2 city by the Government of India. It is the largest city in the region known as the Malabar Coast, Malabar and was the capital of the British-era Malabar District, Malabar district. In antiquity and the medieval period, Kozhikode was dubbed the ''City of Spices'' for its role as the major trading point for spice trade, Indian spices. It was the capital of an independent kingdom ruled by the Samoothiris (Zamorins). The port at Kozhikode acted as the gateway to medieval South Indian coast for the Chinese people, Chinese, the Persians, the Arabs and finally the Demographics of Europe, Europeans. According to data compiled by economics research firm Indicus Analytics in 2009 on residences, earnings and investments, Kozhikode was ranked the second best city in India to live in.

Etymology

The exact origin of the name Kozhikode is uncertain. According to many sources, the name Kozhikode is derived from ''Koyil-kota'' (fort), meaning ''fortified palace''. The name also got corrupted into ''Kolikod'', or its Arab version ''Qāliqūṭ'' and later its anglicized version Calicut. The Arab people, Arab merchants called it ''Qāliqūṭ'' (International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: qˠaːliqˠːuːtˤ). Chinese people, Chinese merchants called it ''Kūlifo''. Although the city's official name is Kozhikode, in English it is sometimes known by its anglicised version, ''Calicut''.M.G.S. Narayanan, ''Calicut: The City of Truth'' (2006) Calicut University Press, Kozhikode. The word ''calico (textile), calico'', a fine variety of hand-woven cotton cloth that was exported from the port of Kozhikode, is thought to have been derived from ''Calicut''.Encyclopædia Britannica (2008). ''calico'' It is the historical capital of Kerala as the history dates back to 1498 AD when Vasco da Gama landed in Kappad, near Calicut.

History

The ancient port of Tyndis which was located on the northern side of Muziris, as mentioned in the ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'', was somewhere around Kozhikode. Its exact location is a matter of dispute. The suggested locations are Ponnani, Tanur, Malappuram, Tanur, Beypore-Chaliyam-Kadalundi-Vallikkunnu, and Koyilandy. Tyndis was a major center of trade, second only to Muziris, between the Cheras and the Roman Empire. Pliny the Elder (1st century CE) states that the port of ''Tyndis'' was located at the northwestern border of ''Keprobotos'' (Chera dynasty).Gurukkal, R., & Whittaker, D. (2001). In search of Muziris. ''Journal of Roman Archaeology,'' ''14'', 334-350. The North Malabar region, which lies north of the port at ''Tyndis'', was ruled by the kingdom of Ezhimala during Sangam period. According to the ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'', a region known as ''Limyrike'' began at ''Kannur, Naura'' and ''Tyndis''. However Ptolemy mentions only ''Tyndis'' as ''Limyrikes starting point. The region probably ended at Kanyakumari; it thus roughly corresponds to the present-day Malabar Coast. The value of Rome's annual trade with the region was estimated at around 50,000,000 sesterces. Pliny the Elder mentioned that ''Limyrike'' was prone by pirates. The Cosmas Indicopleustes mentioned that the ''Limyrike'' was a source of peppers. In the 14th century, Kozhikode conquered larger parts of central Kerala after the seize of Tirunavaya region from Kingdom of Valluvanad, Valluvanad, which were under the control of the king of Kingdom of Cochin, ''Perumbadappu Swaroopam'' (Cochin). The ruler of Perumpadappu, Malappuram, Perumpadappu was forced to shift his capital (c. CE 1405) further south from Kodungallur to Kochi. In the 15th century, the status of Cochin was reduced to a vassal state of Kozhikode, thus leading to the emergence of Kozhikode as the most powerful kingdom in medieval Malabar Coast.During the 15th century Kalaripayat was important in the history of Malabars, Malabar, some warriors lived, most notably ''puthooram veettil'' Aromal Chekavar and his sister Unniyarcha who were chieftains of martial arts. The port at Kozhikode held the superior economic and political position in medieval Kerala coast, while Kannur, Kollam, and Kochi, were commercially important secondary ports, where the traders from various parts of the world would gather.''The Portuguese, Indian Ocean and European Bridgeheads 1500–1800''. Festschrift in Honour of Prof. K. S. Mathew (2001). Edited by: Pius Malekandathil and T. Jamal Mohammed. Fundacoa Oriente. Institute for Research in Social Sciences and Humanities of MESHAR (Kerala) Kozhikode was the capital of an independent kingdom ruled by the samoothiris (Zamorins) in the Middle Ages and later of the erstwhile Malabar District under British rule. Arab people, Arab merchants traded with the region as early as 7th century, and Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed at Kozhikode on 20 May 1498, thus opening a trade route between Europe and India. A Portuguese trading post, factory and the fort was intact in Kozhikode for short period (1511–1525, until the Fall of Calicut (1526), Fall of Calicut). The English East India Company, English landed in 1615 (constructing a trading post in 1665), followed by the French East India Company, French (1698) and the Dutch East India Company, Dutch (1752). In 1765, Kingdom of Mysore, Mysore captured Kozhikode as part of its occupation of the Malabar Coast. Kozhikode, once a famous cotton-weaving centre, gave its name to the Calico (textile), Calico cloth."Kozhikode." ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 18 November 2011. Vascodagama

It was ranked eleventh among Tier-II Indian cities in job creation by a study conducted by ASSOCHAM in 2007.

Early Kozhikode in foreign accounts

Accounts of the city and the conditions prevailing then can be gleaned from the chronicles of travellers who visited the port city. Uru

Ibn Battuta (1342–1347), who visited six times, gives the earliest glimpses of life in the city. He describes Kozhikode as "one of the great ports of the district of Malabar" where "merchants of all parts of the world are found here". The king of this place, he says, "shaves his chin just as the Haidari Fakeers of Rome do... The greater part of the Muslim merchants of this place are so wealthy that one of them can purchase the whole freightage of such vessels put here and fit out others like them". Calicut 1572

Ma Huan (1403 AD), the Chinese sailor part of the Imperial Chinese fleet under Cheng Ho (Zheng He) lauds the city as a great emporium of trade frequented by merchants from around the world. He makes note of the 20 or 30 mosques built to cater to the religious needs of the Muslims, the unique system of calculation by the merchants using their fingers and toes (followed to this day) and the matrilineal system of succession. Abdur Razzaq (traveller), Abdur Razzak (1442–43) the ambassador of Persian Emperor Sha-Rohk finds the city harbour perfectly secured and notices precious articles from several maritime countries especially from Ethiopian Empire, Abyssinia, Zirbad and Zanzibar. The Italian Niccolò de' Conti (1445), perhaps the first Christian traveller who noticed Kozhikode, describes the city as abounding in pepper, lac, ginger, a larger kind of cinnamon, myrobalans and zedoary. He calls it a noble emporium for all India, with a circumference of . The Russian traveller Athanasius Nikitin or Afanasy Nikitin (1468–74) calls 'Calecut' a port for the whole Indian sea and describes it as having a "big bazaar." Other travellers who visited Kozhikode include the Italian Ludovico di Varthema (1503–1508) and Duarte Barbosa.

The Samoothiri

Kozhikode and its suburbs formed part of the ''Polanad'' kingdom, which was a vassal state to the ''Kolathunadu'' of North Malabar, ruled by the ''Porlatiri''. The Eradis of Nediyiruppu at Kondotty in Eranad (Malappuram district) wanted an outlet to the sea, to initiate trade and commerce with the distant lands. and after fighting with the king Polatthiri for 48 years conquered the area around Panniyankara, Panniankara. After this, Menokki became the ruler of ''Polanad'' and came to terms with the troops and people. After this, the town of Kozhikode was founded close to the palace at Tali. Then, the Eradis shifted their headquarters from Nediyiruppu to Kozhikode. The Governor of Ernad built a fort at a place called Velapuram to safeguard his new interests. The fort most likely lent its name to ''Koyil Kotta'' the precursor to Kozhikode. Thus the city came into existence sometime in the 13th century CE. The status of Udaiyavar increased and he became known as Swami Nambiyathiri Thirumulpad, and eventually Samuri or Samoothiri. Europeans called him in a corrupt form as Zamorin of Calicut, Zamorin. At the peak of their reign, the Zamorins ruled over a region from Kollam (Quilon) to Panthalayini Kollam (Koyilandy).Varier, M. R. Raghava. "Documents of Investiture Ceremonies" in K. K. N. Kurup, Edit., "India's Naval Traditions". Northern Book Centre, New Delhi, 1997 Following the discovery of sea route from Europe to Kozhikode in 1498, the Portuguese began to expand their territories and ruled the seas between Ormus and the Malabar Coast and south to Sri Lanka, Ceylon. Kallingal Madathil Rarichan Moopan and Pullambil Moopan and Vamala Moopan families were very prominent among those who said that two centuries ago, some Jenmis in Kozhikode were engaged in sea trade and shipping. According to K.V. Krishna Iyer, the rise of Kozhikode is at once a cause and a consequence of Samoothiri's ascendancy in Kerala. By the end of the century, Samoothiri was at the zenith of his powers with all princes and chieftains of Kerala north of Kochi acknowledging his suzerainty. The S. M. Street, Sweetmeat Street (''Mittayi Theruvu'') was an important trading street under Zamorin's rule. The First Battle of Cannanore that occurred in January 1502 between the 3rd Portuguese India Armada (Nova, 1501), Third Portuguese Armada and Kingdom of Cochin under João da Nova and Zamorin of Calicut (kingdom), Calicut's navy marks the beginning of Portuguese conflicts in the Indian Ocean. The defeat of joint fleet of the Mahmud Begada, Sultan of Gujarat, the Burji dynasty, Mamlûk Burji Sultanate of Egypt, and the Zamorin of Calicut with support of the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire in Battle of Diu (1509), Battle of Diu in February 1509 marks the beginning of Portuguese people, Portuguese dominance of the Spice trade and the Indian Ocean. The continuous wars between Zamorin navy under Kunjali Marakkars and Portuguese in the 16th century CE reduced the importance of Kozhikode as a centre of trade. The Kunjali Marakkars are credited with organizing the first naval defense of the Indian coast. The Zamorin in the beginning of next century expelled Portuguese with the help of Dutch East India Company. and In 1602, the Zamorin sent messages to Aceh promising the Dutch a fort at Kozhikode if they would come and trade there. Two factors, Hans de Wolff and Lafer, were sent on an Asian ship from Aceh, but the two were captured by the chief of Tanur, Malappuram, Tanur, and handed over to the Portuguese.Sanjay Subrahmanyam. "The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650". Cambridge University Press, 2002 A Dutch fleet under Admiral Steven van der Hagen arrived at Kozhikode in November 1604. It marked the beginning of the Dutch presence in Kerala and they concluded a treaty with Kozhikode on 11 November 1604, which was also the first treaty that the Dutch East India Company made with an Indian ruler. By this time the kingdom and the port of Kozhikode was much reduced in importance. The treaty provided for a mutual alliance between the two to expel the Portuguese from Malabar. In return the Dutch East India Company was given facilities for trade at Kozhikode and Ponnani, including spacious storehouses.

British Rule

The arrival of East India Company, British in Kerala can be traced back to the year 1615, when a group under the leadership of Captain William Keeling arrived at Kozhikode, using three ships. It was in these ships that Sir Thomas Roe went to visit Jahangir, the fourth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, as British Empire, British envoy. Travancore became the most dominant state in Kerala by defeating the Zamorin of History of Kozhikode, Kozhikode in the battle of Purakkad in 1755. Kozhikode came under British Rule after the Kingdom of Mysore, Mysorean conquest of Malabar in the late 18th century CE.The British later also formed a regiment called the Thiyyar Regiment to meet their military operations in Malabar District, Malabar. Kozhikode was the capital city of Malabar District, one of the two districts in the western coast (Malabar Coast) of Madras presidency. During the British rule, Malabar's chief importance lay in producing Malabar pepper, pepper, coconut, tiles, and teak. Kozhikode municipality was formed on 1 November 1866 according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850) of the British Indian Empire, making it the first modern municipality in the state.

Post Independence

Kozhikode Municipality was upgraded into Kozhikode Municipal Corporation in the year 1962, making it the second-oldest Municipal Corporation in the state.

Climate

Kozhikode has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification ''Am''). A brief spell of pre-monsoon Mango showers hits the city sometime during April. However, the primary source of rain is the South-west monsoon that sets in the first week of June and continues until September. The city receives significant precipitation from the Northeast Monsoon, North-East Monsoon that sets in from the second half of October through November.

Demographics

Total Population under Municipal Corporation limits is 550,440. Males form 47.7% and females 52.3%. Kozhikode has been a multi-ethnic and multi-religious town since the early medieval period. The Hinduism in Kerala, Hindus form the largest religious group, followed by Islam in Kerala, Muslims and Christianity in Kerala, Christians. Hindus form the majority at 57.37% of the population with 315807 members. Muslims form 37.6% of the population with 207298 members. The corporation of Kozhikode has an average Literacy in India#Kerala, literacy rate of 96.8% (Literacy in India, national average is 74.85%). The male literacy rate is 97.93% and female literacy rate is 95.78%. Pre-modern Kozhikode was already teeming with people of several communities and regional groups. Most of these communities continued to follow their traditional occupations and customs till the 20th century. Brahmins, too, lived in the city mostly around the Hindu temples. Regional groups like the Tamil Brahmins, Gujaratis and Marwari Jains became part of the city and lived around their shrines. The Nairs formed the rulers, warriors and landed gentry of Kozhikode.The Thiyyas formed the ''vaidyars'' (Ayurveda Physicians), local militia and traders of Kozhikode. The Thiyyas were also heavily recruited into the Zamorin's army.Samoothiri army was called as Lokar,which constituted of warriors of Thiyyar and Nair caste soldiers.Zamorin also had an army called the 'Thiyyarpada' (Thiyya Army),which is formed by Thiyyar warriors. The Samoothiri had a ten thousand strong Nair bodyguard called the Kozhikkottu pathinaayiram (The 10,000 of Kozhikode) who defended the capital and supported the administration within the city. He had a larger force of 30,000 Nairs in his capacity as the Prince of Eranadu, called the Kozhikkottu Muppatinaayiram (The 30,000 of Kozhikode). The Nairs also formed the members of the suicide squad (Suicide attack#India, chaver). The Muslims of Kozhikode are known as Mappilas, and according to the official Kozhikode website "the great majority of them are Sunni Islam, Sunnis following the Shafi school of thought. There are some smaller communities among the Muslims such as Dawoodi Bohras of Gujarati origin. Many of the Muslims living in the historic part of the city follow matrilineality and are noted for their piety. Though Christianity in Kerala, Christianity is believed to have been introduced in Kerala in the 1st century CE, the size of community in Malabar region, Malabar (northern Kerala) began to rise only after the arrival of the Portuguese missionaries towards the close of the 15th century. A few Christians of Travancore, Thiruvitankoor and Kochi have lately migrated to the hilly regions of the district and are settled there. The Tamil Brahmins are primarily settled around the Tali Siva temple. They arrived in Kozhikode as dependants of chieftains, working as cooks, cloth merchants and moneylenders.Narayanan.M.G.S., Calicut: The City of Truth(2006) Calicut University Publications They have retained their Tamil language and dialects as well as caste rituals. The Gujarati people, Gujarati community is settled mostly around the Jain temple in and around the Valliyangadi. They owned many establishments, especially textile and sweet shops. They must have arrived in Kozhikode at least from the beginning of the 14th century. They belong to either the Hindu or the Jain community. A few Marwaris, Marwari families are also found in Kozhikode who was basically moneylenders.

Civic administration

The city is administered by the Kozhikode Corporation, headed by a mayor. For administrative purposes, the city is divided into 75 Ward (country subdivision), wards, from which the members of the corporation council are elected for five years. Recently neighbouring suburbs Beypore, Elathur, Kozhikode, Elathur, Cheruvannur Nallalam, Cheruvannur and Nallalam were merged within the municipal corporation. Kozhikode Corporation is the first City Corporation in Kerala after the creation of the state. Established in 1962, Kozhikode Corporation's first mayor was H Manjunatha Rao. Kozhikode corporation has four assembly constituencies – Kozhikode North, Kozhikode South, Beypore and Elathur – all of which are part of Kozhikode (Lok Sabha constituency), Kozhikode.

Kozhikode Municipal Corporation Election 2020

Law and order

The Kozhikode City Police is headed by a commissioner, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer. The city is divided into six zones each under a circle officer. Apart from regular law and order, the city police comprise the traffic police, bomb squad, dog squad, fingerprint bureau, women's cell, juvenile wing, narcotics cell, riot force, armed reserve camps, district crime records bureau and a women's station. It operates 16 police stations functioning under the Home Ministry of Government of Kerala.

Transport

Road

National highways

National Highway 17 (India), National Highway 66 connects Kozhikode to Mumbai via Mangaluru, Udupi and Goa to the north and Kochi and Kanyakumari near Thiruvananthapuram to the south along the west coast of India. This highway connects the city with the other important towns like, Kasaragod, Kanhangad, Kannur, Thalassery, Mahé, India, Mahe, Vadakara, Koyilandy Ramanattukara, Kottakkal, Kuttippuram, Ponnani, Kodungallur, North Paravur, Ernakulam, Edapally and proceeds to Alappuzha, Thiruvananthapuram and terminates at the southern tip of India, Kanyakumari. National Highway 766 (India), National Highway 766 connects Kozhikode to Bangalore through Kollegal in Karnataka via Tirumakudal Narsipur, Mysore, Nanjangud, Gundlupet, Sulthan Bathery, Kalpetta and Thamarassery. National Highway 966 (India), National Highway 966 connects Kozhikode to Palakkad through Malappuram,Perinthalmanna. It covers a distance of . At Ramanattukara, a suburb of Kozhikode, it joins NH 66. It passes through major towns like Kondotty, Perinthalmanna, and Mannarkkad and Malappuram. This stretch connects the city and Calicut International Airport.

State Highways

State Highway 29 (Kerala), SH 29 passes through the city. It connects NH 212, Malabar Christian College, civil station, Kunnamangalam, Thamarassery, Chellot, Chitragiri and Road to Gudallor from Kerala border. State highway 38 starts from Pavangad near passes through Ulliyeri, Perambra, Kuttiady, Nadapuram, Panoor & Koothuparamba and ends at Chovva in Kannur. The highway is107;km long. It is one of the busiest route in the district. State Highway 54 (Kerala), SH 54 connects the city to Kalpetta. The highway is long. The highway passes through Pavangad, Kozhikode, Ulliyeri, Perambra, Poozhithodu, Peruvannamuzhi and Padinjarethara. State Highway 68 (Kerala), SH 68 starts from Kappad and ends in Adivaram. The highway is long. State Highway 34 (Kerala), SH 34 starts from Koyilandy and ends in Edavanna which is 44.0 km long. This highway passes through Koyilandi, Ulliyeri, Balussery, Thamarassery, Omassery, Mukkam.

Buses

Buses, predominantly run by individual owners, ply on the routes within the city and to nearby locations. City buses are painted green. Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) runs regular services to many destinations in the state and to the neighboring states. The city has three bus stands. All private buses to the suburban and nearby towns ply from the Palayam Bus Stand. Private buses to adjoining districts start from the Mofussil Bus Stand on Indira Gandhi Road (Mavoor Road). Buses operated by the KSRTC drive from the KSRTC bus stand on Indira Gandhi Road. KSRTC Bus Stand Kozhikode is the largest bus stand in Kerala having a size of 36,036.47 meter square. There are also KSRTC depots in Thamarassery, Thottilpalam, Thiruvambady and Vatakara. There are three routes available to Bangalore. Kozhikode–Sultan Bathery, Sulthan Bathery-Gundlupet–Mysore–Bangalore is the preferred one and is very busy. Another route, is Kozhikode-Mananthavady, Manathavady-Kutta-Mysore-Bangalore. The third one, less used, is Kozhikode–Gundlupet–Chamarajanagar–Kollegal–Bangalore. Private tour operators maintain regular luxury bus services to Mumbai, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Chennai, Vellore, Ernakulam, Trivandrum, Ooty, Mysore. etc. and mainly operate from the Palayam area. These are usually night services.

Rail

The history of railways in Kerala dates to 1861 when the first tracks were laid between Tirur and Beypore.

Air

Calicut International Airport is from the city at Karipur in Kondotty Taluk, Kondotty, which is in the Malappuram district. It began operations in 1988. Domestic services are operated to major Indian cities. It received the status of an international airport in 2006.

Economy

Calicut is one of the biggest economic hubs in Kerala. Service sector dominates the economy followed by industries. Nedungadi Bank, the first and oldest bank in the modern state of Kerala, was established by Appu Nedungadi at Kozhikode in the year 1899. Cyberpark, a Government of Kerala organisation, plans to build, operate and manage IT parks for the promotion and development of investment in IT and ITES industries in the Malabar region of Kerala. It would be the third IT hub in the state of Kerala. The two IT parks might create a total 100,000 direct job opportunities. The first project is the development of Cyberpark hub in Kozhikode with its spokes at Kannur and Kazargode IT parks. Other planned projects include the Birla IT park (at Mavoor) and Malaysian satellite city (at Kinaloor) where KINFRA has plans to set up a industrial park. In 2012, Kozhikode was given the tag of "City of Sculptures" (Shilpa Nagaram) because of the architectural sculptures around the city. Currently there are many IT companies running in UL Cyberpark, Government Cyberpark and Hilite Business Park.

Shopping

The city has a strong mercantile aspect. The main area of business was once ''Valiyangadi'' (Big Bazaar) near the railway station. As time progressed, it shifted to other parts of the city. The commercial heart has moved to S. M. Street, ''Mittai Theruvu'' (Sweetmeat Street or S. M. Street), a long street crammed with shops that sell everything from saris to cosmetics. It also houses restaurants and sweetmeat shops. Today, the city has multiple shopping malls. Focus Mall (First mall of Kerala ), Hilite Mall, HiLITE Mall, Gokulam Mall, Address Mall and RP Mall are a few among them. LuLu Group International's Lulu Mall is under construction in the areas of Mankavu.

Music

In addition to the Malabar Mahotsavam, the annual cultural fest of Kozhikode, every year since 1981 the Tyagaraja Aradhana Trust has been conducting a five-day music festival in honour of Tyagaraja. The festival is complete with the Uncchavritti, rendering of Divyanama kritis, Pancharatna Kritis, concerts by professional artistes and students of music from morning to late in the evening. Kozhikode has a tradition of Ghazal and Hindustani classical music, Hindustani music appreciation. There are many Malayalam Ghazals. The late film director and play back singer M. S. Baburaj, from Kozhikode was influenced by Ghazal and Hindustani.

Media

Radio

The Kozhikode radio station of All India Radio has two transmitters: Kozhikode AM (100 kilowatts) and Kozhikode FM [Vividh Bharathi] (10 kilowatts). Private FM radio stations are Radio Mango 91.9 operated by Malayala Manorama Co. Ltd. Radio Mirchi operated by Entertainment Network India Ltd. and Club FM 104.8 operated by Mathrubhumi group and Red FM (India), Red FM 93.5 of the SUN Network. AIR FM radio stations are Kozhikode – 103.6 MHz; AIR MW radio station is Kozhikode – 684 kHz.

Television

A television transmitter has been functioning in Kozhikode since 3 July 1984, relaying programmes from Delhi and Thiruvananthapuram Doordarshan. Doordarshan has its broadcasting centre in Kozhikode at Medical College. The Malayalam channels based on Kozhikode are the Shalom (TV channel), Shalom Television, Darshana TV and Media One TV. All major channels in Malayalam viz. Manorama News, Asianet News, Asianet, Surya TV, Kairali TV, Amrita TV, Jeevan TV, and Jaihind have their studios and news bureaus in the city. Satellite television services are available through DD Direct+, Dish TV, Sun Direct DTH and Tata Sky. Asianet Digital TV is popularly known as ACV telecasts daily city news. Spidernet is another local channel. Other local operators include KCL and Citinet. The Calicut Press Club came into existence in 1970. It is the nerve centre of all media activities, both print and electronic. Begun with around 70 members in the roll, this Press Club, became a prestigious and alert media centre in the state with a present membership of over 280.

Education

There are 1,237 schools in Kozhikode district including 191 highschools. Kozhikode is home to two premier educational institutions of national importance: the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIMK), and the National Institute of Technology Calicut (NITC). Other institutions include NIRDESH, National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Shipbuilding (NIRDESH), Indian Institute of Spices Research (IISR), and National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) are also based in Calicut. The University of Calicut is the largest university in Kerala and is located in Thenjipalam, about south of Calicut. This university was established in 1968 and was the second university set up in Kerala. Most of the colleges offering tertiary education in the region are affiliated to this university. The Calicut Medical College was established in 1957 as the second medical college in Kerala. Since then, the institution has grown into a premier centre of medical education in the state. Presently it is the largest medical institute in the state with a yearly intake of 250 candidates for the undergraduate programme. The Government Law College, Kozhikode situated in Vellimadukunnu on the out skirts of kozhikode town, is owned by the Government of Kerala and affiliated to the University of Calicut. The college caters to the needs of the north Malabar region of Kerala it is the third law college in kerala state founded in 1970. Main colleges in calicut city: Zamurians Guruvayoorappan College, Malabar Christian college, Farook College, Devagiri College, Providence college for women, Govt. Arts & science college, Meenchantha, West Hill Government Engineering College, Kozhikode, Kerala Government Polytechnic College, Kozhikode. In 1876, a school for young Rajas was started in Kozhikode. This was later thrown open to all caste Hindu boys. In 1879, it was affiliated to the University of Madras as a second-grade college and with this, collegiate education in the district received a fillip. Secondary education recorded appreciable progress since 1915. The erstwhile Malabar district, of which the present Kozhikode district formed a part, holds a high rank among the districts of Madras Presidency in secondary education.

Twin/sister cities

Calicut's sister city or twin city is * Tver, Russia

References

Sources

External links

Kozhikode District official website
{{Authority control Kozhikode, Metropolitan cities in India Cities and towns in Kozhikode district