Surathkal(kn:ಸುರತ್ಕಲ್)" is one of the major localities in the northern part of

Mangaluru taluk Mangaluru taluk is a ''taluk'' (subdistrict) in the Dakshina Kannada district, Karnataka on the western coast of India. Mangaluru is the administrative headquarters of the ''taluk''. It is made up of Mangaluru City Corporation, Ullal City Munic ...

located on National Highway 66 (old NH-17) in the Dakshina Kannada district,

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

state,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

on the shore of Arabian sea. It is a municipality merged with

Mangaluru City Corporation The Mangaluru City Corporation is the municipal corporation responsible for overseeing the local administration of the Indian city of Mangaluru and it's suburbs, which are a major urban area and the most important port city of Karnataka st ...

. It lies between Gurupura (Phalguni) and Pavanje (Nandini) rivers. It is the northern suburb and can be considered as the northernmost area of

Mangaluru Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the stat ...

until Mukka. Surathkal has a railway station on

Konkan railway The Konkan Railway (abbreviated KR) is one of the 19 railway zones in India with its headquarters at CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The Konkan Railway line from Roha to Thokur is operated and maintained by Konkan Railway co ...

route which connects cities of Mumbai to Mangaluru. Surathkal is 8 km north of New Mangalore seaport, 4 km west of

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), is a division of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) which is under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of the Government of India. Established in 1988, the refin ...

and 16 km west of

Mangalore International Airport Mangalore International Airport (also known as Mangaluru International Airport) is an international airport serving the coastal city of Mangalore in the state of Karnataka, India. It is one of only two international airports in the state, t ...

This region has developed educationally, industrially and commercially can be regarded as one of the crucial localities in

and coastal Karnataka. The only NIT of Karnataka is situated here which is adjacent to the national highway

NH 66 National Highway 66, commonly referred to as NH 66 (erstwhile NH-17 and a part of NH-47), is a mostly 4 lane 1640 km (1020 miles) long busy National Highway that runs roughly north–south along the western coast of India, parallel to t ...

. Mukka a popular name in Indian surfing is also situated close to Surathkal. Surathkal beach is well known for its cleanliness and well maintained like other beaches in Mangaluru.

Etymology

According to legend, the name Surathkal is derived from "shiradakal" meaning "headstone" in both

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

and Tulu. The famous Sadashiva Mahaganapathi temple on the shores of

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

(Lakshadweepa Samudra) is said to be built around the linga that a

Rakshasa Rākshasa (, , ; ; "preservers") are a race of usually malevolent beings prominently featured in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Folk Islam. They reside on Earth but possess supernatural powers, which they usually use for evil acts such as ...

by name Kharasura carried on his head. Another legend is that when

Ravana According to the Mahakavya, Hindu epic, ''Ramayana'', Ravana was a kingJustin W. Henry, ''Ravana's Kingdom: The Ramayana and Sri Lankan History from Below'', Oxford University Press, p.3 of the island of Lanka, in which he is the chief antag ...

threw in fit of rage the atma shivalinga, some of the pieces from shivalinga fell at place where Sadashiva temple is situated at present. Noted historian Padoor Gururaj Bhat is of opinion the temple might have been constructed around 11 C.E. (11 A.D).

Administration

Surathkal was once a Grama panchayat, then

town panchayat A nagar panchayat () or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,00 ...

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

vide Government notification No.S.O. 2658 dated 31 December 1974 now merged with

Mangalore City Corporation The Mangaluru City Corporation is the municipal corporation responsible for overseeing the local administration of the Indian city of Mangaluru and it's suburbs, which are a major urban area and the most important port city of Karnataka stat ...

.Zonal office of Mangaluru City Corporation was opened on 6 March 2017 at Surathkal (Zone 1) which covers Surathkal (West), Surathkal (East), Katipalla (West), Katipalla-Krishnapura, Katipalla (North), Idya (East), Idya (West), Hosabettu, Kulai, Baikampady, Panambur and Bengre wards of MCC. Surathkal was once a separate constituency of

Karnataka Legislative Assembly The Karnataka Legislative Assembly (formerly the Mysore Legislative Assembly) is the lower house of the bicameral legislature of the southern Indian state of Karnataka. Karnataka is one of the six states in India where the state legislature ...

.The Suratkal legislative assembly constituency was part of Udupi (Lok Sabha constituency) till the year 2009. Now it has been renamed as Mangalore City North (Vidhan Sabha constituency) after change in its geographical limits and it comes under Dakshina Kannada (Lok Sabha constituency) at present. Surathkal is Hobli under Mangaluru taluk as per Karnataka state Revenue Department. It has "Nada Katcheri" near Suratkal market which provides property details and other matters related to Revenue department. Surathkal Police station comes under the jurisdiction of Commissioner of Mangaluru city police. There is Veterinary Hospital run by Karnataka state government at Suratkal. Baikampady has very clean and beautiful beaches

Education

Surathkal is home to one of India's premier technical institutes - The National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK), formerly known as ''Karnataka Regional Engineering College'' (KREC). Surathkal also houses Vidyadayanee High School and Govindadasa College run by Hindu Vidyadayanee Sangha, Surathkal. Other notable educational institutes include Sri Mahalingeshwara English Medium school, NITK English Medium School, Holy Family School and Anjuman English Medium High School, Mukka. The Srinivas Institute of Medical Science and Research Centre's Hospital is located at Srinivasnagar, Mukka, Surathkal. NITK mangalore

Travel

National Highway 66 ( previously NH 17) passes through Surathkal Surathkal can be easily accessed by various bus services from

State Bank In Australia and the United States, a state bank in a federated state is usually a financial institution that is chartered by the government of that state, as opposed to one regulated at the federal or national level. In British English, the ter ...

by both city buses and the Mangalore-Udupi Express buses. The nearest airport is

( Bajpe), 16 kilometres from Surathkal that connects Mangalore with major cities in southern and western India as well as many major cities in the Middle East, with direct flights available to Dubai, Doha, Muscat and Abu Dhabi. Surathkal railway station, which is located 2 km away from the National Institute of Technology campus and half kilometre from national highway NH-66 falls on the famed Konkan railway route on which Rajdhani, Duronto, and other express trains ply regularly from Mangaluru to Mumbai,

Thane Thane (; previously known as Thana, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city located on the northwestern side of the list of Indian states, state of Maharashtra in India and on ...

, Ernakulam, Gujarat and New Delhi. The nearest metropolitan cities, Mumbai and Chennai, are 16 hours away by train. The New Mangalore Sea Port ( NMPT) is situated 8 km away from this town on the Arabian Sea and primarily used for importing and exporting goods all over the world.

Places of interest

* Surathkal Beach There is a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

at Surathkal Beach which was commissioned in 1972. * National Institute of Technology Karnataka * NITK Beach * Surathkal Lighthouse * Krishnapura matha * Shri Sadashiva Mahaganapati Temple * Iddya Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple * Padre Shree Dhoomavati Temple, Padre * Shri Ganesha Bhajana Mandira (R.) Janatha Colony

Geography

Surathkal is located at 12°58'60 N 74° 46' 60E.Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Surathkal
/ref> The maximum and minimum temperature in a year varies between 37 °C and 25 °C. But ambient temperature occasionally touches 40 °C during summer season (usually March, April, May)

Industry

Some of the major industries in and around Surathkal are: * Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (

MRPL Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), is a division of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) which is under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of the Government of India. Established in 1988, the refin ...

), *

BASF BASF SE (), an initialism of its original name , is a European Multinational corporation, multinational company and the List of largest chemical producers, largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters are located in Ludwigshafen, Ge ...

(German chemical company) and * Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers (MCF). The Baikampady Industrial Estate is located at around 6 kilometres from Surathkal and houses many small and medium-sized industries. The raw materials for these industries are imported through the NMPT and goods produced here are transported to several places in India and exported abroad through this port.

External links

Surathkal

References

{{Reflist Localities in Mangalore