Munnar - Wikipedia

Munnar - Wikipedia Jump to content Main menu Main menu move to sidebar hide Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Special pages Search Search Appearance Donate Create account Log in Personal tools Donate Create account Log in Contents move to sidebar hide (Top) 1 Etymology 2 History 3 Geography 4 Transportation Toggle Transportation subsection 4.1 Road 4.2 Railway 4.3 Airport 5 Administration 6 Demographics 7 Flora and fauna Toggle Flora and fauna subsection 7.1 Endemic species 8 Land ownership 9 Gallery 10 See also 11 References 12 External links Toggle the table of contents Munnar 28 languages العربية مصرى অসমীয়া বাংলা Cebuano Deutsch Español Euskara Suomi Français ગુજરાતી עברית हिन्दी Italiano ಕನ್ನಡ മലയാളം मराठी Norsk bokmål ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Português Русский संस्कृतम् Svenska தமிழ் తెలుగు اردو 中文 Edit links Article Talk English Read View source View history Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions Read View source View history General What links here Related changes Upload file Permanent link Page information Cite this page Get shortened URL Switch to legacy parser Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Wikivoyage Wikidata item Appearance move to sidebar hide Coordinates: 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E / 10.08917°N 77.05972°E / 10.08917; 77.05972 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Town in Kerala, India For the 2009 film, see Munnar (film). [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/13/Munnar.html Munnar - Fallingrain]</ref>"},"elevation_m":{"wt":"1532"},"population_total":{"wt":"32,029"},"population_as_of":{"wt":"2011"},"population_rank":{"wt":""},"population_density_km2":{"wt":"auto"},"population_metro":{"wt":""},"population_metro_footnotes":{"wt":""},"population_demonym":{"wt":""},"population_footnotes":{"wt":""},"demographics_type1":{"wt":"Languages"},"demographics1_title1":{"wt":"Official"},"demographics1_info1":{"wt":"[[Malayalam]]<ref>{{cite web |title=The Kerala Official Language (Legislation) Act, 1969 |url=http://www.lawsofindia.org/pdf/kerala/1969/1969KERALA7.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911111246/http://www.lawsofindia.org/pdf/kerala/1969/1969KERALA7.pdf|url-status=usurped|archive-date=11 September 2014}}</ref>"},"demographics1_title2":{"wt":"Regional"},"demographics1_info2":{"wt":"[[Tamil language|Tamil]],<ref name=\"languages\">{{Cite web |title=Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Kerala |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/10209/download/13321/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-3200.XLSX |website=www.censusindia.gov.in |publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]]}}</ref> [[Malayalam]]"},"timezone1":{"wt":"[[Indian Standard Time|IST]]"},"utc_offset1":{"wt":"+5:30"},"postal_code_type":{"wt":"[[Postal Index Number|PIN]]"},"postal_code":{"wt":"685612"},"area_code_type":{"wt":"Telephone code"},"area_code":{"wt":"04865"},"registration_plate":{"wt":"[[List of RTO districts in India#KL—Kerala|KL]]-68, [[List of RTO districts in India#KL—Kerala|KL]]-06"},"blank1_name_sec1":{"wt":"[[Literacy]]"},"blank1_info_sec1":{"wt":"84.9%"},"website":{"wt":"{{URL|keralatourism.org/destination}}"},"footnotes":{"wt":""}},"i":0}}]}'>Town in Kerala, India Munnar Town A view of Munnar downtown. Munnar Location within Kerala Show map of Kerala Munnar Location within India Show map of India Coordinates: 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E / 10.08917°N 77.05972°E / 10.08917; 77.05972[[Geographic coordinate system|Coordinates]]: {{#parsoid\u0000fragment:13}}[https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Munnar&params=10_05_21_N_77_03_35_E_type:city(32029)_region:IN-KL 10°05′21″N 77°03′35″E / 10.08917°N 77.05972°E / 10.08917; 77.05972][[Category:Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas]]"}}'/> Country India State Kerala District Idukki Taluk Devikulam Named after Three rivers confluence Government • Type Grama Panchayat • Body Munnar Grama Panchayat Area • Total 187 km2 (72 sq mi) Elevation[1] 1,532 m (5,026 ft) Population (2011) • Total 32,029 • Density 171/km2 (444/sq mi) Languages • Official Malayalam[2] • Regional Tamil,[3] Malayalam Time zone UTC+5:30 (IST) PIN 685612 Telephone code 04865 Vehicle registration KL-68, KL-06 Literacy 84.9% Website keralatourism.org/destination Munnar (Malayalam pronunciation: [muːn̪ːɐːr]) is a town located in the Idukki district of the southwestern Indian state of Kerala. Munnar is situated at around 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) above mean sea level,[4] in the Western Ghats mountain range. This ancient plantation settlement, dominated by its tea industry, is also a growing modern hill station. Etymology The name Munnar is a combination of the words "Munnu" and "Aaru" in the local languages of Malayalam/Tamil meaning "three rivers",[5] referring to its location at the confluence of the Muthirapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundali River rivers.[6] History The region has been inhabited by hunter-gatherer tribals like the Malayarayan and Muthuvan for thousands of years.[7] In the early days, only Tamils and few Malayalis lived there. They were brought as workers in the tea plantations. Tradition states that Colonel Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington, was the first British person to pass through Munnar[8] during Tipu Sultan's campaign in Travancore, but this is unsubstantiated. The first survey of the terrain was undertaken by Benjamin Swayne Ward in 1816–1817, who followed Periyar into the Western Ghats and established a camp at the confluence of three rivers, from which the name of Munnar is derived.[9] 50 years later Sir Charles Trevelyan who was the Governor of Madras, instructed Col. Douglas Hamilton to explore the hill country in the western part of the Madras Presidency, requesting special advice on the feasibility of establishing sanatoria for the British in the South[10] and of developing revenue- earning projects without endangering the environment, as had happened in Ceylon where coffee had destroyed not only the rain forest but also paddy cultivation in the north-central rice bowl of ancient Ceylon. Hamilton climbed throughout the Ghats in Munnar region. 15 years later, John Daniel Munro noted that much of Munnar's land was suitable for coffee plantations. Munro, Henry Turn, and his half-brother AW Turner obtained ownership of the Cardamom Hills from the Raja of Travancore and began clearing forest around Devikulam in 1879. Soon many other Europeans began establishing tea plantations in the area throughout the 1880s. Early plantations had few facilities and were mainly huts of straw. Eventually roads were opened to the lowlands and in Bodinayakanur in western Madras Presidency, planters got provisions from a local headman - Suppan Chetty. He and his son, Alaganan Chetty (later an MLA) would continue providing supplies to the tea estates in the region. By 1894, 26 estates were established in the hills, but all were facing losses. In 1897, a separate company, Kannan Devan Hills Corporation (KDHC) was registered to operate the tea estates which was later taken over by the American Direct Tea Trading Company Ltd., who owned 26 estates, most with coffee and some with cinchona, almost all in the area except for a few in the lower areas. In 1900, a ropeway was built and eventually monorails were installed for easier transport of goods to the plains. In 1901, P. R. Buchanan took over as General Manager and began the most extensive clearing of jungles for plantations. In 1908, construction started on a new railway which opened in 1909. By 1911, around 6,500 hectares (16,000 acres) of the region was under cultivation. In 1924, a flood swept through Munnar, damaged the road and destroyed the rail track.[11] In its place it was decided to create a ropeway to transport tea. In 1930, this in turn was replaced by a modern road that made transport much easier. By 1952, almost 11,000 hectares (28,000 acres) of land was under cultivation. After Independence, Indian planters took over. In 1964, the KDHC which owned most tea estates was acquired by Tata and Finlay who started the first instant tea factory in the country.[12] In 1971, the Kerala government wanted to reforest all land in the hills not used for plantations. However, negotiations that followed resulted in Tata keeping most of the land, leaving it with 23,000 hectares (57,000 acres). To this day, most tea estate labourers are landless. In the early 2000s, the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, a Dalit outfit from Tamil Nadu, started demanding land for the labourers, started making inroads into Kerala. In 2009, VS Achuthanandan promised his support for providing land to the mainly Tamil Dalit estate labourers. However, the process became very slow and as of 2018, most families still had no land.[13] The former Kunda Valley Railway in Munnar was destroyed by a flood in 1924, but in 2019 tourism officials were considering reconstructing the railway line to attract more tourists to the area.[14] Geography The region in and around Munnar varies in height from 1,450 metres (4,760 ft) to 2,695 metres (8,842 ft) above mean sea level. The temperature ranges between 5 °C (41 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) in winter and 15 °C (59 °F) and 25 °C (77 °F) in summer.[15] Temperatures as low as −4 °C (25 °F) have been recorded in the Sevenmallay region of Munnar.[16][failed verification][failed verification] Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies it as subtropical highland (Cwb).[17] "},"Jan sun":{"wt":"248"},"Feb sun":{"wt":"232"},"Mar sun":{"wt":"248"},"Apr sun":{"wt":"240"},"May sun":{"wt":"217"},"Jun sun":{"wt":"120"},"Jul sun":{"wt":"124"},"Aug sun":{"wt":"124"},"Sep sun":{"wt":"150"},"Oct sun":{"wt":"155"},"Nov sun":{"wt":"180"},"Dec sun":{"wt":"217"},"source 1":{"wt":"''Climate-Data.org'', altitude: 1461m<ref name=\"Climate-Data.org\"/>\n\n"},"source 2":{"wt":"''Weather2Travel'' for sunshine and rainy days<ref>{{cite web|title=Munnar Climate and Weather Averages, Kerala|url=http://www.weather2travel.com/climate-guides/india/kerala/munnar.php|publisher=Weather2Travel|access-date=2013-08-28}}</ref>"},"date":{"wt":"January 2015"}},"i":0}}]}'> Climate data for Munnar Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 22.4 (72.3) 23.7 (74.7) 25.3 (77.5) 25.6 (78.1) 25.6 (78.1) 23.7 (74.7) 22.4 (72.3) 22.8 (73.0) 23.2 (73.8) 22.7 (72.9) 21.8 (71.2) 21.9 (71.4) 23.4 (74.2) Daily mean °C (°F) 17.6 (63.7) 18.7 (65.7) 20.2 (68.4) 21 (70) 21.4 (70.5) 20.3 (68.5) 19.3 (66.7) 19.5 (67.1) 19.6 (67.3) 19.2 (66.6) 18.3 (64.9) 17.7 (63.9) 19.4 (66.9) Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 12.9 (55.2) 13.7 (56.7) 15.1 (59.2) 16.5 (61.7) 17.3 (63.1) 16.9 (62.4) 16.3 (61.3) 16.3 (61.3) 16 (61) 15.7 (60.3) 14.8 (58.6) 13.5 (56.3) 15.4 (59.8) Average precipitation mm (inches) 18 (0.7) 29 (1.1) 47 (1.9) 129 (5.1) 189 (7.4) 420 (16.5) 583 (23.0) 364 (14.3) 210 (8.3) 253 (10.0) 164 (6.5) 64 (2.5) 2,470 (97.3) Average rainy days 2 2 3 6 8 9 10 9 10 12 8 5 84 Mean monthly sunshine hours 248 232 248 240 217 120 124 124 150 155 180 217 2,255 Source 1: Climate-Data.…