Chavara Thekkumbhagom


Chavara Thekkumbhagom or or is a village in Kollam district in the Indian state of Kerala.
It is a traditional village of about 20 km2 area fully surrounded by the Ashtamudi lake and this island is now connected with bridges, one from the south at Neendakara and one to the north at Thevalakara. It is thickly populated place of not less than 15000 and the number of houses not less than 3000.
Chavara Thekkumbhagom is famous place in Kollam. It is only 8 km from Kollam Boat Jetty. Also this place is the birthplace of story teller Prof V.Sambasivan, Mahakavi Azhakathu Padmanabha Kurup, Swami Shanmugha Das and O. Nanu Upadhyayan etc. Thekkumbhagom is named as Maamala Nadu for its plenty of beauty. We can see the Chinese Net System in the lake and it is surrounded by Ashtamudi Lake, the deepest lake in Kerala.

Location

Coordinates: 8°57'48"N 76°33'43"E

Geography

Chavara Thekkumbhagom fully surrounded by the Ashtamudi lake, so it is an island.

Traditionally Panchayath divided into four lands named Kara, named Vadakkumbhagom, Malibhagom, Thekkumbhagom and Naduvathu chery. festivals and other cultural activities based on these karas.

Beyond lake this place is bordered by Thevalakkara Panchayath on north, Kollam town on south, Thrikkaruva Panchayath on east and Chavara, Neendakara Panchayath on west.

Transport

Nearest and main railway station is Kollam Railway Station is considered to be one of the biggest railway stations in Kerala in terms of area after Shornur Junction. Kollam Railway Station is well-connected by regular trains with Thiruvananthapuram and some major places in India. Another important nearest station is Karunagappally railway station.
Chavara Thekkumbhagom is well connected to other parts of Kerala through roads.
The main roads in the Panchayath meet National Highway 47 at Vettuthara Jn. in Neendakara Panchayath, Kuttivattom Jn. in Panmana Panchayath, Kottamkulangara Jn. in Chavara Panchayath. There is no bus depot in the Panchayath. Nearest Bus Station is Kollam and Karunagappally. Transport is provided by State owned Kerala State Road Transport Corporation and private transport bus operators from Thekkumbhagom to Karunagappally via Pavumba bridge and Karunagappally to Kollam via Thekkumbhagom and Pallikkodi-Dalavapuram bridge. The first trip starts at 5.00 AM to Kayamkulam and a Fast Passenger to Thiruvananthapuram and the last trip at 9.50 PM from Karunagappally to Thekkumbhagom. Road transport is also supported by private taxis and autorickshaws also called autos..

Water

The State water Transport Department operates boat services from Kollam to West Kallada, Muthirapparambu, Munroe Island and Alappuzha. The Kollam-Muthirapparambu boat service attracts a lot of tourist attention.
The main boat jetties in the Panchayath are Guhanandapuram, Pallikkodi, Tholukadavu and Pavumba Jetty.
Luxury boats, operated by Government and private owners, operate from the main boat jetty during the tourist season. The West coast canal system, which starts from Thiruvananthapuram in the south and ends at Hosdurg in the north, passes through Kollam and Karunagappally taluks. The Thiruvananthapuram-Shornur canal, forms a part of the Thiruvananthapuram-Hosdurg system, runs a distance of about 62 km. The other canal systems include the Paravur Kayal, Kollam canal and Chavara canal.

Education

Educational institutions in this Panchayath are
Some Professional and Arts colleges near Thekkumbhagom Village
, Thekkumbhagom

Economy

Agriculture, Fishing, Coir

The old song Chavara Panmana Thevalakkara chakiri kondu pizhaykkanam reveals these village's main source of income is coir industry and Thekkumbhagom its neighbour village

So many people from Thekkumbhagom working in various Govt. Departments in Keralam. Thekkumbhagom is the top panchayath in Kollam district
that has the most number of Govt. employees. Also skilled people from Thekkumbhagom working outside Kerala and Middle East.

Festivals

All festivals based on the temples and Churches in the Panchayath.

There are various temples and Churches in Thekkumbhagom.

Thalappoli Uthsavam

'Thalappoli Uthsavam' is a major event in Thekkumbhagom Panchayath which starts in 'Meenam Bharani' for every year. It is a festival of Panakkattodil Devi Temple. It is a nostalgic event in every Thekkumbhagom people. The origin of Thalappoli is a long story. It is the only temple in the world, which take a five-year-old maiden girl as bhagavathi and walk around four 'karas' in Panchayath and offer her blessings to all Thekkumbhagom peoples. Thalappoli or Vilakkeduppu starts from Panakkattodil Devi Temple at evening and reached at around 12 PM on next day to this temple. At that time Kanyavu, the girl who selected as bhagavathi never sleep and she has no tiredness

After Thalappoli reached to the Panakkattodil Temple, Starts Kodiyettu for festival. Then follows a ten days festival. The 9th day of festival called Pallivetta organised by 'Vadakkumbhagom Kara' is very famous for Elephant show. More than 50 elephants arranged in this show. It is a major attraction and the highest number of elephant show after Kollam Pooram, Anayadi Pooram and Panmana Pooram. The 10th day of the festival is the last festival and is called Aaraattu. 'Aaraattukulam' near Kulangaraveli Temple is the bath place for Devi.

Other festivals

- In 'Sivarathri' morning People take 'Kavady' march from Sree Narayanapuram Maha Vishnu Kshethram to Udayadithyapuram Siva Kshethram and to Guhanandapuram Subramanya Swami Kshethram. this march is very visual treat.

Sree Narayanapuram Maha Vishnu Temple Festival is famous.

Recreation

Since Thekkumbhagom is a SEMI-URBAN area, some follow an urban life style. Recreational activities include sports, such as football, cricket, kabbadi, volleyball, swimming etc. Thekkumbhagom has three main sports grounds. They are
People spend their evenings in these grounds. Panakkattodil Devi Temple Ground is famous for its sugar-like sand and leveled surface. Very calm and quiet environment. Also all major sports events are held at these grounds like cricket, football and volleyball. In recent times, the grounds are shaped for playing Twenty20 cricket.
Panakkattodil Devi Temple Ground is famous for its temple pond, which is just less than 200 meters. All of the people come to the temple pond.

Major attractions

Longest bridge in southern Kerala is around 500 m long. It was a long dream of Thekkumbhagom people. This bridge is a gateway of rural to urban development. When travelling from northern part of Kollam district to Kollam town, this bridge reduces the length and time to reach. The traditional way is Sasthamkotta-Padappanal-Chavara-Kollam and the new way is Sasthamkotta-Padappanal-Thekkumbhagom--Kollam