Karkala

Coordinates: 13°12′00″N 74°58′59″E / 13.2°N 74.983°E / 13.2; 74.983
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Karkala
Karla
Town
UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
574 104
Telephone code91-(0)8258
Vehicle registrationKA-20
Sex ratio1.11 /
Websitewww.karkalatown.gov.in

Karkala, also known as Karla in

.

Etymology

Black granite is abundant in the area, and used widely in the local architecture. Hence, the name of the town is derived from kari-kal, meaning black stone. There is still a place called as Kariya Kall in the city which means 'Black Rock' in

Kannada
languages, which today is known as 'Anekere'. The current official name "Karkala" is in use since the times of the British, while it is still referred to as "Karla" by the local Tulu population.

History

Karkala dates back to the beginning of the 10th century.The town was called Pandya Nagari during the period of

Jain
rule.

Chaturmukha Basadi
Kere Basadi

The Alupas were the first to rule the region, and their rule was followed by the Santaras, who were the feudatories of Alupas for many years. The town attained political and cultural importance from the time of the Kalasa-Karkala kingdom that was established by King Bhairava between 13th and 16th centuries.

The royal family of Karkala rose to prominence from the time of the rule of the

Chikamagalur and most of the Karkala taluk
.

King Veera Bhairava,constructed the

basadis
. Ramanatha and Veerapandya were his two sons and Ramanatha died early during his father's time. So In his memory, a scenic lake called Ramasamudra was created, which still survives to this day.

King Veera Pandya, at the insistence of his Guru Lalitakeerti, the pontiff of Karkala Jaina Math, installed a large statue of Bahubali on the rocky hill of Karkala. The date of the installation has been ascertained as 13 February 1432. He also installed the Brahmadeva Pillar in front of the statue in 1436. His successor, Abinava Pandya installed a carving of manastambha in front of the Neminatha

Basadis
.

Abhinava Pandya's successor was Pandya VI, who is attributed to the construction of the Kere

Chaturmukha Basadi is built in the form of a square hall with a lofty doorway and pillared porticos on each of its four sides along with a pillared verandah. The roof is flat and is made of massive granite slabs. It has life size statues of three Jain Theerthankaras on each side and small images of 24 Tirthankara
. In all, there are 108 pillars inside and outside the temple.

There are 18

Basadi
. However, the rulers of Karkala were tolerant towards other religions, with temples of other religions being constructed, including the temples of Anantashayana and Venkataramana, Mahamaya Mukhyaprana, and Sri Aadi-Shakthi Veerabhadra Swamy.

After the rule of the Pandyas, the region was annexed by

Tippu Sultan, and thereafter passed on to British rule. The St Lawrence Church was built in 1845 in a village called Nitte (Attur hamlet) where people of all religions congregate every year in January for the feast of St Lawrence.[citation needed
]

Landmarks

Karkala is an important pilgrimage location for Jains. There are several

Basadis
, mosques, churches, and lakes in Karkala.

Bus Stand, Karkala

Karla has famous educational institutions like NITTE College, Shri Bhuvenendra College, Christ king Educational institutions, and Jnanasuda Educational College.

Taluk Office, Karkala

ASI protected sites[1] in Karkala are

Geography

Karla is located at 13°12′N 74°59′E / 13.2°N 74.98°E / 13.2; 74.98.[2] It has an average elevation of 81 metres (265 feet).

Anekere Lake, Karkala

It has large number of picturesque lakes. such as Ramasamudra Lake, Kamala Kere, NagarBavi, Anekere, Sigadi Kere, Matadha Kere, Shivathi Kere and Jogina Kere. Situated at the foothills of the Western Ghats, Karkala has an undulating landscape, dotted with black granite outcrops, while the western part of the town is predominantly coastal plains that stretch about 25 km west towards the Arabian Sea.

Meteorological Details

Karkala Scenic View
Climate data for Karkala, India (Karkala)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 38
(100)
38
(100)
42
(108)
41
(106)
41
(106)
37
(99)
32
(90)
33
(91)
33
(91)
36
(97)
35
(95)
35
(95)
41
(106)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 31
(88)
33
(91)
34
(93)
34
(93)
34
(93)
30
(86)
28
(82)
28
(82)
30
(86)
30
(86)
31
(88)
30
(86)
34
(93)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 22
(72)
24
(75)
26
(79)
28
(82)
28
(82)
27
(81)
26
(79)
25
(77)
25
(77)
25
(77)
24
(75)
22
(72)
22
(72)
Record low °C (°F) 17
(63)
16
(61)
19
(66)
23
(73)
23
(73)
23
(73)
23
(73)
23
(73)
20
(68)
20
(68)
18
(64)
17
(63)
16
(61)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 9
(0.4)
9
(0.4)
19
(0.7)
39
(1.5)
99
(3.9)
663
(26.1)
629
(24.8)
288
(11.3)
153
(6.0)
133
(5.2)
57
(2.2)
19
(0.7)
2,117
(83.3)
Source:
MSN Weather

Demographics

Religion in Moodabidri (2011)

  Hinduism (76.50%)
  Islam (14.90%)
  Christianity (5.87%)
  Jainism (2.60%)
  Sikhism (0.03%)
  Buddhism (0.02%)
  Other or Not stated (0.08%)

As of 2001 India

taluk
has a population of 2.10 Lacs (previous 2001 census is 2,04,571).

Hinduism is the largest religion in Karkala, with

Chitpavan Brahmins,Shivalli Brahmins, Vishwakarma Brahmins, Devadiga and Mogaveera forming the major communities. There is also a significant Roman Catholic and Protestant Christian presence, and sunni Hanafi Muslim communities settled in the town, Muslims Of Karkala Speak Urdu
as their mother tongue. [4]

Culture and Tradition

The people of Karkala follow the

Bhuta Kola, Nagaradhane and Yakshagana
. Tuluva New Year is called Bisu.

Pilinalike or Tiger Dance is a unique form of folk dance in Tulu Nadu. The tiger is considered as the mount of Goddess Durga
, and the dance is performed during the Dasara and Krishna Janmashthami festivals. Bhuta Kola or spirit worship is practised across the region, usually at night, invoking the spirits via an oracle, accompanied by traditional music and practices.

The most popular local sport is

Cockfighting
) is another sport for village people. The Tuluva people have a high regard for nature and snakes in particular, so Nagaradhane, or snake worship, is also practised with the belief that the Naga Devatha (Snake God) will protect their communities.

Language

Karkala is a multilingual town.

Urdu
, are also widely spoken in the town.

Administration and Transportation

Being a part of Udupi district, Karkala is in the Udupi-Chikkamagalur Lok Sabha Constituency.The Karkala Town Municipal Council (ಕಾರ್ಕಳ ಪುರಸಭೆ) is the municipal corporation of the town, responsible for all public works and development.

Roadways are the main mode of transportation in Karkala. The town is well connected to Udupi, Moodabidri and Padubidri, and to Sringeri and Kalasa on the Western Ghats. The main roadways serving Karkala are: National Highway NH 169 (Solapur—Mangalore ) Karnataka State Highway SH 1 (Karkala-Padubidri) which connects to National Highway 66 at Padubidri Karnataka State Highway SH 37 (Karkala-Bailur-Manipal-Udupi) Karnataka State Highway SH 1 (Karkala-Hebri)

The nearest railhead is at Udupi while the airport closest to Karkala is at Bajpe in Mangalore. There is an extensive public transport system connecting Karkala to Udupi and Mangalore.

Photo Gallery

  • Ananthapadmanabha Temple, Karla
    Ananthapadmanabha Temple, Karla
  • Chaturmukha Basadi
    Chaturmukha Basadi
  • Padmavati Basadi
    Padmavati Basadi
  • Gururaya basadi, Karkala
    Gururaya basadi, Karkala
  • Anekere Basadi at the center of pond in Karla
    Anekere Basadi at the center of pond in Karla
  • Veeramaruthi Temple, Karla
    Veeramaruthi Temple, Karla
  • St lawrence Church, Karla
    St lawrence Church, Karla
  • Venkataramana Temple, Karla
    Venkataramana Temple, Karla
  • The Deepadhaari at Venkataramana Temple, Karla
    The Deepadhaari at Venkataramana Temple, Karla

See also

References

  1. ^ ASI Bengaluru Circle - Udupi district
  2. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Karkal
  3. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
  4. ^ South Kanara District Gazetteer 1973, p. 93

Works cited

  • "People" (PDF). South Kanara District Gazetteer. Karnataka State Gazetteer. Vol. 12. Gazetteer Department (Government of Karnataka). 1973. pp. 86–125. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2009. Retrieved 26 October 2008.

External links