History

Wayanad District (Malayalam: വയനാട്, Tamil: வயல்நாடு )in the north-east of Kerala, India, was formed on November 1, 1980 as the 12th district by carving out areas from Kozhikode and Kannur districts. Kalpetta is the district headquarters as well as the only municipal town in the district. The region was known as Mayakshetra (Maya's land) in the earliest records. Mayakshetra evolved into Mayanad and finally to Wayanad. The Folk etymology of the word says it is a combination of Vayal (paddy) and Naad (land), making it 'The Land of Paddy Fields'. There are many indigenous tribals in this area. It is set high on the majestic Western Ghats with altitudes ranging from 700 to 2100 m.

History

According to archaeological evidence, the Wayanad forests were inhabited more than 3 millenniums. Wynad was originally ruled by Vedar kings. However after a Kshatriya Prince (Raja of Kumbala) was captured and held hostage in Tirunelli by the Vedars, a combined force lead by the Raja of Kottayam and the Raja of Kurumbranad invaded and annexed Wynad. The Vedar king (Arippan) was killed and most of his subjects were also massacred. However the Raja of Kumbala asked a Nair aristocrat, Nanthillath Nambiar to marry the daughter of the Vedar king who survived the massacre. Nambiar was appointed as the Moopil Nair of Veliyambam, where the surviving Vedars were resettled. It was decided that Wynad should be partitioned between Kottayam and Kurumbranad. The Kottayam Raja was awarded North West Wynad and the Raja of Kurumbranad was awarded South East Wynad. But as a result of disputes between them, the Kurumbranad Raja gave up his country to the Kottayam Raja, except the palace and some landed properties. The Raja of Kottayam divided Wynad in to 10 Swaroopams (Naads) and appointed governors (Usually Nairs with the tile of Vazhunnor) to rule each one of them. These swaroopams were again divided in to Chiefdoms, which were ruled by Moopil Nairs. The administrative subdivisions of Wynad under the Kottyam rule were as follows:

• (1) Muthornad (Muthakurnad) - This division was placed under the direct control of the senior Raja of Kottayam. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms (The rulers of which were jointly known as Aruvarambath Jenmakkars):
  • (1) Vazhathattil Nayar
  • (2) Tavinjal Nayar
  • (3) Mulliyankizhil Nayar
  • (4) Alattil Nayar
  • (5) Ayiravittil Nayar
  • (6) Varayal Nayar

• (2) Ellornad (Elankurnad) - This was placed under the direct control of the second Raja of Kottayam. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Edachana Nayar
  • (2) Vemom Nambiar

• (3) Wynad Swaroopam - Placed under the third Raja of Kottayam. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Kuppathode Nayar
  • (2) Tonder Nambiar
  • (3) Pulpadi Nayar
  • (4) Chikkalur Nayar

• (4) Porunnanur - Placed under the third Raja of Kottayam. Comprises Porunnanur and Vellamunda Amsams. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Manchan Nambiar
  • (2) Karingari Nayar
  • (3) Mangalasseri Nayar
  • (4) Vattathode Nambiar
  • (5) Cherukara Nayar

• (5) Nallurnad - Placed under the third Raja of Kottayam. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Manchan Nambiar
  • (2) Karingari Nayar
  • (3) Idachena Nayar

• (6) Kurumbalanad - Comprises Kurumbala and Kottathara Amsams. This division was placed under Avinjat Nayar of Payyormala. He was the son of the Kottayam Raja, who gave him the title of Vazhunnavar (Ruler). Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Thenamangalath Nayar
  • (2) Poyil Nayar

• (7) Edanataskur - Comprising Amsams of Kottapadi, Kalpetta and Vayitri. Divided in to the following Nair Chiefdoms:
  • (1) Kalpetta Nayar
  • (2) Kanthamangalath Nayar

• (8) Tondernad - Placed under the Tonder Nambiar.

• (9) Muttil-Pakkam - Placed under Bhagiam (Pakam) Swaroopam.

• (10) Veliyambam - Placed under Veliyambam Vazhunnavar (Nanthillath Nambiar, who married the Vedar princess).

Senior Raja of Kurumbranadu helped the British in their fight against Tipu Sultan. Following Mysore's withdrawal, Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja (the head of western branch of the family) and the British parted their ways. And in 1799, after the fall of Tipu, the British took over Wayanad. Pazhassi Raja engaged in a prolonged guerrilla war with the British until he was killed in 1805. When the state of Kerala came into being in 1956, Wayanad was a part of Kannur district; later in 1957 south Wayanad was added to Kozhikode district and north Wayanad remained with Kannur district. By amalgamating the north Wayanad and south Wayanad, the present Wayanad district came into being on the 1st November 1980 comprising of three taluks; Vythiry, Mananthavady, and Sulthan Bathery.

Geography

Wayanad district stands on the southern top of the Deccan plateau and its chief glory is the majestic Western ghats with lofty ridges interspersed with dense forest, tangled jungles and deep valleys, the terrain is rugged. Quite a large area of the district is covered by forest but the continued and indiscriminate exploitation of the natural resources point towards an imminent environmental crisis. Colonists from south Kerala have ravaged Wynad's environment. Thanks to their greed and anti-nature views, large areas of valuable forest cover have disappeared. So is case with animal wealth fauna which was once plentiful in Wynad Plateau.

Mountains

Chembra Peak (2,100 metres (6,890 ft)), Banasura peak (2,073 metres (6,801 ft)), Brahmagiri (1,608 metres (5,276 ft)) are some of the important mountains in the district. These mountains are also famously known as honeymoon site.

Rivers

The Kabini River, one of the three east flowing rivers of Kerala, is an important tributary of the Kaveri River. Almost the entire Wayanad district is drained by Kabini and its three tributaries, the Panamaram, Mananthavady, and Kalindy rivers. The Banasura Sagar Dam is built on one of tributaries of the Kabini River.

Climate

The distance from the mean sea level and forest cover creates a salubrious climate in the region. Generally the year is divided into four seasons; cold weather (December to February) hot weather (March to May) South West monsoon (June to September) and North East monsoon (October to November). During the hot weather the temperature goes up to a maximum of 35 °C (95 °F) and during the cold weather the temperature goes down to 10 °C (50 °F). The more perceived temperature variation in the last 5–6 years is in the range of 18 °C (64 °F) to 28 °C (82 °F). The average rainfall is 2,500 millimetres (98 in) per year.

Economy

Wayanad is 3.79% urbanised. Agriculture, is the main stay of the economy. Coffee, tea, cocoa, pepper, plantain and vanilla are the main crops. Besides these cash crops, the most important crop in the district is rice. Dams and aqueducts have been constructed to take water to the otherwise dry areas in the district. Price of land is going up even though Agrarian crisis.

Agrarian crisis

The district is prone to an agrarian crisis, due to the high dependence of the population on agricultural income. Between 1997 and 2005, more than 150,000 farmers across India have committed suicide, of which nearly 8% were from Kerala (11,516). 90% of this was in Wayanad and the reasons contributing to farmer suicide were mainly due to a crash in prices of locally-grown crops such as coffee, pepper, ginger, arecanut, etc. as well as plant epidemics. The NREGS (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) enacted by the current UPA government has helped and Wayanad and Palakkad were the only districts selected to receive the benefits under this scheme, the need being most acute in these districts. The daily wage under NREGS at Rs. 125, regardless of gender, in Kerala is the highest among all the states. Work under NREGS includes building elephant trenches (crop-raiding by wild elephants is another problem in Wayanad), waterbodies, roads, etc. Due to a combination of the NREGS and measures undertaken by the state government, in 2007, the state reported 10 farmer suicides as opposed to 131 in 2004.