Chinnakada or Chinnakkada is considered as the heart of the city of Kollam in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), 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 and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Chinnakada is a busy junction where 5 city roads and one National highway interconnect at a traffic roundabout. The city's symbolic

clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...

is located in Chinnakada. To reduce the

traffic congestion Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s. When traffic de ...

in Chinnakada,

Kollam Municipal Corporation Kollam Municipal Corporation (KMC) is an ISO 9001:2015 certified civic body that governs the city of Kollam in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the fourth-largest city corporation by population in the state, and the fifth-largest by area. Cons ...

constructed an underpass near to clock tower. Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA)'s

Kollam Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city ...

sub-regional office is situated at Chinnakada.

Toponymy

The name ''Chinnakada'' may be derived from ''China-Kada'', which means China

bazaar A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in t ...

. Chinese coins and other artefacts in enormous quantities were found near the Kollam port, proving Kollam was a significant Chinese trading hub. Another explanation is that due to the presence of a large number of

Tamil people The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Drav ...

in Kollam, they named the area ''Chinnakada'', which means "small market" in the

Tamil language Tamil (; ' , ) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. Tamil is an official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sovereign nations of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and the Indian territory o ...

. This derivation fits with the toponomy of ''Valiakada'' adjacent to Chinnakada, which means "big market" in

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

. ;Other areas in Kollam ending with the word ''kada'' in the name *

Kadappakada Kadappakada or Kadappakkada is a neighbourhood and important junction in the city of Kollam, in the state of Kerala, India. NH 744 (Earlier NH 208), that connects Kollam with Tirumangalam meets the Asramam Link Road at Kadappakada junction. ...

*Payikkada *

Pullikada Pullikada or Pullikkada is a neighbourhood of Kollam city in Kerala, India. Pullikada is very close to Chinnakada - the city CBD of Kollam and is a part of Downtown Kollam. The Coconut Development Board of India is planning to start a Coconut ...

Chamakada Chamakada or Chamakkada is one of the trade hubs of the city of Kollam, India. It is an important neighbourhood in the city and is located at the core Downtown Kollam area. The area is very famous for wholesale dealers and rice merchants. The lo ...

*Valiyakada

History

The ancient city of

, then known as Quilon, was an important center for trade with the Chinese.

Chinnakada Underpass

The Chinnakada Underpass is a public road infrastructure project for the city of

as part of the Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to ease traffic congestion at Chinnakada, the city CBD of

. The presence of an existing Railway over bridge and three close intersections with heavy traffic limits the option for traffic management measures including junction improvement. That caused the authorities to think about this underpass at Chinnakada. Chinnakada is a complex junction where roads from

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

Alappuzha Alappuzha or Alleppey () is the administrative headquarters of Alappuzha district in state of Kerala, India. The Backwaters of Alappuzha are one of the most popular tourist attractions in India which attracts millions of domestic and interna ...

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...

, Sengottai, Ashramam,

Kollam Beach Kollam Beach, also known as Mahatma Gandhi Beach, is a beach at Kollam city in the Indian state of Kerala. Kollam Beach is the first 'Beach Wedding Destination' in Kerala. The beach also features a park of international standard, the Mahat ...

and the City bus stand road meets. Preliminary design for underpass was prepared by NATPAC'' (NATPAC - National Transportation Planning and Research Centre)'' involving the acquisition of of government land on a temporary basis. Height of the road passage above the underpass was increased to from to facilitate movement of modern container trucks through the underpass. Underpass has been thrown open to the public by the end of May 2015.

Gallery

File:Upcoming Pulimootil Silks at Chinnakada, Kollam.jpg, Upcoming Pulimootil Silks building at Chinnakada,

File:Chinnakada Roundabout, Kollam.jpg, Chinnakada Roundabout,

File:Bishop Jerome Nagar, Kollam.jpg, Bishop Jerome Nagar: One of the popular shopping destinations in

city File:RP Mall, Kollam.jpg, RP Mall, off Chinnakada File:Front view of Bishop Jerome Nagar, Kollam.jpg, Front view of Bishop Jerome Nagar File:Clock tower in Chinnakkada, Kollam.jpg,

Clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...

in Chinnakada File:Chinnakada bus stop, Kollam.jpg, Chinnakada bus stop File:Chinnakada Clocktower, Jul 2015.jpg, Renovated Chinnakada flyover and Clocktower

References

{{Kollam , state=expanded Neighbourhoods in Kollam Shopping districts and streets in India

Toponymy

History

Chinnakada Underpass

Gallery

See also

References