Pathiramanal ( ml, പാതിരാമണൽ) is a small island in

Muhamma Muhamma is a census town in Cherthala Taluk in Alappuzha district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Kerala. It is home to Cheerappanchira kalari, where Lord Ayyappa of Sabarimala had his training in the martial arts. Cheera ...

panchayat The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical men ...

of Alappuzha district located in

Vembanad Lake Vembanad is the longest lake in India, as well as the largest lake in the state of Kerala. The lake has an area of 230 square kilometers and a maximum length of 96.5 km. Spanning several districts in the state of Kerala, it is known as Ve ...

. The name ''Pathiramanal'' means 'midnight sand'. The scenic beauty of both sides of the lake as well as that of the island is mind blowing. It is home to many rare varieties of

migratory birds Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting b ...

from different parts of the world.

Geography

The Pathiramanal Island is 28.505 ha. It is about 1.5 km from Muhamma boat jetty and about 13 km from Alapuzha. From the jetty close by Baker Bungalow the distance to the island is about 5 km and from Kumarakom 4 km towards northwest. *Maximum length: 550m (SW to NE) *Maximum width: 450m (SE to NW) *Perimeter: 1800 m *Estimated Area: 19.6 ha *Distance to the nearest main land: 810m

History

Pathiramanal Info Board, Vembanadu kayal 01

The island (also known as ''Anantha Padmanabhan Thoppu'') was purchased by Chevalier ACM Anthraper, from M/s Bheemji Devji Trust of Cochin and was under the private ownership of Thaimattathil Family until the late seventies. When Land Reforms Acts were enforced in the State in 1979, the island came under government ownership. The island was returned to the government as a surplus land that crossed the land ceiling. It was later transferred to the Tourism Department and the idea of leasing it out to private enterprises was under consideration. The island at present is uninhabited. Till late seventies of the 20th century 14 worker families resided in the island, who were later rehabilitated on the mainland in the

panchayath.

Getting There

The island is an hour and half drive by motor boat or 30 minutes by speed boat from Alappuzha town. One can also take the boats plying in the

Kumarakom Kumarakom is a popular tourism destination located near the city of Kottayam (), in Kerala, India, famous for its backwater tourism. It is set in the backdrop of the Vembanad Lake, the largest lake in the state of Kerala. History Kuma ...

water route. The SWTD boats plying in the Muhamma-Kumarakom water route no longer stops at Pathiramanal. It takes around 40 minutes from Kumarakom to reach Pathiramanal. The journey through

is a marvellous experience. The best way to reach Pathiramanal is by renting a boat from Kayippuram jetty, which is just about 1 km east of the Kayippuram junction on the Alappuzha - Thannirmukkam road. Nearest railway station : Alappuzha Nearest airports :

Cochin International Airport Cochin International Airport is an International airport serving the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. Located at Nedumbassery, about northeast of the city centre, Cochin International Airport is first of its kind which is develo ...

, about 85 km north of Alappuzha and

Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Thiruvananthapuram International Airport , is an international airport which serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and fifth international airport of ...

, about 150 km towards the south.

Birdwatching

The island is a birdwatcher's paradise. It is home to around 91 local species of birds and 50 migratory birds. One can see pintail ducks,

common teal The Eurasian teal (''Anas crecca''), common teal, or Eurasian green-winged teal is a common and widespread duck that breeds in temperate Eurosiberia and migrates south in winter. The Eurasian teal is often called simply the teal due to being th ...

, night heron,

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...

darter The darters, anhingas, or snakebirds are mainly tropical waterbirds in the family Anhingidae, which contains a single genus, ''Anhinga''. There are four living species, three of which are very common and widespread while the fourth is rarer and ...

, Indian shag, purple heron,

gulls Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari (bird), Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and Skimmer (bird), skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders ...

, terns, large egrets, intermediate egret,

cattle egret The cattle egret (''Bubulcus ibis'') is a cosmopolitan species of heron ( family Ardeidae) found in the tropics, subtropics, and warm-temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus ''Bubulcus'', although some authorities regard ...

, Indian pond heron, little egret, pheasant-tailed and bronze-winged jacanas, stork-billed kingfisher,

watercock The watercock (''Gallicrex cinerea'') is a waterbird in the rail and crake family, Rallidae that is widely distributed across Southeast Asia. It is the only member of the genus ''Gallicrex''. Taxonomy The watercock was formally described in 17 ...

whistling duck The whistling ducks or tree ducks are a subfamily, Dendrocygninae, of the duck, goose and swan family of birds, Anatidae. In other taxonomic schemes, they are considered a separate family, Dendrocygnidae. Some taxonomists list only one genus ...

cotton pygmy-goose The cotton pygmy goose or cotton teal (''Nettapus coromandelianus'') is a small perching duck which breeds in Asia, Southeast Asia extending south and east to Queensland where they are sometimes called white-quilled pygmy goose. They are among ...

little cormorant The little cormorant (''Microcarbo niger'') is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds. Slightly smaller than the Indian cormorant it lacks a peaked head and has a shorter beak. It is widely distributed across the Indian Subcontinent and ex ...

and

whiskered tern The whiskered tern (''Chlidonias hybrida'') is a tern in the family Laridae. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''khelidonios'', "swallow-like", from ''khelidon'', "swallow". The specific ''hybridus'' is Latin for ''hybrid''; Peter Simon Pall ...

. Some people have even reported seeing the

monarch flycatcher The monarchs (family Monarchidae) comprise a family of over 100 passerine birds which includes shrikebills, paradise flycatchers, and magpie-larks. Monarchids are small insectivorous songbirds with long tails. They inhabit forest or woodland a ...

References

External links

Pathiramanal Guide

www.pathiramanal.com

{{Tourism in Kerala, state=collapsed Islands of Kerala Lake islands of India Bird sanctuaries of Kerala Geography of Alappuzha district