Vavakkad is a village situated along the northern border of

Ernakulam District Ernakulam, ; ISO: ''Eṟaṇākuḷaṁ'', in Malayalam: എറണാകുളം), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala, that takes its name from the eponymous city division in Kochi. It is situated in the central part ...

Paravur taluk Paravur Taluk, {{IPA-ml, pɐrɐʋuːr, IPA, is a taluk of Ernakulam District in the Indian State of Kerala. North Paravur is the capital of the taluk. Paravur Taluk lies in the north western part of Ernakulam district bordering Thrissur distr ...

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 ...

, South

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Location

Vavakkad is located 27 km from the city of Ernakulam and 23 km fro
Cochin International airport
Nedumbassery. National Highway No 66 passes within 1.5 km of the village. Famous

Cherai Beach Cherai Beach is a beach located in Cherai in the northern side of Vypin Island, a suburb of the city Kochi in the state of Kerala, India. One of the most visited beaches in the state, it is situated at around 25 km (15 mi) from downtown Koc ...

is just 4 km away.

History

The town's name derives from "Vaval Kadu" (literally, "forest of bats"). It was part of Thiruvithamkoor (

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...

) province before the reunion of states. Vavakkad was the first village in Kerala to give a monthly pension to senior citizens above 70 years of age. Once famous for the production of

coir Coir (), also called coconut fibre, is a natural fibre extracted from the outer husk of coconut and used in products such as floor mats, doormats, brushes, and mattresses. Coir is the fibrous material found between the hard, internal shell an ...

, this industry is now in decline.

Library

Gurudeva Memorial library and its surrounding ground is the center of cultural activities in Vavakkad. People meet there regularly to debate public issues. The library was founded in 1954 and named after

Sree Narayana Guru Narayana Guru, , (20 August 1856 – 20 September 1928) was a philosopher, spiritual leader and social reformer in India. He led a reform movement against the injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala in order to promote spiritual ...

, who is considered to be the father of cultural reform in Kerala.

Public figures

Paravoor Bharathan Vadakkekarayil Koran Bharathan (16 January 1929- 19 August 2015), better known as Paravoor Bharatan was an Indian actor who acted in Malayalam films. He started his career in movies during the 1950s. Bharathan is known as a versatile actor and h ...

, a popular comedian in the Malayalam film industry, who expired in 2015 is from here. There are more than 300 films to his credit.

Political representatives

References

{{Ernakulam district Villages in Ernakulam district