History

History of Pandalam

Pandalam is considered to be very sacred for the South Indians as it is the birthplace of Lord Ayappa. Located near Sabrimala, it is actually named after the Pandalam Royal family. Take a tour to Pandalam and rediscover the temples and mythological legends of Kerala. It also has the famous Valiyakoikal Temple which is located on the banks of river Achenkovil.Pandalam is one among the fastest growing towns in , Kerala, India. It is considered as a holy town. Pandalam is also a well known educational and health care centre in central Travancore.Pandalam hosts a lot of educational institutions ranging from reputed schools to Post Graduate, Training, Ayurveda, Medical and Engineering Colleges.
Pandalam' is one among the fastest growing towns in Pathanamthitta, Kerala, India. It is a holy town, second only to Sabarimala. It is believed that Sree Ayyappa, the presiding deity of Sabarimala had his human sojourn here as the son of the Raja of Pandalam. Before proceeding to Sabarimala, pilgrims usually stop to worship the deity of Valiyakoikkal Temple near the Pandalam Palace. This temple is on the banks of river Achenkovil. Three days prior to the Makaravilaku festival, the sacred ornaments of Sree Ayyappa are taken in a procession from Pandalam to Sabarimala.
Other famous temples are the Mahadevar Temple, Kurampala Puthankavil Bhagavathi Temple, Thonnallur Pattupurakkavu Bhagavathi Temple and Kaipuzha Sree Krishna Swami Temple. The centuries old Kadakkad Juma Masjid, Thumpamon Orthodox Cathedral and Kurampala St Thomas Church give this pilgrim town, the glare and glory of a secular township.
This holy town is also a well known educational and health care centre in Kerala. Pandalam has a lot of educational institutions ranging from reputed schools to Post Graduate, Training, Ayurveda, Medical and Engineering Colleges.
It is believed that the Pandya kings of Tamil Nadu fled to Pandalam after losing a battle and settled here in the land they bought from Kaipuzha Thampan, a landlord. The princely state of Pandalam had extended up to Thodupuzha in Idukki district once. Pandalam had witnessed a rare piece of history when it was first converted to a municipality and later back to a gramapanchayat.

COLLEGES

NSS College, Pandalam: Established in the year 1950, this special grade post graduate college is one among the most reputed educational institutions in the state. Alumini include noted film director Padmashri Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Dr VN Rajasekharan Pillai (Vice Chairman, NAAC), Narendra Prasad (Actor) et al.

>> N.S.S Training College, Pandalam: Established in the year 1957

>> Mannam Co-operative Ayurveda Medical College

>> NSS Polytechnic, Pandalam

>> NSS School of Nursing, Pandalam

SCHOOLS

>> NSS Higher Secondary School, Pandalam (Formerly NSS High School for Boys)

>> NSS English Medium Upper Primary School, Pandalam

>> Government Higher Secondary School, Thottakkonam, Mudiyooykoonam, Pandalam

>> St Thomas High School, Kurampala, Pandalam

>> Eminence Public School, Pandalam

>> Mannathu Parvathy Amma Memorial NSS High School for Girls, Pandalam

>> Muslim Educational Trust (M.E.T)

>> Government Upper Primary School, Thonnallur, Pandalam

>> Government Upper Primary School, Mangaram, Pandalam

>> Government Upper Primary School, Poozhickadu, Pandalam

>> MSM Lower Primary School, Pandalam

>> Vyasa Vidya Peedom, Thonnallur, Pandalam

How to Enter

The Road, Rail and Air distances to Pandalam are listed below:

Road

>> 105 km to the north of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala

>> 120 km to the south of Kochi the state's commercial capital

By Rail

>> 14 km from Chengannur railway station

>> 14 km from Mavelikkara railway station

By Air

>> 119 km from Thiruvananthapuram International Airport

>> 127 km from Kochi International Airport

Important persons

>> Pandalam Kerala Varma (Poet)

>> Pandalam KP (Poet)

>> MN Govindan Nair (Politician, Former Minister and former MP)

>> Pandalam PR (Politician, CPI leader)

>> PK Manthri (Cartoonist)

>> VS Valiyathan (Artist, Recipient of Raja Ravi Varma Award)

>> Kadammanitta Vasudevan Pillai (Padayani exponent)

>> Pandalam Sudhakaran (Former Minister)

Important Places

Major attractions of Pandalam include its temples, churches and mosques, for which the place is famous.

>> Pandalam Valiyakoickal Palace

>> Valiyakoikkal Sree Dharmasastha Temple

>> Pandalam Mahadeva Temple

>> Pattupurakkavu Bhagavathi Temple

>> Kadakkad Juma Masjid

>> St Thomas Orthodox Church

>> Orthodox cathedral, Thumpamon

>> Puthankavil Bhagavathi Temple

>> Poozhickadu Sree Dharma Sastha Temple

>> Sree Krishna Swami Temple, Kaipuzha

>> Bhagavathi Temple, Kulanada

>> Kozhuvalloor Devi Temple - Kozhuvalloor (Famous for Kumbha Karthika Festival )

Trade and commerce

The centuries old ''Kurumthottayam'' market, (now known as the ''Pandalam market'') is one among the largest agricultural markets in Central Travancore. Situated in the heart of this township till late 1990s, this market was later shifted to a place on the Pandalam - Mavelikkara road. Right from agricultural produce (mainly cultivated in and around Pandalam and parts of adjoining panchayats) to fisheries, meat, rice and spices, this market is one among the nerve centres of the region.
Pandalam is now a mordern township with adequate facilities, well connected by road to other places of the state. As an excellent centre for higher learning and health care, Pandalam is well equipped to contribute its part to the mordern liberalised economy.
Banks and financial institutions

The major banks and financial institutions in this township includes:-

1.State Bank of Travancore (Associate of State bank of India).
2.The South Indian bank Limited.
3.Syndicate Bank.
4.Indian Overseas Bank
5.The Federal Bank Limited
6.Centurion Bank of Punjab (Erstwhile Lord Krishna Bank Limited)
7.Catholic Syrian bank Limited.
8.Canara Bank
9.South Malabar Gramin Bank
10.The Pathanamthitta District Co-operative Bank Limited
11.The Kerala State Financial Enterprises Limited (KSFE).