Kannan Devan Hills is a large village located in Devikulam Taluk of Idukki District in the Indian state of Kerala.[3] It is situated near the state border with Tamil Nadu, about 25 kilometres northeast of the district seat Painavu, and 8 kilometres north of the subdistrict seat Devikulam. In 2011, it was home to 55,738 residents.[4]

Kannan Devan Hills
Village
View of Kannan Devan Hill
View of Kannan Devan Hill
Kannan Devan Hills is located in Kerala
Kannan Devan Hills
Kannan Devan Hills
Kannan Devan Hills is located in India
Kannan Devan Hills
Kannan Devan Hills
Coordinates: 10°03′00″N 77°03′00″E / 10.05000°N 77.05000°E / 10.05000; 77.05000
Country India
StateKerala
DistrictIdukki
TalukDevikulam
Government
 • TypeVillage Panchayat
 • BodyDevikulam & Munnar Grama Panchayats
Area
 • Total456.89 km2 (176.41 sq mi)
Elevation
1,700 m (5,600 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total55,738
 • Density120/km2 (320/sq mi)
Languages
 • OfficialMalayalam, English [1]
 • RegionalTamil[2] ,Malayalam
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
685613
STD code04865
Vehicle registrationKL-68
Coastline0 kilometres (0 mi)
Nearest cityMunnar

The village was given on lease on 11 July 1877 by the Poonjar Thampuran to John Daniel Munroe, of London and Peermedu, for tea plantation. The lands and plantations were later resumed by the Government of Kerala through the Kannan Devan Hills (Resumption Of Lands) Act, 1971.[5]

History edit

Tradition states that Col. Arthur Wellesley, the later Duke of Wellingon, was the first English man to have set foot in the High Range during the Battle of Nedumkotta. The earliest available record about this region is a terrain survey in 1816-17 by Lt. Benjamin Swayne Ward, son of Col. Francis Swayne Ward.[6]

There were a few more expeditions into the area, including one led by Col. Douglas Hamilton in 1862 and one led by John Daniel Munro in 1877. Munro was given a lease of land in the same year as his expedition, and he opened his own tea plantation three years later. More plantations were constructed in the 1880s and 90s. In 1897, Kannan Devan Hills Produce Company was registered to operate the local tea plantations.[7]

Following the Independence of India, this area remained in the hands of British enterprises. In 1971, the Government of Kerala passed the Kannan Devan Hills (Resumption of Lands) Act, and transferred the control of the region back to Indian governance.[5] Kannan Devan Hills remains as a revenue village ever since.

Demographics edit

As of 2011 Census, Kannan Devan Hills had total population of 55,738 with 27,973 males and 27,765 females. Kannan Devan Hills village spreads over an area of 456.89 km2 (176.41 sq mi) with 14,134 families residing in it. In KDH, 8.7% of the population was under 6 years of age. The village had average literacy of 85.48%, which is lower than Kerala state average of 94.00%. The census location code of Kannan Devan Hills is 628054.[8]

Galleries edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "The Kerala Official Language (Legislation) Act, 1969" (PDF).
  2. ^ "Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Kerala". www.censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.
  3. ^ "Census of India : Villages with population 5000 & above". Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 10 December 2008.
  4. ^ "Basic Population Figures of India, States, Districts, Sub-District and Village, 2011". censusindia.gov.in. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  5. ^ a b The Kannan Devan Hills (Resumption of Lands) Act, 1971 (PDF). Government of Kerala. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  6. ^ Ref: Book : A planting Century 1893 - 1993 Author: S.Muthiah ISBN 81 85938 04 0 Published By: East-West Pvt Ltd., 62-A Ormes Road, Kilpauk, Madras-600010 Year of Publication: 1993 1
  7. ^ Jones, Geoffrey (7 March 2002). Merchants to Multinationals: British Trading Companies in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-153046-3.
  8. ^ Kerala, Directorate of Census Operations. District Census Handbook, Idukki (PDF). Thiruvananthapuram: Directorateof Census Operations,Kerala. p. 52,53. Retrieved 14 July 2020.