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Ottapalam ഒറ്റപ്പാലം
—  town  —
Ottapalam Town Bus Stand and main road
Ottapalam ഒറ്റപ്പാലം Location of Ottapalam ഒറ്റപ്പാലം in Kerala and India
Coordinates	10°46′N 76°23′E / 10.77°N 76.38°E / 10.77; 76.38Coordinates: 10°46′N 76°23′E / 10.77°N 76.38°E / 10.77; 76.38
Country	India
State	Kerala
District(s)	Palakkad
Population	49,230 (2001[update])
Language(s)	Malayalam, English, Tamil
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 54 metres (177 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 679001 • Telephone • +0466 • Vehicle • KL-51
Footnotes Temperature Range: 21.4°C -37 °C
Website	[https://www.ottapalammunicipality.in www.ottapalammunicipality.in]

Ottapalam (Malayalam: ഒറ്റപ്പാലം) is a town in Palakkad district of Kerala state in India. It is also the headquarters of Ottapalam taluk. Situated on the banks of the Bharathappuzha river (also called the Nila or Perar), it has a rich cultural heritage and has played host to many historic events. It is famous for having several films shot here. Being headquarters of the taluk of the same name, it is one of the municipalities of the district. Chinakathoor Pooram held every year at Chinakathoor Kavu Temple is a famous event. It used to be a major town of Nedunganad and later became part of Valluvanad Taluk during the reign of the Zamorins of Calicut. Ottapalam is connected to India's railway network by Shornur-Palakkad railway line. The principal spoken language is Malayalam.

Geography [link]

Ottapalam is located at 10°46′N 76°23′E / 10.77°N 76.38°E / 10.77; 76.38.^[1] It has an average elevation of 54 metres (177 feet).

Demographics [link]

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[2] Ottappalam had a population of 49,230. Males constitute 47% of the population and females 53%. It has an average literacy rate of 81%, which is significantly higher than the national average of 59.5%. Male literacy is 84% and female literacy 80%. Nearly 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Politics [link]

Ottapalam assembly constituency is part of Palakkad Lok Sabha constituency.^[3]

Transport [link]

Ottapalam is well connected to a number of major cities in Kerala by road and rail.

It has a major railway station in the Southern Railway network. Most of the major passenger and express trains stop here. It is a major station between Palakkad and Shoranur in the Konkan route and Wadakkanchery in the Kanyakumari/Alapuzha route. There are train services to major cities of Kerala and the rest of India, particularly South India.

The Palakkad-Shoranur (Kulappully) State Highway passes through the town. Government buses as well as private bus services operate between Ottapalam and other major towns such as Thrissur, Palakkad, Pattambi, Guruvayoor, Mayannur (through the Ottapalam-Mayanur Bridge inaugurated on 22 January 2011)^[4] and Thiruvilwamala.

Calicut International Airport, Cochin International Airport and Coimbatore Airport are the nearest airports.

Education [link]

Schools [link]

• T.R.K. Higher Secondary School, Vaniyamkulam
• L.S.N Girls High School, Ottapalam
• G.H.S.S(Government Higher Secondary School) East Ottapalam, Ottapalam
• Kendriya Vidyalaya, Ottapalam
• N.S.S. K.P.T. High School, Ottapalam
• Mannam Memorial, N.S.S. English Medium High School, Ottapalam
• Gandhi seva sadan central school,pathripala
• G.H.S.S Kadambur
• N.S.S. Vengassery
• Seventh-Day Adventist Higher Secondary School, Kanniyampuram
• Islamic Central School, Ottapalam
• Lakshmi Narayana Vidya Nikethan(LNVN)
• Amrita Vidyalayam, Kanniyampuram
• Bhavans Vidyalaya, Thottakara
• ALP School, Pookkottukavu
• GLP School, Thanikunnu
• AKNMMA Memorial High School, Kattukulam
• Government Higher Secondary School, Munnurkode
• Chalavara High School Chalavara
• Kayiliyad ALP School Kayiliyad
• Vallapuzha High School, Vallapuzha
• KCM UP School Vallapuzha, Kuruvattoor
• Orphanage School Vallapuzha, Vallapuzha
• KPSMM Higher Secondary School, Varode
• Sree Shankara Oriental High School, vayanasala (Sanskrit school)
• Nanu Nair Smaraka kalakendram, Kuruvattor (kathakali school)]
• UP School, Mannanur
• Government Vocational Higher Secondary School, Cherpalchery
• Kuttikode English Medium School
• Padinharkkara Junior Basic School Palappuram,Ottapalam
• Ananganadi High School, Kothakurussi

Colleges [link]

Vishnu ayurveda college, kulapully

• Al Ameen Engineering College, Kulappully
• Allied Management College, Manissery
• Allied Model College, Manissery
• Chealchery Charitable Trust College, Cherpalchery
• Jawaharlal College of Engineering and Technology, Lakkidi
• Lakshmi Narayana College, Palappuram
• Lakshmi Narayana Women's College, Ottapalam
• Markaz Oriental College, Pulinchode
• N. S. S. College, Palappuram
• N. S. S. Training College, Ottapalam
• Nehru Engineering College, Pambady
• RMCC Professional College
• S.N College, Kulappully
• Sree Dharmasasta College (Girls) Cherpalchery.
• Vivekananda College, Ottapalam
• P.K Das Institute Of Medical Science

KTN college of Pharmacy,Chalavara

Technical institutes [link]

• S.V.I.T.C. Ottapalm
• Khairath I T C Pazhaya Lakkaidi

Notable people [link]

• Vidya Balan, Bollywood actress
• Kunhiraman Palat Candeth, Lieutenant General in the Indian Army.
• Stephen Devassy - pianist
• Lal Jose, Malayalam film director
• Prakash Karat, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) since 2005
• Kutty, political cartoonist
• A. K. Lohithadas, Malayalam film director
• Bhaskar Menon, the first Indian to head a multinational corporation, chairman of Lever Brothers (now Unilever)
• Gautham Menon, film director (Hindi, Tamil and Telugu)
• K.P.S. Menon, independent India's first Foreign Secretary. He also served pre-independence India as an Agent-General to China
• M. G. K. Menon, the former Union Minister and Scientific Adviser to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi
• Shivshankar Menon, presently National Security Advisor and former foreign secretary
• V.P. Menon, seniormost Indian officer in pre-independence British India administration
• M.K. Narayanan, the former chief of the Intelligence Bureau and former National Security Adviser

References [link]

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ottapalam

• Ottapalam Municipality website