Pathanamthitta (district)

Pathanamthitta District (pɐt̪ːɐnɐn̪d̪iʈːɐ), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. The district headquarters is in the town of Pathanamthitta. There are four municipalities in Pathanamthitta: Adoor, Pandalam, Pathanamthitta and Thiruvalla. According to the 2011 Census of India, the population was 1,197,412, making it the third least populous district in Kerala (out of 14), after Wayanad and Idukki. Pathanamthitta has been declared the first polio-free district in India. The district is 10.03% urbanised. Pathanamthitta is one of the richest districts in India with just 1.17% poverty as of 2013, which places the district among top 5 districts in India with least poverty. The district's name is a combination of two Malayalam words, and , which together mean 'array of houses on the river side'. The district capital is located on the banks of the river Achankovil. History of Pathanamthitta district It is presumed that the regions that form the district were formerly under the rule of Pandalam, which had connections with the Pandya kingdom. When Pandalam was added to the princely state of Travancore in 1820, the region came under Travancore administration. The Nedumpuram Palace near Thiruvalla belongs to Valluvanad Royal family, who were originally the rulers of Angadippuram in present-day Malappuram district. The district was formed on 1 November 1982 as a reward to K. K. Nair, who was the then Pathanamthitta MLA, by K. Karunakaran. The formation was done by incorporating various portions of the erstwhile Kollam, Alappuzha and Idukki districts. While the taluks Adoor, Konni, Pathanamthitta, Kozhencherry and Ranni were taken from Kollam district; Pandalam, Kulanada, Aranmula, Kumbanad, Parumala,Thiruvalla and Mallapally were taken from Alappuzha district; and Sabarimala from Idukki district Pathanamthitta being also a land of culture and learning could bring forth the literary talents of two centuries together in single volume named Desathuti: Pathanamthitta Kavithakal.