Pattambi

Pattambi is one of the biggest town in the Palakkad district of the state of Kerala, South India. The place got its name from Batta Nambis. Once under Nedunganad Samanthas of Chera Kings. Later on Zamoothiri Raja annexed this place to his country and kept under the control of Eralpad Raja, the second Raja of Calicut.

Geography

Pattambi is well-known for its cultural importance. Situated in the banks of River Bharathappuzha (also known as Nila River), it is a junction that connects roads from Palakkad , Malappuram and Thrissur.

Bharathappuzha River

River Bharathappuzha flows through Pattambi and the near by Panchayats. Renowned writers such as M.T. Vasudevan Nair and Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri have been influenced by the Nila River's beauty. Continued sand mining of the river's beds, however, has tarnished its beauty. The mining also disrupts the river bed and causes reeds and river grass to grow, which obstruct water flow. Frequent droughts have resulted from this continuous sand mining, due to a fall in the water table.

There is a causeway linking the north and south coasts of Bharathappuzha at Pattambi, which is one of the important bridge links across the river.
Efforts of organizations such as the Bharathappuzha Samrakhshana Samithi (Bharathappuzha Conservation Committee) led by Dr.K.P. Mohammed Kutty and Adv. Udhayavarman had made some progress in raising awareness among the public about the need of conserving the river.
Major causes of the river pollution are attributed to the waste originating from hotels, hospitals and houses that directly discharged into the river rather than being run through a sewage treatment plant. The river, once a habitat for a variety of aquatic life, is close to becoming an ecological disaster

Sree Neelakanta Central Sanskrit College

The history of the college goes back to the last decade of the 19th century, a time of political, social-cultural and educational renaissance throughout the land. Sree Neelakanta Sharma contributed to the reform in Sanskrit education. He started a Sanskrit school called "Sarasvatodyothini" in 1889 at Perumudiyoor, an underdeveloped village near Pattambi. He offered Sanskrit education to disciples drawn from almost all castes and religions.

The University of Madras granted affiliation in 1911, and the humble Sanskrit school became "Central Sanskrit College, Permudiyoor, South Malabar". In 1931 it was also approved as a research center. Kuttikrishna Marar, C. Sankunni Nair, Kallanmarthodi Ravunni Menon, P. Kunniraman Nair, K.S. Ezhuthachan, M.P. Sankunni Nair, and K.P. Narayana Pisharodi were among the students of Punnasseri Kalari. The tradition of molding prominent social-cultural figures still persists in personalities such as Desamangalam Ramakrishnan, D. Vinaya Chandran, Attoor Ravi Varma, M.S. Kumar, Nharalathu Harigovindan and N.M. Unnikrishnan, Dileep Vydhyamadham.
The college was renamed "Sree Neelakanta Central Sanskrit College, Pattambi, Perumudiyoor" in July 1943 by the Madras University in memory of its founder. The Malabar District Board took over management in 1957. It was affiliated with Kerala University in 1958 as "Sree Neelakanta Government Sanskrit College, Pattambi". The college is presently affiliated with the Calicut University.

The land the college sits was donated by A.S.K. Rama Iyer, President of College Welfare Committee, E.P. Gopalan, Ex. MLA, M.P. Udaya Varman, K.S. Raman, and P.K.Kumaran Vaidyar. The members of the committee were interested in infrastructural development, as well as introduction of new courses in the college curriculum.
Initially, the new college offered graduate degrees in Sanskrit, Malayalam and economics. The last time a course was added to the curriculum was during the 1999-2000 year when a graduation program in BBA was introduced. The college offers nine degree courses, six post-graduate courses and two doctoral degrees in Sanskrit and Malayalam.

The college is recognized as a Center of Excellence in the field of higher education in the state of Kerala. Recently, the College was awarded with a 5-star accreditation by NAAC. The campus is situated 2 kilometers from Pattambi. The official website of the college is sngscollege.info. The site also included an e-journal named vijnanacintamani

Business,Commerce and Education

The business/commerce sector has been equal growth like other comparable neighboring towns like Perinthalmanna, Manjeri, Valanchery, or Kunnamkulam. Pattambi lacks the "gulf money", which plays an important part in the economic and business development of the region. The peculiar geography of the town has hindered the organic growth of commerce and business community.

Government offices like the Police station, Treasury, Court, the government Lower Primary & Upper Primary School occupies a big chunk of the town. The mini civil station has started functioning partially. The public had raised concerns about the safety of school children who have to pass through heavy traffic.
The town is also home to MES Pattambi a premier CBSE Affiliated ISO 9001:2008 certified School in Kerala which had a humble beginning in 1978. The school saw phenomenal growth under the able leadership of Dr. KP Aboobacker and other like minded people.Other schools include St.Paul's English Medium High School, CGM English Medium High School, etc.
Pattambi is well-connected by road and rail. The Shornur railway junction is a 20-minute bus ride from Pattambi, which also has its own railway station.
Prominent Personalities

Pattambi is the birth place of famous personalities like scholar Punnasseri Nambi Neelakanta Sharma, socialist leader E.P. Gopalan, and local leader Hajee K.P. Assainar Vaidyar. E.M.S. Namboodiripad was elected from Pattambi constituency and became its chief minister. This is also the town from where the famous Kathakali artiste, Guru. Raghavan Teyunni Nair originated and went on to become a famous dancer, choreographer and teacher in Bombay. He was trained in Kathakali at Kottakkal and also in Carnatic music. He had established a dance school in Bombay, called Nritya Bodhini, to impart Bharata Natyam and other Indian classical dances to aspirants in Bombay & Padmasree.

Religion and Festivals

The Padinjare Madham Guruvayoorappan Temple (also known as "Pattambi Guruvaayoor") is one of the famous temples in Kerala. The Panthakkal Bagavathy Temple annual festival Mandalathalappoli: In this festival more than 20 elephants are lined up. Sree Kadapparampathu Kavu Bagavathy Temple is one of the famous temples in Kerala. In the Annual festival Kalavela, more than 50 bulls are lined up. Bulls are made by bamboo and grass. In this festival all the bulls are coming from the section kizhayur, pallipuam and ongallur are lined up around the temple.

Between 70 to 80 elephants are lined up for the Pattambi Nercha festival which is held in memory of Aloor Valiya Pookunj Koya Thangal, a Muslim saint of South Malabar. People from all corners of the state attend this festival, The town is illuminated, and a pageant replete with traditional musical ensembles like 'Panchavadyam' and 'Thayambaka' parades through the town at night. Various art forms of Kerala are then performed on the banks of the river Bharathappuzha. Even though the festival does not have any Islamic or religious significance, it is still celebrated by the society at large.