Kochi, India

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Kochi

Image:CochinIndiaLocation.png Location of Kochi
Location	9.977° N 76.27° E
State	Kerala
District	Ernakulam
Mayor	Mercy Williams
Altitude	0 metres
Area	125 km²
Population (2001)	13,55,000
Density	10840/km²
Codes • Postal • Telephone • Vehicle	6820XX +91 484 KL-7
Time zone	IST (UTC +5:30)

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Kochi (െകാച്ചി) (often known by the Portuguese name of Cochin) is the largest (pop. 1,355,000 in 2001) city in the state of Kerala, India, and one of the principal seaport in the country.

Also known as "Queen of the Arabian Sea", Kochi is located in the district of Ernakulam, about 220 km north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. Old Kochi loosely refers to a group of islands and peninsulae including Willingdon Island, Fort Kochi, Mattancherry, etc. Today Kochi includes Ernakulam city, old parts of Kochi, Kumbalangi, and outlying islands.

For many centuries upto and during the British Raj, the city of Cochin was the seat of the eponymous princely state. The history of that state is detailed at Kingdom of Kochi

1 Origin of name
2 The city
3 History and heritage
4 Local business and economy
5 Major employers
6 Education and health care
7 Transportation
8 Future Developments
9 External links

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Origin of name

The city derives its name from the Malayalam word "Kochazhi" meaning small lagoon. This was changed to Cochin by europeans for easy pronunciation. The city reverted to its original name "Kochi" in 1996. The city is still widely referred to as "Cochin".

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The city

Kochi was famous for its natural harbour and was the centre of the Indian spice trade for many centuries. It is home to a naval base and an airport, and is well connected to all the major Indian cities. Willingdon Island is a large artificial island, created by dredging the Vembanad Lake under Lord Willingdon's direction. A large shipyard makes ships, especially cruisers and carriers for the Indian Navy, and straddles Willingdon Island.

Fort Kochi, situated on the Fort Kochi/Mattancherry peninsula, is the historical part of the city and home to many tourist attractions, such as the cantilevered Chinese fishing nets, the Mattancherry Palace and the Santa Cruz Basilica. Most economic activity is now centred in Ernakulam, however.

Image:Cochin City.jpg

Image:KochiFishingNet.jpg

Kochi is well connected to other parts of the world through roads, rail, water and air. There is an international airport called Cochin International Airport which is about 25 km north of the city. The Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) is located in Kochi, as are many other educational institutions. The Maharaja's College, which has seen the best of literary figures within its faculty and its students, is one of them. Kochi has a lot of sight seeing places. Some of them are the Bolgatty palace, Chinese fishing nets, boating through the back waters, the Tripunithura Palace (also called Hill Palace; on the top of a hill). There are two main railway stations in Ernakulam, which are well connected to the rest of India.

Kochi also houses the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy. Due to this, the surrounding places, Thevara, Thoppumpady, Fortcochi, Kadavanthra etc are home to people (mainly Navy Personnel) from all parts of India.

The population is a mix of people from all parts of Kerala and most of India. Malayalam is the language of communication, although English is used in business circles. English, Hindi and Tamil are widely understood, but rarely spoken.

Kochi is also home to the longest bridge in Kerala, spanning 4.2 km (2.6 mi) from Thevara to Kundannoor crossing Nettoor and Kumbalam. It also includes the amusement park, Veega Land.

Kochi is on the verge of a dynamic development by the linking of the Goshree Islands (Vypeen, Vallarpadam, Mullavukad) to Kochi by the Goshree bridges.

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History and heritage

The history of Kochi(Chinese 柯枝) dated back to early 15th century. During the Yong Le era of Ming Dynasty, Admiral Zheng He and his treasure fleet visited Kochi. Their visits were documented by on board Arab language translators Ma Huan,Fei Xin and Gong Zheng,each one of them published a book documented their visits to variou countries, including Kochi.(There is an English translation of Ma Huan’s book Ying yai sheng lan (The Overall survey of the ocean shores）.

The name of the king of Kochi was Koyili,he was a buddhist.
The main product of Kochi was pepper.The rich merchants or chetti of Kochi, collected pepper from local farmers and exchange them with arab merchants for pearls, coral and spice, then in turn wait for the arrival of Zheng He's fleet to trade for porcelain and silk.
In 1405 King Koyili sent envoy Vanjatar(完者塔儿)to pay tribute to Emperor Zhu Di of Ming Empire.
In 1412 King Koyili sent envoy to Ming Court a second time, requested a formal Imperial instituion of a mountain in Kochi.
In 1416 Emperor Zhu Di formally instituted king Koyili as "King of Kochi". The Emperor also instituted a mountain in Kochi as National Guardian Mountain (镇国山), with institution poem (in 16 stanzas, 64 Chinese characters )written by Emperor Zhu Di himself inscribed on a stone tablet as Imperial present.

Image:Mattancherry palace bhagvathy kshetram.JPG Image:Dutch cemetery.jpg Image:Cochin Jewish Inscription.JPG Cochin was once controlled by Portugal (from 1503 to 1663), followed by the Netherlands; the city and its territory were ceded to the United Kingdom in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 in exchange for the island of Banca.

The synagogue in Kochi is the oldest in India. Kochi was a major settlement for a large Jewish community, which figured prominently in the business and economic strata of Kochi society. They were known as Malabar Yehuden and now increasingly as Cochin Jews. The community has now almost entirely migrated to Israel and the United States. The copper tablets presented to them in ancient times were shipped to Kennedy Airport Sanctuary where they are on display. Kochi now has a multicultural and secular community comprising Hindus, Christians, Muslims, Jains, Sikhs and other denominations. Syrian Orthodoxy was the sole Christian tradition in Cochin for a long time. However, since the Portuguese invasion of the princely state of Cochin (then known as Perumpadapu Swaroopam) in the 1500s, Roman Catholicism has been a dominant force in the city. Kochi also harboured the grave of Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese explorer, who was buried at St. Francis Church until his remains were returned to Portugal in 1539.

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Local business and economy

Kochi is the biggest city in Kerala by volume of trade. The economy of the city can be classified as a business economy with concentration on the service sector. Major business areas are Gold and Textile retail, Seafood and spices export, Information Technology, Tourism and allied services and Health Services, Banking, Shipbuilding and allied activities and Fishing.

The economy of the city owes much to the trade and retail activities. As most of the state, inward remitances from abroad by Non Resident Indians (NRI) is a major source of income. Another major income generator is exports and allied activities. Tourism has of late, become a major contributor to the local income.

The state government has given priority to the establishment of Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing enterprises to exploit the oppertunities that have arisen in the field. Projects include Kochi Info Park, Smart City Project (not finalized), SEPZ (Special Export Processing Zone). IT and BPO are seen as fields where there is immense employment and revenue potential for the city.

Cochin Harbour, located at Thoppumpady is one of the major fishing ports in the State and supplies fish to the local and export markets.

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Major employers

Cochin International Airport or CIAL, situated 30 km north of the city at Nedumbassery is the first port of call for most of the people coming to the state of Kerala by air. The airport also acts as an air-cargo terminal for most of the state.

The Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy is situated at Venduruthy about 5 kilometers south of the city centre.

The Cochin Shipyard is another major employer in the city and also one of the biggest ship builduing facilities in South India.

Cochin Port Trust, located on Willington Island, controls the Cochin Port.

Kochi Refineries Limited (KRL), a petroleum refinery situated in Ambalamedu, on the outskirts of the city.

Fertilisers and Chemicals Travencore (FACT) located at Udyogamandal and Ambalamedu.

The High Court Of Kerala is situated in the city. Consequentially, legal services are a major contributor to the economy.

Tourism and allied industries employ a large number of people in the city.

Kochi has now become a major destination for IT and ITEScompanies. The availability of 15 Gbps bandwidth, through undersea cables such as FLAG, SAFE and SEA ME WE 3 ensures seamless data flow from world wide which helps the IT business. The Infopark promoted by Govt. of Kerala is home to companies like Wipro and TCS. The establishment of Smart City project by Dubai Internet City will make Kochi the Silicon Valley of Kerala.

Eloor(Udyogamandal), situated 17 km north of the town of Cochin, is an island of 11.21 square kilometers and is the largest industrial belt in Kerala. There are more than 247 industries viz. FACT, Travancore Cochin Chemicals, Indian Rare Earths Hindustan Insecticides Limited) and many others manufacturing a range of products like chemical-petrochemical products , pesticides, rare earth elements, and rubber processing chemicals, fertilizers, zinc/chrome compounds and leather products.

Other than these big companies, there are several small units in the service sector that cater and contribute to the economy.

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Education and health care

There are several hospitals that are rated as the best in the state located in and around the city and health services is a vital element of the local economy. Main among these are AIMS (Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre), Lisie Hospital, Medical Trust Hospital and Lake shore hospital.

One of the premier educational institutions CUSAT (Cochin University of Science and Technology) and AIMS(for medical education) are situated in the city. Prominent colleges for higher studies in Kochi include School of Communication and management studies, Toc-H Institue of Science and Engineering [1], Rajagiri College of Engineering, St.Alberts Collegee [2], St.Theresa's College, Union Christian College and Sacred Hearts college.

For primary and secondary education, Kochi has a large number of schools, those that are run by government and by private parties.The prominent schools in the city include S.B.O.A Public School, Kendriya Vidyalaya, Chinmaya Vidyalaya,Toc-H Public School, Assissi vidyaniketan, Choice School and Bhavans Educational Institutions.

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Transportation

Kochi has an international airport, a seaport and shipyard and a well established rail and road network.

The major roads in the city are:

M G Road: The M.G road stretching from Thevara Junction to Madhava Pharmacy Junction is the business spine of the city with most of the retail and business outlets concentrated along it.

Broadway: Contrary to the name, this is one of the narrowest streets in the city and had its heyday back in the 1970s and 1980s.

Banerji Road

Sahodaran Ayyapan Road

Shanmughmam Road

Park Avenue

Chitoor Road : Many retail businesses are along 'Chitoor road' that runs parallel to M.G Road. It is a one-way street that runs from Chittor to Valanjambalam.

Ammankovil Road EPC Road

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Future Developments

The Indian Central Government has given permission for an international transhipment container terminal at Vallarpadom (Vallarpadom Container Transhipment Terminal Project). This port will be operated by Dubai Ports International (DPI) for 30 years under a Build, Operate, Transfer (BOT) agreement.

Also on the cards is Petronet LNG terminal.The proposed LNG plant is expected to become operational by 2009 at Puthuvypu. This terminal would have a capacity of 2.5 million metric tonnes per annum initially and will be eventually increased to double its initial capacity. An agreement for the supply of 5 Mt/yr from Iran had been signed which would be sufficient to meet the additional capacity.

The Kerala State Government has concluded talks with Dubai Internet City to develop an Information Technology park called 'Smart City' in Kochi.

A metro rail project was mooted by the K.S.R.T.C (Kerala State Road Transport Corporation) to alleviate the traffic congestion in the city. A viability study was concluded by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and the project is waiting for the go ahead from the central government.