Idukki (ഇടുക്കി), IPA: [iɖukːi], is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. Idukki district lies amid the Cardamom Hills of Western Ghats in Kerala. Idukki district contains two municipal towns - Kattappana and Thodupuzha. The district currently includes five taluks in it.
Thekkady(Idukki district) is a town near Periyar National Park, an important tourist attraction in the Kerala state of India. The name Thekkady is derived from the word "thekku" which means teak. Temperatures are lowest in the months of December-January and highest in the months of April-May.
The Cardamom Hills or Yela Mala are mountain range of southern India and part of the southern Western Ghats located in Idukki district, Kerala, India. Their name comes from the cardamom spice grown in much of the hills' cool elevation, which also supports pepper and coffee. The Western Ghats and Periyar Sub-Cluster including the Cardamom Hills are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Periyar, IPA: [peɾijɐːr], is the longest river and the river with the largest discharge potential in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the few perennial rivers in the region and provides drinking water for several major towns. The Periyar is of utmost significance to the economy of Kerala. It generates a significant proportion of Kerala's electrical power via the Idukki Dam and flows along a region of industrial and commercial activity. The river also provides water for irrigation and domestic use throughout its course besides supporting a rich fishery. Due to these reasons, the river has been named the "Lifeline of Kerala". Kochi city, in the vicinity of the river mouth draws its water supply from Aluva, an upstream site sufficiently free of seawater intrusion. Twenty five percent of Kerala's industries are along the banks of river Periyar. These are mostly crowded within a stretch of 5 kilometres (3 mi) in the Eloor-Edayar region (Udhyogamandal), about 10 kilometres (6 mi) north of Kochi harbor.
Periyar National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary (PNP) is a protected area located in the districts of Idukki and Pathanamthitta in Kerala, India. It is notable as an elephant reserve and a tiger reserve. The protected area encompasses 925 km2 (357 sq mi), of which 305 km2 (118 sq mi) of the core zone was declared as the Periyar National Park in 1982. The park is a repository of rare, endemic, and endangered flora and fauna and forms the major watershed of two important rivers of Kerala: the Periyar and the Pamba.
Muthirapuzha River is one of the major tributaries of the Periyar River, the longest river in Kerala state south India. It begins in remote forests above the Pooyamkutty- Edamalayar valley in Ernakulam district of Kerala, and joins the Periyar at Kunchithanny
Theni District is one of the 38 districts of Tamil Nadu state in India. Well protected by the scenic hill locks, the district is located besides Madurai district. The town of Theni is the district headquarters. The district is divided into two natural divisions: The hilly areas are constituted by parts of the five taluk's Theni, Bodinayakanur, Periyakulam, Uthamapalayam and Andipatti with thick vegetation and perennial streams from the hills on the western side and Cumbum valley which lies in Uthamapalayam taluk. As of 2011, Theni district had a population of 1,245,899 with a sex ratio of 980 females for every 1,000 males.
Mullaperiyar DamIPA: [mulːɐpːeɾijɐːr], is a masonry gravity dam on the Periyar River in the Indian state of Kerala It is located 881 m (2,890 ft) above mean sea level, on the Cardamom Hills of the Western Ghats in Thekkady, Idukki District of Kerala, India. It was constructed between 1887 and 1895 by John Pennycuick and also reached in an agreement to divert water eastwards to the Madras Presidency area. It has a height of 53.6 m (176 ft) from the foundation, and a length of 365.7 m (1,200 ft). The Periyar National Park in Thekkady is located around the dam's reservoir. The dam is built at the confluence of Mullayar and Periyar rivers. The dam is located in Kerala on the river Periyar, but is operated and maintained by the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu. Although the Periyar River has a total catchment area of 5398 km2 with 114 km2 downstream from the dam in Tamil Nadu, the catchment area of the Mullaperiyar Dam itself lies entirely in Kerala and thus not an inter-State river. On 21 November 2014, the water level hit 142 feet for first time in 35 years. The reservoir again hit the maximum limit of 142 feet on 15 August 2018, following incessant rains in the state of Kerala. In a UN report published in 2021, the dam was identified as one among the world's big dams which needs to be decommissioned for being 'situated in a seismically active area with significant structural flaws and poses risk to 3.5 million people if the 100+ years old dam were to fail'.
Kumily also spelt as Kumaly is a revenue village and Gram Panchayat in the Idukki district of Kerala. It is a town in Cardamom Hills near Thekkady and Periyar Tiger Reserve. Kumily is a gateway town into Kerala from Tamil Nadu.
Private protected areas of India refer to protected areas inside India whose land rights are owned by an individual or a corporation / organization, and where the habitat and resident species are offered some kind of protection from exploitative activities like hunting, logging, etc. The Government of India did not provide any legal or physical protection to such entities, but in an important amendment introduced by the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act of 2002, has agreed to protect communally owned areas of ecological value.
Meghamalai, commonly known as the High Wavy Mountains, is a mountain range located in the Western Ghats in the Theni district near Kumily, Tamil Nadu. It is dotted with cardamom plantations and tea plantations. The mountain range is 1,500 metres above sea level, and it is rich in flora and fauna. The area, now mostly planted with tea plants, includes cloudlands, high wavys, venniar, and the manalar estates belonging to the Woodbriar Group. Access is largely restricted and includes largely untouched remnants of evergreen forest.
Bhoothathankettu is a dam and tourist spot in Ernakulam district in Kerala, India. It is situated outside the village of Pindimana, about 10 km away from the town of Kothamangalam and 50 km away from the main city of Kochi. The original natural dam has been supplemented by a modern dam impounding the Bhoothathankettu Reservoir.
The Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary (GSWS), also known as Srivilliputhur Wildlife Sanctuary, was established in 1988 to protect the Near threatened grizzled giant squirrel. Occupying an area of 485.2 km2, it is bordered on the southwest by the Periyar Tiger Reserve and is one of the best preserved forests south of the Palghat Gap.
The Neyyar River is 56 km long river which flows through the Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala in India. It flows from the Agastya Mala (Agastyarkoodam) in the Western Ghats. The town Neyyattinkara in Thiruvananthapuram district, is situated on the banks of the river, is named after this river. The river flows through the Neyyar wildlife sanctuary and into the Neyyar resorvoir. It then flows towards the west though the towns of Kallikkad, Kattakkada, Ottashekharamangalam, Keezhattoor, Anavoor, Aruvipuram, Neyyantinkara and Thirupuram. The river then empties into the Arabian Sea at the Poovar estuary.Tributaries include the Kallar, Mullayar, and the Karavaliyar. It has several small canals along the river and the Neyyar Irrigation Project, "Neyyar Dam", is situated in this river. A safari park is located near the river. Neyyar river has been severely affected by sand mining.
Mesonoemacheilus menoni is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus Mesonoemacheilus. It is endemic to the southern Western Ghats in Kerala, India, where it occurs in the upper reaches of the Periyar River over substrates of cobbles, pebbles and sand in flowing water. It is common within the Periyar Tiger Reserve but may be threatened by predation and competition from the invasive African cichlid Mozambique tilapia, the common carp and Clarias gariepinus.
Ghatsa silasi is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus Ghatsa. It can be found in the Kattamadithode stream, connected with Periyar River in Periyar Tiger Reserve at Chokkanpetty in Kerala, India.
Kottamala (കോട്ടമല) is the highest peak in Southern part of Western Ghats located in Periyar tiger reserve in Idukki district of Kerala and near Rajapalayam in the Srivilliputhur Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu is a tall mountain peak situated in the Western Ghats at an altitude of 2,019m. It is one of the few tall peaks in the Western Ghats; and the highest peak of all in the Periyar plateau exceeding 2,000m.]).
It is India's 51st tiger reserve and 5th tiger reserve of tamil nadu. It is formed of combining two wild life sanctuaries namely grizzled squirrel wild life sanctuary and Megamalai wildlife sanctuary. On 8th Feb 2021, ministry of enviroinment, forest and climate change give notification of this new tiger reserve. On 6 april 2021, the Government of Tamil Nadu and forest department approved for a creation of new Tiger Reserve in Tamilnadu and on 11 April 2021 a new tiger reserve is formed which is called as Megamalai Tiger Reserve. It is also called as SRIVILLIPUTHUR-MEGAMALAI TIGER RESERVE.
