The Kerala backwaters are a network of brackish lagoons and canals lying parallel to the Arabian Sea of the Malabar coast of Kerala state in south-western India. It also includes interconnected lakes, rivers, and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km (560 mi) of waterways, and sometimes compared to bayous. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both man made and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. There are 34 backwaters in Kerala. Out of it, 27 are located either closer to Arabian Sea or parallel to the sea. The remaining 7 are inland navigation routes.
Vembanad is the longest lake in India, as well as the largest in the state of Kerala. The lake has an area of 230 square kilometers and a maximum length of 96.5 km. Spanning several districts in the state of Kerala, it is known as Vembanadu Lake in Kottayam, Vaikom, Changanassery, Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha, Punnappra, Kuttanadu and Kochi Lake in Kochi. Several groups of small islands including Vypin, Mulavukad, Maradu, Udayamperoor, Vallarpadam, and Willingdon Island are located in the Kochi Lake portion. Kochi Port is built around the Willingdon Island and the Vallarpadam island.
Dal is a lake in Srinagar, the summer capital of the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. It is an urban lake, the second largest lake in Jammu and Kashmir, and the most visited place in Srinagar by tourists and locals. It is integral to tourism and recreation in the Kashmir valley and is variously known as the "Lake of Flowers", "Jewel in the crown of Kashmir" or "Srinagar's Jewel". The lake is also an important source for commercial operations in fishing and water plant harvesting.
Nicco Park is an amusement park located in Jheel Meel, Sector - IV of Bidhannagar, West Bengal, India. The park was created to attract tourists to the state by providing family-friendly recreation as well as educative entertainment. Nicco Park opened on 13 October 1991 and has since been referred to as the Disneyland of West Bengal. Presently, the 40 acre park is home to over 35 different attractions and has served over 24 million customers. Nicco Park also provides a "green" environment.
Ramtek is a city and municipal council in Nagpur district of Maharashtra, India.
Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC) is a public sector undertaking that conducts and regulates the tourism activities in the Indian state of Kerala. The KTDC is headquartered at Thiruvananthapuram and has offices across all the districts of Kerala. The agency also operates hotels, resorts, and tourist rest houses in key locations in the state. Its official slogan is "Official host to God's own country." It is one of the most profitable ventures of the Kerala government.
Kodaikanal Lake, also known as Kodai Lake, is a manmade lake located in the Kodaikanal city in Dindigul district in Tamil Nadu, India. Sir Vere Henry Levinge, the then Collector of Madurai, was instrumental in creating the lake in 1863, amidst the Kodaikanal town which was developed by the British and early missionaries from USA. The lake is said to be Kodaikanal's most popular geographic landmark and tourist attraction.
Kunwar Narayan was a poet in Indian literature in Hindi. He read and traveled widely and wrote for six decades. He was linked to the New Poetry movement.
Thrikkunnapuzha is a village near Harippad in Alappuzha district in the Indian state of Kerala.
Krishna Kumar is an Indian intellectual and academician, noted for his writings on the sociology and history of education. His academic oeuvre has drawn on multiple sources, including the school curriculum as a means of social inquiry. His work is also notable for its critical engagement with modernity in a colonized society. His writings explore the patterns of conflict and interaction between forces of the vernacular and the state. As a teacher and bilingual writer, he has developed an aesthetic of pedagogy and knowledge that aspires to mitigate aggression and violence. In addition to his academic work, he writes essays and short stories in Hindi, and has also written for children. He has taught at the Central Institute of Education, University of Delhi, from 1981 to 2016. He was also the Dean and Head of the institution. From 2004 to 2010, he was Director of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), an apex organization for curricular reforms in India. He was awarded the Padma Shri by the President of India in 2011.
Ashok Vajpeyi is an Indian Hindi-language poet, essayist, literary-cultural critic, apart from being a noted cultural and arts administrator, and a former civil servant. He was chairman, Lalit Kala Akademi India's National Academy of Arts, Ministry of Culture, Govt of India, 2008–2011. He has published over 23 books of poetry, criticism and art, and was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award given by Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, in 1994 for his poetry collection, Kahin Nahin Wahin. His notable poetry collections include, Shaher Ab Bhi Sambhavana Hai (1966), Tatpurush (1986), Bahuri Akela (1992), Ibarat Se Giri Matrayen, Ummeed ka Doosra Naam (2004) and Vivaksha (2006), besides this he has also published works on literary and art criticism: Filhal, Kuchh Poorvagrah, Samay se Bahar, Kavita ka Galp and Sidhiyan Shuru ho Gayi Hain. He is generally seen as part of the old Delhi-centric literary-cultural establishment consisting of bureaucrat-poets and academicians like Sitakanta Mahapatra, Keki Daruwalla, J.P.Das, Gopi Chand Narang, Indra Nath Choudhari and K.Satchidanandan.
Rajkamal Prakashan is a noted publishing house of Hindi literature as well as English book publication. Established in 1947, the publishing house is headquartered in New Delhi, with branches in Patna, Ranchi, Prayagraj, Kolkata and some other locations.
Kashinath Singh is an Indian writer and scholar of Hindi language and known for writing novels and short stories in Hindi. He was formerly a professor of Hindi literature in Banaras Hindu University. He received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2011 for his novel Rehan Par Ragghu, and is considered one of the best chroniclers of the city of Varanasi. He has recently received 'Bharat Bharti Award', the state's highest literary award given by U.P. government.
Thekkumbhagam or Thekkumbhagom is the southern border town of Paravur municipality in the Kollam district of Kerala, India. It is located at the Southern tip of Kollam's coastal area. It is in the Arabian Sea coast. Thekkumbhagam-Kappil estuary point in the Kollam-Thiruvananthapuram coastal border is one of the emerging tourism spots in the state. On 1936, during formation, Thekkumbhagam was one of the nine territories of Paravur Panchayath. Thekkumbhagam estuary is one among the twin estuary points in Paravur. The other one is Pozhikara estuary.
Jagdish Prasad Singh is an Indian writer who writes in Hindi and English languages. The Government of India honoured him, in 2013, by awarding him Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for his contributions to the field of literature.
Ramesh Chandra Shah is an Indian poet, novelist, critic and the author of Sahitya Academy Award winning novel, Vinayak. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2004 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award.
Gyan Chaturvedi is an Indian writer and satirist in Hindi language, known for his satirical novels, Baramasi and Narak Yathra. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2015 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award.
City of Kollam or Quilon is known as Prince of Arabian Sea, situated on the banks of Arabian Sea and Ashtamudi Lake. A major portion of Kollam Municipal Corporation area is occupied by Ashtamudi Lake. It is the most visited backwater and lake of Kerala, with a unique wetland ecosystem, a palm-shaped large water body, next only to the Vembanad estuary ecosystem of the state. Ashtamudi means 'eight coned'(Ashta = 'eight'; mudi = 'coned') in the local language of Malayalam. This name is indicative of the lake's topography: a lake with multiple branches. The lake is also called the gateway to the backwaters of Kerala. This lake is extremely famous for House Boat and Backwater Resorts.
Dwaram Mallikarjun Reddy is a member of the 13th Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. He represents the Ramtek Assembly Constituency. He belongs to the Bharatiya Janata Party He is a former state government contractor. In September, 2014, he resigned from his firm, before filing his nominations as government contractors are debarred from contesting elections. In 2009, Reddy had unsuccessfully contested elections to the same seat representing the Gondwana Gantantra Party.
