History
Socio-Cultural History
Prehistoric Period
It may be assumed that a community belonging to the Dravidian culture had been inhabiting this region from prehistoric times itself. The burial urns (Nannangadis) and caves found in this area can be considered evidence of this. At some point thereafter, this community may have migrated elsewhere or gradually disappeared. The reasons may have been the absence of a stable system of governance or their inability to advance in accordance with the changing course of history. As part of the process of Aryanisation, it is believed that the indigenous inhabitants retreated into dense forests and that the population that subsequently emerged in this region consisted of people who were resettled during different periods.
Kanjirapuzha, which was earlier known as Pottassery, was a territorial area belonging to the Attappady Valley of Valluvanad, which was under the rule of Valluvakonathiri of the Arangott Swarupam. The Zamorin, who once exercised sovereignty over a major part of southern Malabar, captured Tirunavaya and took over the presidency of the Mamankam from Valluvakonathiri. Following this, only some parts of the Ottapalam Taluk and the Attappady Valley remained under the control of the Valluvanad ruler.
When Tipu's invasion took place, it is recorded in history that the ruler sought refuge in Travancore. Later, when the British took the Malabar territories from Tipu, the Valluvanad ruler entered into an agreement with the British East India Company and continued under their protection.
On 21 May 1800, Malabar District became part of the Madras Province under British rule. Valluvanad was one of the six taluks of Malabar—Chirakkal, Kottayam, Kurumbranad, Eranad, Valluvanad and Palakkad—and continued under the same name until the formation of the State of Kerala on 1 November 1956 on a linguistic basis.
Pottassery Amsom, which was part of Valluvanad Taluk in Malabar District of Madras State, gradually became Pottassery Village under Mannarkkad Taluk in Palakkad District. The present Kanjirapuzha Grama Panchayat consists of Pottassery I and II Villages, Palakkayam, and certain parts of Villages.
During the early decades of the twentieth century, the Khilafat Movement, which was part of the national movement that swept across the country, also had a limited impact in this region. Bullet marks can still be seen on the walls of the old Muslim place of worship at Arippanazhi. It is also believed that Kumaramputhur Seethikkoya Thangal, who had been leading the Khilafat Movement in this region, stayed at Vellathode in the Kanjirapuzha Panchayat as a guest of Kalathil Kuttappanikkar.
The farmers' movement had strong roots in the Pottassery region, which was part of British Malabar. It brought positive changes to the lives of tenant farmers and agricultural labourers. Collective bargaining with landowners for wages for agricultural labour was also organised. According to those who experienced those times, during the 1940s, organised agricultural workers, under the leadership of the Farmers' Union, conducted a struggle to increase the wage from three Narayam of paddy to three and a half Narayam, and succeeded in securing this right.
The people of this region also made their contributions to the struggles that laid the foundation for the social and political transformation of present-day Kerala. However, the library movement and arts associations that emerged during that period did not gain a strong foothold here. The absence of educated leadership among the leading groups and widespread illiteracy may have been the main reasons for this.
The formation of the State of Kerala and the historically significant Land Reform Law, which was the first of its kind in India, paved the way for social, economic and cultural transformation.
The entire area presently comprising Kanjirapuzha Panchayat, surrounded by rivers, was once known by the name Pottassery. It is also said to have been Aracheri (Shekharikkal), one of the eighteen-and-a-half Cheris of Valluvanad.
Several place names in this region indicate that certain varieties of plants, trees, minerals and animals were once abundant here. Some examples include:
- Inchikkunnu – where wild ginger (Kaattinchi) was abundantly available.
- Vettilachola – where wild betel leaves were found in abundance.
- Korannakkunnu – where Koran, a hollow-stemmed plant belonging to the reed family, was found in abundance.
- Irumbakachola – a place known for ironwood trees and forest streams.
- Anakkaranam – a habitat of wild elephants.
- Nariyamkode – a place where foxes were once commonly found.
- Arippanazhi – where, according to local accounts, gold could be obtained in considerable quantities.
- Pichalamunda – associated with the mining of brass or similar metals.
It may also be assumed that Pulikkal, where tamarind trees were abundant, Pattimannu, associated with the Pattar community, and Rayinthuruthi, believed to have been the dwelling place of a person named Rayin, were place names that evolved over time.
Among these, the areas of Pulikkal and Pattimannu were later submerged under the reservoir of the Kanjirapuzha Dam. The name Pulikkal continues to survive through the Kanjirapuzha Government U.P. School.
It was natural that different communities migrated and settled in this fertile hilly region, where forest streams and forest resources were abundant, in pursuit of different occupations. The Chettiyans may have migrated here to collect and trade cardamom, cinnamon, Panthakkatta and Cheenikka. Muslims may have migrated here for activities such as gold extraction and bamboo cutting. It is also said that the members of the Alaykkal family migrated here from Mappattukara to smelt iron ore and extract iron.
Kanjirapuzha Panchayat is a hilly village with a diverse geographical landscape consisting of mountains, water-bearing slopes, hilltops and plains. This geographical diversity is also reflected in the agricultural practices of the Panchayat.
Rubber and pepper are cultivated on the hill slopes, while coconut, mango and jackfruit are cultivated on the hilltops. Paddy, banana and arecanut are cultivated in the plains. Rubber and coconut have also gradually spread into the plain areas.
As intercrops, ginger, elephant yam, colocasia and Kaachil are cultivated in various parts of the Panchayat, while tapioca is also widely cultivated.
In earlier times, people paid greater attention to paddy cultivation in the plains. Traditional varieties of paddy such as Aryan, Kazhama, Chittyani, Thavalakkannan, Jeerakachamban, Cherivattan and Valiyavattan, which were capable of withstanding pest and disease attacks, were widely cultivated.
The Modan variety of paddy, suitable for cultivation in garden lands, was also in use. After the Mundakan harvest, crops such as Chama, sesame, horse gram and black gram were cultivated in the paddy fields. In fact, such intercrops played an important role in sustaining the farming community.
The present population of Kanjirapuzha Panchayat consists of the descendants and successors of various communities who came to this region for different purposes and livelihoods even before the twentieth century. This does not mean that there was no human settlement here before that period.
Indigenous communities had also inhabited this region, which was a remote valley of the Attappady mountain ranges. As the people who came and settled here gradually became a decisive social force, the indigenous communities retreated into the distant forests. Such retreats are believed to have taken place at various turning points in history.
At one period, six or seven families were the landowners here. However, they were not the original owners of the land. The majority of the people were dependants, labourers or farmers working under them.
Families who came here to collect forest resources also settled in the region during that period.
The people from other states and migrants who settled permanently in this area in connection with the construction of the Kanjirapuzha Dam do not have a very long history of settlement here.
There are various places of worship belonging to Hindu, Muslim and Christian communities in the Panchayat. The Ambukunnu Nercha, a symbol of religious harmony, is famous. Devotees come from even distant places to participate in this Nercha.
The waves of the national freedom struggle also touched this region. Even before the 1960s, Lower Primary (L.P.) schools had been established in Kanjirapuzha Panchayat.
