59 Facts About Kochi Kerala

Kochi Kerala city is part of the Greater Cochin region and is classified as a Tier-II city by the Government of India.

The current metropolitan limits of Kochi Kerala include the mainland Ernakulam, Fort Kochi Kerala, the suburbs of Edapally, Kalamassery, Aluva and Kakkanad to the northeast; Tripunithura to the southeast; and a group of islands closely scattered in the Vembanad Lake.

In October 2019, Kochi Kerala was ranked seventh in Lonely Planet's list of top 10 cities in the world to visit in 2020.

In July 2018, Kochi Kerala was ranked the topmost emerging future megacity in India by global professional services firm JLL.

Kochi Kerala is home for the International Pepper Exchange, Marine Products Export Development Authority, Coconut Development Board, companies like HMT, Apollo Tyres, FACT, IREL, Petronet LNG, Kochi Kerala Refineries, V-Guard and industrial parks like the Cochin Special Economic Zone, Smart City, Infopark and Kinfra Hi-Tech Park.

Related searches

Kochi Kerala has been hosting India's first art biennale, the Kochi Kerala-Muziris Biennale, since 2012, which attracts international artists and tourists.

Ancient travellers and tradesmen referred to Kochi Kerala, variously alluding to it as Cocym, Cochym, Cochin, and Kochi Kerala.

The origin of the name Kochi Kerala is thought to be the Malayalam word kochu azhi, meaning 'small lagoon'.

Muziris, a port somewhere north of Kochi Kerala, was the centre of Indian spice trade for many centuries, and was known to the Arabs, Yavanas as well as Jews, Syrians, and Chinese since ancient times.

Kochi Kerala rose to significance as a trading centre after the port Muziris around Kodungallur was destroyed by the massive flooding of Periyar in 1341.

The earliest documented references to Kochi Kerala occur in books written by Chinese voyager Ma Huan during his visit to Kochi Kerala in the 15th century as part of Admiral Zheng He's treasure fleet.

Kochi Kerala hosted the grave of Vasco da Gama, the first European explorer to set sail for India, who was buried at St Francis Church until his remains were returned to Portugal in 1539.

In 1664, Fort Kochi Kerala Municipality was established by Dutch, making it the first municipality in Indian subcontinent, which got dissolved when Dutch authority got weaker in the 18th century.

The hereditary Prime Ministership of Kochi Kerala held by the Paliath Achans ended during this period.

Meanwhile, the Dutch, fearing an outbreak of war on the United Provinces, signed the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 with the United Kingdom, under which Kochi Kerala was ceded to the United Kingdom in exchange for the island of Bangka, east of Sumatra.

Fort Kochi Kerala, which was a part of Malabar District until 1956, was made a municipality on 1 November 1866, along with Kannur, Thalassery, Kozhikode, and Palakkad, according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 of the British Indian Empire.

Finally, the Government of India's States Reorganisation Act inaugurated a new state—Kochi Kerala—incorporating Travancore-Cochin, Malabar District, and the taluk of Kasargod, South Kanara.

Kochi Kerala is located on the southwest coast of India at, with a corporation limit area of 94.

Current metropolitan limits of Kochi Kerala include the mainland Ernakulam, Fort Kochi Kerala, the suburbs of Edapally, Kalamassery, Aluva and Kakkanad to the northeast; Tripunithura to the southeast; and a group of islands closely scattered in the Vembanad Lake.

Kochi Kerala's water needs are entirely dependent on ground water and the two rivers flowing through the district viz.

Kochi Kerala is part of the Ernakulam Lok Sabha constituency in Indian Parliament.

Kochi Kerala is recognised as one of the seventeen major industrial cities of India by the World Bank Group.

However, in the 2009 rankings of ease to start and operate a business, among the 17 Indian cities selected, Kochi Kerala was rated as the second most difficult city to start business and was ranked 16th, above Kolkata.

Ernakulam district, in which Kochi is situated, ranks first in the total number of domestic tourists visiting Kerala, and thus contributes to the economy of the city.

The Kochi Kerala Port is one of the leading ports where international cruisers call on regularly.

Related searches

Kochi Kerala is the headquarters of the Southern Naval Command, the primary training centre of the Indian Navy.

Kochi Kerala's historical reliance on trade continues into modern times, as the city is a major exporter of spices and is home to the International Pepper Exchange, where black pepper is globally traded.

Kochi Kerala has an established electronics hardware industry with companies such as V-Guard Industries, OEN India Limited, FCI OEN Connectors and SFO Technologies.

The Government of Kochi Kerala has announced a project to build an industrial park named Electronic City spanning an area of 340 acres, to cater to the electronic hardware industries.

Kochi Kerala is the headquarters of the Air India Express service.

Kochi Kerala is well connected to neighbouring cities and states via several highways.

The road infrastructure in Kochi Kerala has not been able to meet the growing traffic demand and hence traffic congestion is a major problem in the city.

Kochi Kerala is served by National Highway 66, National Highway 544, National Highway 966A and National Highway 966B.

Kochi Kerala is one of the few cities to be granted the new-generation air-conditioned low-floor and non-air-conditioned semi-low-floor buses under the JNNURM city transport development project.

The main rail transport system in Kochi Kerala is operated by the Southern Railway Zone of Indian Railways, and comes under Thiruvananthapuram Railway division.

Kochi Kerala Metro is a metro rapid transit system serving the city of Kochi Kerala, intended to considerably ease traffic congestion in the city and its surrounding metropolitan area.

The first half of the Phase-1 of Kochi Kerala Metro was inaugurated on 17 June 2017 by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Currently Kochi Kerala Metro is operational from Aluva till Maharaja's College along the Kalamassery - Edappally - Kaloor - MG Road stretch, covering a total of 18.

Boat services are operated by Kochi Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation, the State Water Transport Department and private firms from various boat jetties in the city.

The State Crime Records Bureau report gives further credence to this as it finds that Kochi has the fewest crime against women in the state of Kerala.

Kochi Kerala is ranked seventh in the list of the top ten most affluent cities in India by 2009 study by Nielsen Company.

Kochi Kerala was ranked the fourth cleanest city in India in the Swachch Bharat rankings for cities.

Kochi Kerala has a diverse, multicultural, and secular community consisting of Malayalis, Konkanis, Gujaratis, Bengalis, Marathis, Punjabis, Tamilians, Kannadigas, Biharias, Anglo Indians and a few families of Jews among other denominations.

Appropriate to its multi-ethnic composition, Kochi celebrates traditional Kerala festivals like Onam and Vishu along with North Indian Hindu festivals like Holi with great fervour.

Kochi Kerala has a number of shopping malls including Oberon Mall, Gold Souk Grande, Bay Pride Mall, Centre Square Mall, Abad Nucleus Mall and LuLu Mall, which is one of the largest shopping malls in India in terms of total leasable area of 17 acres.

Related searches

Maharajas of Kochi Kerala were scholars who knew the epics and encouraged the arts.

The Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi Kerala is one of the largest stadiums in India with floodlights for Cricket and Football matches.

Kochi Kerala is reportedly the sixth best city in India according to the livability index of 2011.

Kochi is the only city from Kerala that have carried out successful heart transplantations.

Kochi Kerala has one of the campuses of the Indian Maritime University at Willingdon Island.

The Italian Sister Fabiola conducts a home at Fort Kochi Kerala known as "Ashwasa Bhavan", for young orphaned children.

Major Malayalam newspapers published in Kochi include Malayala Manorama, Mathrubhumi, Siraj Daily, Madhyamam, Deshabhimani, Deepika, Kerala Kaumudi, Janmabhumi, etc.

Kochi Kerala is considered to be the hub of the vibrant Malayalam movie industry, especially contemporary Malayalam movies.

Kochi Kerala has a host of state-of-the-art production and post-production facilities.

PVR with 9 screens is another national multiplex brand that has presence in Kochi Kerala and is based out of LuLu International Shopping Mall.

Kochi Kerala was one of the six cities to host the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup held in India.

Kochi Kerala was home to the now defunct Indian Premier League cricket team, Kochi Kerala Tuskers which won franchise rights to play in the 2011 edition of IPL.

Kochi Kerala has two golf courses in the city, and one in the suburbs.

Kochi Kerala was the only Indian city chosen for stopover during the Volvo Ocean Race 2008.