Cherpulassery (also known by its former name Cherpulacherry) is a town and
municipality in the
Palakkad district, of
Kerala, India.[1] Cherpulassery is often called the
Sabarimala of Malabar as the famous Ayyappankavu temple is located here .[2] The Puthanalakkal Bhagavathi temple and the Kalavela and Pooram associated with it is one of the largest festivals in the region.[3] The town is located about 43 km (27 mi) west of the district headquarters at
Palakkad on
State Highway 53.
History
Cherpulassery (Cher- east side of pulasseri) was the seat of Nedungethirppad,[4] the chief of Nedunganad, one of the principalities mentioned in the Chera inscriptions.[5] The Nedunganad Swaroopam dynasty, held sway over the present-day
Pattambi and
OttapalamTaluks till it was first conquered by Valluvanad in the early parts of 15th century, and immediately afterwards by the
Zamorin of
Calicut.[6] The Zamorin appointed his local chieftain at Tharakkal Variyam to rule the area.[6] The Nedunganad Taluk was merged into
Walluvanad Taluk in 1860 as a revenue division of
Malabar District during
British regime,[7] and later became part of Ottapalam taluk.[6]
Demographics
As of 2011[update] India
census, Cherpulassery had a population of 41,267 with 19,808 males and 21,459 females.[8]
Transport
Cherpulassery is well connected by bus with the nearby towns of
Ottapalam,
Pattambi,
Shornur and
Perinthalmanna, all of which are at a distance of 17 kms from here. There are also regular bus services to
Mannarkkad and
Palakkad.
The nearest major railway station is the
Shoranur junction railway station. Other stations include Ottapalam and Pattambi ; all of which are at equal distances from Cherpulassery.