Mangalore (IPA:\ˈmaŋ-gə-ˌlȯr\; Kannada: ಮಂಗಳೂರು, Mangalūru; Tulu: Kudla, ಕುಡ್ಲ; Konkani: Kodial, ಕೊಡಿಯಾಲ್; Beary: Maikala, ಮೈಕಲ) is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is situated on the west coast of the country on the Arabian Sea, with the Western Ghats to Mangalore's east.

Mangalore is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada (formerly South Canara) district in the southwestern corner of Karnataka, and developed as a port on the Arabian Sea – to this day it remains one of the major ports of India. Lying on the backwaters formed by the Netravati and Gurupura rivers, it has long been a roadstead along the Malabar Coast. Its port handles 75% of India’s coffee exports and the bulk of its cashew nuts.

Mangalore is known for its beaches, temples and industries. There are several languages spoken, including Tulu, Konkani, Kannada, and Beary. The landscape is dominated by the characteristic coconut palms accompanying rolling hills and streams flowing into the sea and dotted with tiled-roof buildings, topped with the well-known Mangalore tiles made from the local hard red clay and typically walled with laterite blocks. Older houses are commonly found with elaborate woodwork.

Etymology

The city of Mangalore was named after the local Hindu deity Mangaladevi. Matsyendranath, one of the important protagonist of the Nath cult had arrived here with the princess of Kerala, Premaladevi. He converted the princess to his cult and named her Mangaladevi. They could not proceed further as Mangaladevi died after a brief period of illness and a temple was consecrated in her name at Bolar, which was later renovated by the Alupa King Kundavarma in 968 AD.

One of the earliest reference to this city name is made by the Pandyan King Chettian, who called the city as Managalapuram in 715 AD. The chronicles of the 11th-century Arabian traveler Ibn Batuta refer to Mangalore as Manjarur. In 1526 AD, the Portuguese took possession of Mangalore, thus corrupting the word Mangaluru to its present form Mangalore. After subsequent British occupation in 1799, this Portuguese catchword was later assimilated in the English language.

The cosmopolitan nature of the city is reflected in the names used by the various linguistic groups in this region. In Tulu, the city is known as Kudla meaning "junction" as the city is situated at the confluence of the Netravati and Phalguni rivers. Konkanis use the variant Kodial. The Bearys call it Maikala. Kannadigas use the name Mangaluru for the city. On the occasion of Suvarna Karnataka in 2006, the Karnataka state government stated that the city would be renamed Mangalooru in English.

History

According to Hindu mythology, the region covering Mangalore was a part of the Parashurama Shristi, the coastal belt reclaimed from the sea by the legendary sage Parashurama. As for other mythological associations, Rama was the Lord of Tulu Nadu during the days of the Ramayana. Sahadeva, the youngest of the Pandavas, was the Governor of this place during the days of the Mahabharatha. The Pandavas lived in Banavasi during their exile visiting Sarapady near Mangalore. Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata also appears to have visited this place when he travelled from Gokarna to Adur near Kasargod. Great sages like Kanva, Vysa, Vashista, Vishvamitra had spent their days of meditation here.

There are many historical references regarding to the town. Cosmas Indicopleustes, a Greek monk referred to the port of Mangarouth. Pliny, a Roman historian made references of a place called Nithrias, and Greek historian Ptolemy referred to Nitre. Both the references were probably to the River Netravathi flowing through Mangalore. Ptolemy had also mentioned about this city in his works as Maganoor. Roman writer Arien called Mangalore Mandegora. A 7th-century copper inscription referred to Mangalore as Mangalapura. The Kadambas had ruled this place from 200 to 600 A.D. The ancient history proved that Mangalore had been the capital of Alupa dynasty until the 14th century. A traveler, Ibn Battuta who had visited the town in 1342 stated that he arrived at a place named Manjurun or Mandjaur situated on a large estuary. He had mentioned that the town was a trading centre and Persian and Yemeni merchants disembarked at Mangalore. In 1448, Abdul Razak, a Persian Ambassador passed via this route to Vijayanagar. He said that he had seen a glorious temple here. The inscriptions at Moodabidri stated a King Mangaras Odeya was the governor of Mangaluru Raajya during the reign of Vira Harihararaya II of Vijayanagar dynasty. Another inscription stated that Deeva Raaja Odeya ruled the Mangaluru Raajya in 1429 during the reign of Vijayanagara King Veera Devaraya II. Various powers have fought for control over Mangalore. The major dynasties that ruled the town till the arrival of Portuguese were the Western Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas and Hoysalas.

The European influence in Mangalore can be traced back to the year 1498, when the Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama had landed at St Mary's Islands near Mangalore on his voyage from Portugal to India. In 1520 the Portuguese took control of the area from Vijayanagara rulers. In 1526, the Portuguese viceroy Lopo de Sampaio succeeded in defeating the Bangara king and his allies and the trade passed out of Muslim hands into Portuguese hands. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Portuguese commanded the Arabian Sea from the port of Mangalore and they intruded actively in the affairs of the local chieftains. In 1695, the town was burnt by the Arabs in retaliation for Portuguese restrictions on Arab trade. In the middle of the 17th century, Venkatappa Nayaka of the Ikkeri family stormed the Portuguese bastion and defeated them. Their rule continued till 1762. During his regime, the city was caught in the crossfires of Anglo-Mysore relations. The Second Anglo-Mysore War ended with the Treaty of Mangalore which was signed in Mangalore between Tippu Sultan and the British East India Company on 11 March 1784.Mangalore is located at in the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka state in India. It has an average elevation of 99 metres (325 feet). It is situated on the west coast of India, with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Western Ghats to the east. Mangalore City spans an area of 111.18 km² (42.93 mi²). The Gurupura and Netravati rivers effectively encircle the city by flowing around its north and south respectively. Both rivers form an estuary at the southern side of the city and flow into the Arabian sea. Mangalore experiences moderate to gusty winds during day time and gentle winds at night. The geology of the city is characterized by hard laterite in hilly tracts and sandy soil along the seashore. The Government of India has identified Mangalore as a moderately earthquake-prone urban centre and categorized the city in the Seismic III Zone as per the vulnerability atlas of 2002.

Mangalore lies on the backwaters formed by the Netravati and Gurupura rivers. The city has long been a roadstead along the Malabar Coast.

Mangalore experiences tropical climate. Summer and winter are similar in the city, and both are quite gratifying with an average temperature ranging between to . Humidity is a problem here as it reaches an average of about 78%. The annual precipitation in Mangalore is 4242.5 millimetres (167 in).

The most pleasant months in Mangalore are from December to February – during which time the humidity and temperature are the lowest by Mangalore standards. Rain measuring up to falls during the period from June to September. The rains subside in September, with the occasional rainfall in October.

Economy

Mangalore's economy is dominated by the agricultural processing and port-related activities. New Mangalore Port is India's 9th largest cargo handling port handling 75% of India’s coffee exports and the bulk of its cashew nuts. Mangalore is home to the automobile leaf spring industry. Imports include tropical timber from South-East Asia for furniture making. The city is also one of the chief entry points for wood to South India. Beedi rolling is a cottage industry well-known in Mangalore.

Three dedicated IT parks are upcoming. Two of those parks are under construction, one Export Promotion Industrial Park (EPIP) at Ganjimutt and a second IT Special Economic Zone (SEZ) near Mangalore University. A third IT SEZ is being proposed at Ganjimutt. Another IT SEZ of 2 million square feet (180,000 m²) is under construction at Thumbe by the BA group. The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) plans to invest over Rs. 35,000 crore in a new 15 million tonne refinery, petrochemical plant and power and LNG plants at the Mangalore Special Economic Zone. This will be the first Petroleum, Chemicals, Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) of the country, with similar PCPIR's existing at Nayachar in West Bengal, Panipat in Haryana and Achutapuram in Andhra Pradesh. Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd a special purpose vehicle under the Oil Industry Development Board , has decided to construct strategic crude oil reserves at Mangalore and two other places in India. Out of the proposed 5 Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MMTPA) storage 1.5 MMTPA would be at Mangalore, 1 MMTPA at Visakhapatnam, and 2.5 MMTPA at Padur near Mangalore. According to an International edition of India Today (November 28 – December 4, 2006), Mangalore is the fastest growing non metro in South India followed by Kochi.

Corporation Bank, Canara Bank and Vijaya Bank were the three nationalised banks established in Mangalore during the first half of the 20th century. Karnataka Bank, founded in Mangalore was one of the largest banks not taken over by the Government.

The boat building and fishing industry have been core businesses in Mangalore for generations. Mangalore also has a fishing port, also called as Old Mangalore port or Hale Bandaru(in Kannada) located at Bunder where a number of mechanised boats used for fishing are anchored. The fishing industry employs thousands of people, and their products are exported from around the region. Mangalorean firms have had a major presence in the tile, beedi, coffee and cashew nut industry, although the tile industry has been in decline due to the predominance of concrete in the modern construction. As of the same census, the urban area had a population of 538,560. and the area under the Mangalore City Corporation had a population of 419,306. As of the same extrapolations, the World Gazetteer estimated the population of the Mangalore urban area to be 603,269, making it the 61th most populated urban area in India. The number of males were 200,234, constituting 50% of the population and the number of females were 198,511, constituting 50% of the population. The Decadal Growth Rate was 45.90. The Birth rate was 13.72%, the Death rate was 3.71% and the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) was 1.24%. Growing number of slums has been a cause of concern in Mangalore. The Mangalore urban area had 32 recognised slums within the City Corporation limits. Nearly 22,000 migrant labourers lived in slums within the city limits.

Mangalore is a multi-cultural and multi-lingual city that speaks four local languages Tulu, Konkani, Kannada and Beary apart from Hindi, Urdu and English. Hinduism is followed by large number of the population. Among the indigenous Hindus, the Dalits, Mogaveeras, Billavas and Bunts form the largest groups. Kota brahmins, Shivalli Brahmins, Havyaka Brahmins, GSBs (Goud Saraswat Brahmins), Daivajna brahmins and Rajapur Saraswat Brahmins also form a considerable portion of the Hindu population. A significant part of the population of Mangalore consists of followers of Christianity. Konkani-speaking Catholics and Born Again Christians are the highest in number among the Christians, popularly known as Mangalorean Catholics. The Protestants consist of people speaking Kannada. Muslims constitute minority of the population, among them Beary form the 80% of total Muslim population and speak their own dialect called Beary bashe. There is also sizeable group of people who were basically land owners, following Jainism.

Culture

See also: Tulu Nadu (Culture)

A resident of Mangalore is known as a Mangalorean in English, Kudladaru in Tulu, Kodialgharano in Catholic Konkani, Kodialchi or Manglurchi in GSB Konkani and Manglurnavaru in Kannada. The Srimanthi Bai Museum, which is located at Bejai, is the only museum of Mangalore. The Bibliophile's Paradise, a hi-tech public library run by the Corporation Bank, is located at Mannagudda. The Mangala Stadium, which is the only full-fledged stadium in Dakshina Kannada, is located in Mangalore. The Yakshagana is a night-long dance and drama performance practiced in Mangalore with great fanfare. Hulivesha (Tiger dance) is a unique form of folk dance in the city fascinating the young and the old alike, which is performed during Dasara and Krishna Janmashtami. Karadi Vesha (Bear Dance) is one more popular dance performed during Dasara in Mangalore. Bhuta Kola or spirit worship, which is usually done at night is practised here. Kambala or buffalo race is conducted in water filled paddy fields. Korikatta (Cockfight) is another favourite sport for the people. Nagaradhane or Snake worship is practised in the city according to the popular belief of the Naga Devatha to go underground and guard the species on the top.

Paddanas (Oral Epics) which are ballad-like folk epics narrated in Tulu are sung by the community of impersonators together with the rhythmic beats. The Eucharistic Procession is an annual Catholic religious procession led on the first Sunday of the New Year of the Gregorian calendar. Monti Fest is one of the major festivals of the Catholic community, celebrating the Nativity feast and the blessing of new crops. The Jain Milan, a committee comprising of the Jain families of Mangalore, organise the Jain Food Festival annually with a view to bring together all the members of the Jain community. People of all faiths participate in the Mosaru Kudike, which is a part of the celebrations to mark the Krishna Janmashtami festival. The Aati festival, which commences from July 17 and runs up to August 15 is celebrated here to worship a spirit Kalanja, who is in charge of the protection of the village folk during the month of July-August. Annual festivals are promoted during summer each year, to promote Karavali Utsav and Kudlostava which encourages the local cultural events. In 2006, the Tulu film festival was organized in Mangalore.

Mangalorean cuisine is largely influenced by South Indian cuisine. Mangalorean curry uses a lot of coconut and curry leaves. Ginger, garlic and chili is also used in curry. Mangalorean fish curry is known for its taste in the whole of Canara. Dishes of the Tulu community include Kori Rotti, Bangude Pulimunchi, Beeja-Manoli Upkari, Neer dosa, Boothai Gasi, Kadubu, and Patrode. The Konkani community has its specialities that include Daali thoy, beebe-upkari (cashew based), val val, avnas ambe sasam, Kadgi chakko. The Sanna-Dukra Maas (Sanna – idli fluffed with toddy or yeast; Dukra Maas – Pork) of the Catholics and the Mutton Biryani of the Muslims are well-known dishes. An assortment of pickles like happala, sandige and puli munchi are unique to Mangalore. Shendi (toddy), a country liquor prepared from the coconut flower's sap is a well-known liquor of Mangalore.

The Dakshina Kannada District Police is responsible for the law and order maintenance in Mangalore. The department is headed by a Superintendent of Police (SP). Mangalore also hosts the headquarters of the Western Range Police, covering the western districts of Karnataka and is headed by an Inspector General of Police (IGP).

Education

Pre-collegiate medium of instruction in schools is predominantly Kannada, with English and Kannada in the non Government run schools. Other mediums of instruction co-exist along with these two. The medium of instruction in educational institutions after matriculation in colleges is English. Recently, a committee of experts constituted by the Tulu Sahitya Academy suggested the inclusion of Tulu using Kannada script as a medium of instruction in education.

Schools and colleges in Mangalore either are government-run or run by private trusts and individuals. The schools are affiliated either with the Karnataka State Board, Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), or the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) boards. After completing ten years of schooling in secondary education, the students mostly enroll at Higher Secondary School specializing in one of the three streams – Arts, Commerce or Science. Since the 1980s, there have been a large number of professional institutions established in a variety of fields including engineering, medicine, dentistry, Business management and hotel management. These institutions attract students from all over the country due to the quality of their programs.

On 10 September 1980, the Mangalore University was established. It caters to the higher educational needs of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kodagu districts. This University has been Accredited at the 4 Star level by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).

Media

Major national English newspapers like The Hindu, Deccan Herald, Times of India and Indian Express publish Mangalore editions. The Madipu, Mogaveera, Samparka and Saphala are well known Tulu periodicals in Mangalore. Popular Konkani periodicals published in the city are Rakno, Konknni Dirvem and Kannik. Beary periodicals like Jyothi and Swatantra Bharata are also published from Mangalore. Among Kannada newspapers, Udayavani, Vijaya Karnataka, Prajavani, Kannada Prabha and Varthabharathi are popular. Evening newspapers such as Karavali Ale, Mangalooru Mitra, Sanjevani and Jayakirana are also published in the city. The first Kannada newspaper Mangalore Samachara was published from Mangalore in 1843.

The state run, nationally broadcast Doordarshan provides both national and localised television coverage. Cable television providers air cable channels of independently owned private networks. Canara Tv transmits daily video news channels from Mangalore. Mangalore is currently not covered by the Conditional Access System (CAS), but there is a proposal by V4 Media which is the local cable service provider, to provide this service to television viewers in Mangalore sometime in the future. A very small number of people have subscribed to the Direct-to-Home (DTH) transmission service in the city being provided by two national DTH companies, Dish TV and Tata Sky. Cable TV services account for the rest of the users. All India Radio (AIR) has a studio at Kadri that airs program for scheduled hours. Among the private players there are Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM, Big 92.7 FM, Superhitz 93.5 FM and 94.3 Century FM. Mangalore also has access to Commercial radio providers such as WorldSpace, Sirius and XM.

Mangalore is home to the Tulu Film Industry, which is still in its infancy, with only 31 films released to date and an average of about one film released each year. Popular Tulu films are Kadala Mage and Suddha. In addition to this, the city has also contributed towards the Konkani Film Industry. A few Konkani movies have been shot in Mangalore. Tulu dramas are also quite popular among the public. Most of them are played in the Town Hall at Hampankatta.

Transport

Mangalore's location makes it accessible by all forms of transport like road, rail, air and sea. Transport systems in Mangalore include private buses, KSRTC buses, trains, taxis and autorickshaws.

Three National Highways pass through Mangalore. NH-17, which runs from Panvel (in Maharashtra) to Kodungallur Junction (near Edapally in Kerala), passes through Mangalore in a north–south direction, while NH-48 runs eastward to Bangalore. NH-13 runs north-east from Mangalore to Solapur. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has taken the decision to upgrade the national highways connecting New Mangalore Port to Surathkal on NH-17 and B.C. Road junction on NH-48. Under the port connectivity programme of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), a stretch of these highways will be upgraded from two-lane to four-lane roads.

Mangalore's city bus service is operated by private operators, with routes covering the full extent of the city and beyond. There are two distinct sets of routes for the buses, with the city routes being covered by city buses, and the intercity routes being covered by service and express buses. Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) runs the long distance bus services from Mangalore to other parts of the state. White coloured taxis also traverse most of the city. Another mode for local transportation is the autorickshaw.

Some records show that Mangalore had rail connectivity way back in 1907. Mangalore was also the starting point of India’s longest rail route. The city has two railway stations - Mangalore Central (located at Hampankatta) and Mangalore Junction (located at Kankanadi). Many trains connect Shoranur and Coimbatore. A metre gauge railway track was built through the Western Ghats in the east, connecting Mangalore with Hassan. The broad gauge track connecting Mangalore to Bangalore via Hassan is open for freight traffic since May 2006. Mangalore is also connected to Chennai through the Southern Railway. There had been a strong need to connect Mangalore to Mumbai and hence the Konkan Railway came into being. The project was completed in 1998 and since then the travel time to the north of the country has come down considerably.

The Mangalore Harbour provides a connection by sea to the rest of the world. Currently dry, bulk and fluid cargos are handled by the New Mangalore Port. The port is also well equipped to handle Petroleum Oil Lubricants (POL), crude products and LPG containers. It is also the station for the Coast guard. This artificial harbour is India's ninth largest cargo handling port.

Mangalore International Airport (IATA: IXE) is near Bajpe, around north-east of the city centre. It is the second airport in Karnataka to operate flights to international destinations after Bangalore.. There are more than 20 flights per week from this airport carrying more than 7,494 passengers every week.

Utility services

Electricity in Mangalore is regulated through the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) and distribution is through Mangalore Electricity Supply Company (MESCOM). Like many cities in India, Mangalore experiences scheduled and unscheduled power cuts, especially over the summer, to allow electricity providers to meet the consumption demands of households as well as corporations. Major industries like Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) and Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers (MCF) have set up their own captive power plants.

Potable water to the city is supplied by MCC. Almost all water is from the vented dam constructed across the Netravati River at Thumbe. The Karnataka Urban Development and Coastal Environment Management Project (KUDCEMP) aims to improve the safe water supply systems and reduce leakage and losses in the distribution system. The city generates an average of 175 Tons per day (TPD) of wastes which is handled by the Health Department of the Mangalore City Corporation. and Corporation Bank Park at Nehru Maidan to serve as public amenities.

Both GSM and CDMA mobile services are available in the city. The main service providers are BSNL, Airtel, Vodafone, Spice Telecom, Reliance Communications and Tata Indicom. Fixed Line telecom services are offered by BSNL, Tata Indicom, Airtel and Reliance. Mangalore is the headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada Telecom District, the second largest Telecom District in Karnataka. The Telecom Density in the city is 8.74 per 100 population. Prominent Broadband Internet service providers in the city include Tata, Airtel and DataOne by BSNL.

Sister city

Mangalore has one sister city:

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See also

References

Further reading

• M. George Moraes, Mangalore Historical Sketch (1996), Laurier Books Ltd. / AES, ISBN 8120605780
• T. W Venn, Mangalore, ASIN: B0007JYJCO

External links

• Mangalore City Corporation Website
• Mangalore City Website
• Mangalore Portal