Ulikkal


Ulikkal is a growing town in Kannur District in Kerala. It is the HQ of Ulikkal Panchayath in Iritty Taluk. The town is surrounded by small villages. The people of this area are very adaptable and amicable, who live in harmony, irrespective of religion or culture. Kerala State Hill highway passes through Ulikkal.

Location

Ulikkal is situated 7.5 km north of Taluk HQ Iritty, 49 km from District HQ Kannur and 10 km away from Kootupuzha.

History

This village is near Vayathur village panchayat area and contains the Bythoor or Baithur temple. Bythoorappa Vayathur Kaliyar Shiva Kshethra dating back to more than 300 years is one of the temples in the panchayat, situated on the banks of Vayathur river 3 km from the town. This river starts from Kodagu and flows through Parikkalam and Nuchyad villages. This Eshwara temple is in Kodagu and is a major pilgrimage temple for the Kodavas. The Kodavas and the Malayalis celebrate the annual temple festival together As per tradition. The temple priests of Kodagu were Namboothiri. Kodagu is the district neighbouring Kannur district of which Ulikkal forms a part. The temple Gods of Kodagu are of Kerala origin. Folklore says that the Gods entered Kodagu from Kerala, thousands of years ago, via Vayathur in Kerala and near the Kodagu border. Formerly Ulikkal formed a part of Vayathur.

Places of worship

Ulikkal is a hilly village on the eastern side of Kannur district. The terrain is undulating in nature and the extreme eastern side has forests bordering Karnataka state.

Educational institutions

The national highway passes through Kannur town. Mangalore and Mumbai can be accessed on the northern side and Cochin and Thiruvananthapuram can be accessed on the southern side. The road to the east of Iritty connects to Mysore and Bangalore. The nearest railway station is Kannur on Mangalore-Palakkad line.
The nearest airport is Kannur International Airport 27 km away.Thalassery, Kannur and Taliparamba are approx. 50 km from Ulikkal.