Maanaanchira
Encyclopedia
Mananchira is a man-made freshwater lake situated in the centre of the city of Kozhikode
(Calicut) in Kerala
, southern India. The lake is 3.49 acre
s (14,120 m2) in area, is rectangular in shape and is fed by a natural spring.
Mananchira was built as a bathing pool by the Zamorin Mana Vikrama, the feudal ruler of Kozhikode in around the 14th century. The laterite
obtained from excavating the tank was used to construct two palaces to the east and west.
In the late 19th century, Calicut's municipal council decreed that the lake was to be reserved exclusively for drinking purposes, and prohibited its use for bathing, washing and recreational activities—a ruling that has remained in place ever since. The lake is an important source of drinking water for Kozhikode, but is susceptible to pollution from municipal sewage, domestic waste, and pollutants from nearby textile factories. An analysis of the lake in 2000 by scientists from the Central Water Analysis Laboratory and Pondicherry Central University found that the lake was particularly bacteriologically contaminated during the monsoon
season, and was highly alkaline afterwards.
Mananchira Square, a park complex surrounding the lake was opened in 1994.
Kozhikode
Kozhikode During Classical antiquity and the Middle Ages, Kozhikkode was dubbed the "City of Spices" for its role as the major trading point of eastern spices. Kozhikode was once the capital of an independent kingdom of the same name and later of the erstwhile Malabar District...
(Calicut) in Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, southern India. The lake is 3.49 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (14,120 m2) in area, is rectangular in shape and is fed by a natural spring.
Mananchira was built as a bathing pool by the Zamorin Mana Vikrama, the feudal ruler of Kozhikode in around the 14th century. The laterite
Laterite
Laterites are soil types rich in iron and aluminium, formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are rusty-red because of iron oxides. They develop by intensive and long-lasting weathering of the underlying parent rock...
obtained from excavating the tank was used to construct two palaces to the east and west.
In the late 19th century, Calicut's municipal council decreed that the lake was to be reserved exclusively for drinking purposes, and prohibited its use for bathing, washing and recreational activities—a ruling that has remained in place ever since. The lake is an important source of drinking water for Kozhikode, but is susceptible to pollution from municipal sewage, domestic waste, and pollutants from nearby textile factories. An analysis of the lake in 2000 by scientists from the Central Water Analysis Laboratory and Pondicherry Central University found that the lake was particularly bacteriologically contaminated during the monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
season, and was highly alkaline afterwards.
Mananchira Square, a park complex surrounding the lake was opened in 1994.