Udupi (Tulu/Kannada/Konkani:ಉಡುಪಿ) is a city and the
headquarters of the Udupi District
in the Indian state
of Karnataka
. Udupi is famous for the
Krishna temple located here. It also lends its name
to the
Udupi cuisine which is famous
across the world.
Etymology
It is widely believed that the name of Udupi was derived from its
Tulu name
Odipu.
The Tulu name in turn
is associated with a temple at Malpe
, devoted to
Vadabhandeshwara. Another story is that the name Udupi came
from the combination of the Sanskrit words
Udu and
Pa, which mean "stars" and "lord." According to legend,
the moon's light was once reduced due to a curse by King Daksha,
whose 27 daughters (the 27 stars, according to
Hindu astrology) were married to the moon.
The moon prayed to Lord Shiva to get back its original shine.
Lord Shiva was pleased with the moon's
prayer and restored its shine. Legend says that the moon and his
wives made their prayer at the Chandramouleeshwara temple at Udupi,
creating a
linga that can be seen even today.
According to this story, therefore,
Udupi means the land
of the "lord of the stars," the moon.
Religious significance
- See also Udupi Krishna Temple
Udupi is known for the Krishna Mutt (Temple of
Lord Krishna). The Krishna Mutt was founded by the
Vaishnavite saint
Shri Madhvacharya in the 13th
century.
According
to history, there was a storm in the sea at Malpe. Shri
Madhvacharya was on the shore at the time and saw a ship which was
in trouble. He helped the ship reach the shore to safety. The
sailors were very grateful to him and gave him deities of Lord
Krishna and Lord Balarama. He did the pratishte (installation
ceremony) of the deity of Lord Balarama near Malpe. This temple is
known as Vadabhandeshwara. He brought the deity of Lord Krishna and
did the pratishte at Udupi. This temple is known as Krishna
Mutt.
Shri Madhvacharya handed over the puja and administration of
Krishna Mutt to his 8 disciples. Each of them set up their Mathas
(monasteries) around the Krishna Mutt. These are known as the Ashta
Mathas.
The Mathas are Pejavara, Puttige, Palimaru, Adamaru, Sodhe, Kaniyooru, Shirur and Krishnapura
. Since then, the daily
sevas (offerings to god) and administration of the
Krishna Mutt are managed by the
Ashta
Mathas (eight temples). Each of the Ashta Mathas performs
temple management activities for two years in a cyclical order.
During the
Paryaya festival, held every two
years, the temple management is handed over to the next Matha. Each
of the Mathas is headed by a
Swami, who will
be in charge of the temple during his Paryaya.
In the 16th century during
Sri
Vaadiraja's administration,
Kanakadasa an ardent believer of God came to
Udupi to worship Lord Krishna. He was not allowed inside the temple
since he was from the caste other than Brahmin, as during that time
only Brahmin's had the privilege of entering the temple to offer
pooja to the God. He tried to see Lord Krishna from a small window,
but was only able to see Lord Krishna from the back. It is believed
that Sri Krishna, pleased by the bhakti (devotion) of Kanakadasa
turned to face the window. This window came to be known as Kanakana
Kindi. To this day, the deity of Lord Krishna faces the back of the
temple towards the Kanakana Kindi. All Hindu temples have their
Vigraha (Deity) facing the entrance of the temple, except Krishna
Mutt.
Naalbeedi or Car street of Udupi
Kanakana Kindi is decorated with carvings depicting the ten
incarnations of
Vishnu. Through the nine
small holes of the window we see the deity of Sri Krishna as a very
young boy. He holds the churning rod in His right hand and rope in
his left. The Krishna Matha is known throughout the world for its
religious customs, traditions, and learning in
Dvaita or
Tatvavaada
philosophy. It is also the centre of Daasa Sahitya, a form of
literature that originated in Udupi.
Festivals
There are several festivals during which huge crowds of locals as
well as outsiders gather in Udupi.
The
Paryaya festival is held once every two
years in the even years like 2006, 2008, 2010. The paryaya is held
on 18 January on even years,starting early morning at around 3.00
A.M. During this festival there are tableaus from various groups
which gather in Udupi in the early hours of the morning. People
gather on the streets to watch them.
Krishna Janmashtami is held every year. During this festival groups
of men wear "Pili Vesha (Tulu)/Huli vesha (Kannada)" Tiger costume
and other costumes. They visit and collect donations from shops and
houses around Udupi with a lot of enthusiasm among the participants
and general public.
Bhajana Saptaha which is held in Sri Laxmi Venkatesh Temple.
Saptaha means one week. During this time Bhajans are sung
continuously day and night for 7 days. This falls during August of
every year.
Rathothsava (Chariot festival) is held in almost all occasions
around Rathabeedi. During this time the ratha (chariot) of lord
krishna is pulled by locals around Rathabeedi.
Demographics
As of the 2001 India
census, Udupi had a
population of 113,039. Males constituted 49% of the population and
females 51%. The average literacy rate was 83%, higher than the
national average of 59.5%; male literacy was 86% and female
literacy 81%. Eight percent of the population was under 6 years of
age.
Bunts,
Mogaveeras,
Billavas,
Konkani Goud Saraswat Brahmins, Rajapur
Saraswat, Kudalkar,
Daivajna,
Shivalli Brahmins,
Kota
brahmins, Koragas and
Mangalorean Catholics are some of the
prominent communities in Udupi.
Udupi, which previously had a Town Municipal Council now has a City
Municipal Council which came into existence in 1995. Areas around
Udupi, such as Manipal, Malpe and Santhekatte were merged to form
the City Municipal Council.
Udupi was carved out as a separate district from the erstwhile
Dakshina Kannada district on 25 August 1997.
Udupi, Kundapura
and Karkala were bifurcated from the Dakshina
Kannada District and the Udupi District was formed.
The Udupi Urban Development Authority (UUDA) is responsible for
town planning and other related development activities in Udupi and
the surrounding areas.
Climate
The climate in Udupi is hot in summers and pretty good in winter.
During summers(from March to May) the temperature reaches up to
40°C and in winters (from December to February) it is usually
between 32°C and 20°C.
The
Monsoon period is from June to September
with one of the highest rainfall in India averaging more than
4000mm every year and heavy winds.
Language
Tulu is the most widely spoken
language in Udupi. Apart from this the other languages are
Kannada,
Konkani,
Nawayath,
and
Beary bashe spoken by
Bearys.
Cuisine
The term
Udupi (also
Udipi) is also synonymous
with delicious vegetarian food now found all over world (see
Udupi cuisine). The origin of this
cuisine is linked to Krishna Matha (Mutt). Lord Krishna is offered
food of different varieties every day, and there are certain
restrictions on ingredients during Chaturmasa (a four-month period
during the monsoon season). These restrictions coupled with the
requirement of variety led to innovation, especially in dishes
incorporating seasonal and locally available materials. This
cuisine was developed by
Shivalli Madhwa Brahmins who cooked food for Lord Krishna,
and at Krishna Matha in Udupi, the food is provided free.
Transportation
Udupi-Manipal road
National Highway 17 passes through Udupi.
Other significant
roads include the State Highways to Karkala
and Dharmastala
and to Shimoga
and Sringeri
. The NH 17 provides a link to Mangalore
and Karwar
via
Kundapur. Private as well as government buses connect
Udupi to various parts of Karnataka. Udupi has a railway station on the
Konkan Railway.
The nearest
international airport to Udupi is Mangalore
Airport
, which is 50 km away.
City and suburban transport is available for travel within Udupi
and suburbs. The buses originate from the suburban bus stand (City
Bus Stand). There are different route numbers.
The nearest harbour/port to Udupi is Malpe, which is 5 km
away. and Gangoli (Kundapur) which is 36 km from Udupi, New
Mangalore Port/Harbour is 50 km away from Udupi.
Economy and industry
Udupi is becoming a major city of Karnataka. People here have the
highest average per-capita income in Karnataka according to a
recent survey by a private firm. . Poverty rate in Udupi is fairly
low when compared to Bangalore and other districts of Karnataka.
People in Udupi lead a high standard of life.
Udupi is also the birth place of the
Syndicate Bank and
Corporation Bank. Udupi's economy depends
mainly on agriculture and fishing. Small-scale industries like the
cashew industry, and other food industries
and milk cooperatives are the most prominent. There is no
large-scale industry in Udupi.
The Karnataka Government had signed a memorandum of understanding
(MOU) with the Cogentrix Light and Power Industry to set up a
thermal power plant in the district at Nandikur
. However, because of stiff opposition from
citizens and environmentalist groups, the project has been
temporarily suspended.
An attempt by the Nagarjuna Power
Corporation to set up a similar plant at nearby Padubidri
also met strong opposition.
Udupi is also home to a well-known software company
Robosoft Technologies, which is into
product development for the Mac OS and Windows platforms. It is
located at New Udupi(Santhekatte, Kallianpur). The company has
brought Udupi a significant place in the global IT scenario.
Art and culture
Bhuta Kola,
Aati
kalenja,
Karangolu, and
Nagaradhane are some of the cultural traditions
of Udupi. The residents celebrate festivals such as
Diwali,
Dusshera and
Christmas. Folk arts like
Yakshagana are also popular.
Rathabeedhi Geleyaru, a local
non-profit organisation, was founded to encourage creative
pursuits, especially those that keep alive the traditions of the
region. Its primary focus has been drama.
Future Developments
Udupi is getting modernized day by day retaining its image as a
pilgrimage centre. Lot of developments are taking place in the city
and many projects are in pipeline.
Adi Udupi-Kadiyali Road passing through Kalsanka (State Highway 25
Malpe-Molakalmuru) which is an arterial road of the city is being
widened into a 80 feet four lane double road. This project has been
a long pending demand of the Udupi citizens. The widening is
currently under progress. The stretch between City Bus Station and
Kadiyali is opened for traffic after widening. The project is
likely to be extended up to Manipal. The widening of this road has
resulted in increase of land prices in the surroundings.
The
widening of NH 17 from Surathkal
to Kundapur to a four lane highway will result in
widening of the stretch which passes through the city. Two
flyovers at Kinnimulky and Karavali Junction will be coming up and
are expected to ease the traffic jams to some extent at those
junctions.
Due to large inflow of foreign and NRI students to Manipal, Udupi
is expected to get an airport for landing ATR type aircrafts. Capt.
Gopinath, Chairman of Deccan Aviation has stressed on the need for
an airport here.
A monorail project has been proposed for Udupi along with Mysore
and Mangalore by Chief Minister of Karnataka Mr. B S Yadyurappa in
addition to Bangalore. This is due to increasing traffic within the
city day by day. The feasibility study is yet to be
conducted.
Private real estate builders and developers have proposed building
shopping malls and multiplexes in future due to high average per
capita income of the people here. The boom has already started with
the hypermarket "Big Bazaar" which has already opened its outlet in
Udupi.
See also
References
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