Kottayam

A town known for its rubber plantations, lakes, churches and its flourishing publishing industry, Kottayam is one of the most prosperous towns in Kerala. The alluring backwaters of Kumarakom have made it an ideal tourist destination

. Panoramic backwaters, lush paddy fields, highlands, hummocks and hillocks, extensive rubber plantations, places associated with many legends and a literate people have given Kottayam district the sobriquet: The land of letters, legends, latex and lakes. Kottayam Town is the first town in India to have achieved 100% literacy (a remarkable feat achieved as early as in 1989)

. . The first printing press in Kerala was established (CMS Press) here in 1821 by Rev.Benjamin Baily. The first college in the State (CMS College) was also started here in 1840. Maiden printed Malayalam-English and English-Malayalam Dictionaries were published from Kottayam in 1846 and 1847 respectively. The first and only Cooperative Society of writers, authors and publishers (SPCS), for publishing books and periodicals was set up here in 1945. Kottayam is the first town in India selected by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, to be transformed as an Eco City

.Kottayam is an important commercial centre of Kerala, situated in the southern part of India. Sandwiched between tranquil palm-lined backwaters on the west and the Western ghats on the east, Kottayam is among the state's most mountainous regions, providing some of Kerala's finest natural scenes. The town is surrounded by some of the most fertile and beautiful scenery in the state with hills to its East and backwaters to the west. Kottayam is the ideal take off point for visits to Peermedu, Munnar, Idukki, Thekkady, Ernakulam and the temple city of Madurai. Most of India's natural rubber originates from the lands of well-kept plantations of Kottayam, also home to the Rubber Board, one of the country's primary commodities board. .