The Nehru Trophy Vallam Kali is a popular Boat Race held in the Punnamada Lake near Alappuzha, Kerala, India.  The race is conducted on second Saturday of August every year which is a major tourist attraction.Unfortunately with deep sorrow I must say that, "I Missed" it this year!

Me and my friend Durai reached Alappuzha by 11.30. Our colleague, Ajith Mettutharayil had arranged the entry passes for both of us so that we did not have to wait at the never ending queue. 

The history of the Nehru Trophy Boat Race is associated with the visit of late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India to Alappuzha. He chanced a trip from Kottayam to Alappuzha by boat, through water logged Kuttanad.

 A pageantry of boats accompanied him on this trip. The first race  once conducted in 1952 in honour of Panditji who visited Alappuzha was an impromptu.

The major attraction of the boat race is the competition of snake boats,chundanvallams or snake boats. Chundans (snake boats) are an impressive sight, measuring over 100 feet in length, with a raised prow. They were called snake boats by the former colonial rulers, who based the name on a native boat found in Norway,although Kerala's Chundans bear  little resemblance to their European namesakes.

Waiting moments

All setting up for the Mass Drill

Other categories of boats that participate in various events of the race are: Churulan Vallam, Iruttukuthy Vallam, Odi Vallam, Veppu Vallam (Vaipu Vallam), Vadakkanody Vallam and Kochu Vallam.

Churulans are pleasure boats and they are considered to be the conveyance of rich people in olden days. The Churulan Boats vary in length from 12 ½ to 20 ¼ Koles and their crew ranges from 10 to 36.(One koles being equivalent to 24 inches)

Oadis or Iruttukuthies have a different origin. They were used for smuggling. It is to be noted, they are seen in plenty in the costal areas near Cochin and suburbs. Their very design is for speed. Both the ends are alike. Maneuverability is little, practically nil. They are never turned and rowed up only in shuttle between, by turning round the rowers. The Odi, also called Cheru Chudan has a length of 28 ¼ to 32 ¼ Koles and has 40 to 60 rowers. 


Veppu Vallams (Parunthuvalans) are said to be boats that were used to carry stores for the soldiers on board the Chundans.  "Vaipu" became Veppu" by usage. Vaipu in Malayalam means cooking. The design and appearance of these vehicles differ from all other race boats. The length of Parunthuvalan varies from 28 ¼ to 32 ¼ Koles and it accommodates 28 to 36 rowers.

Chundans are supposed to be Navy boats of Chempakasserry rulers. It has got a length of more than a hundred feet and usually more than a hundred people are on board. Both the ends of the boats are raised from water level. The rear end has a height of about twenty feet from the surface of water. There are nearly eighty six people that are rowers, ten to fifteen  people are to give the rhythm and four of them are to steer the vessel. It is to be specially noted that the Chundans have the maximum maneuverability among all sorts of race boats.

Pambadum Shola National Park, Munnar

Pampadum Shola is a prominent hill station in Kerala, which is 35 km away from the Munnar town in Idukki district. The place is is located at the eastern part of Southern Western Ghats of Kerala on the way to Vattavada. The green meadows, clear blue sky, clean air and the thick foliage are some specialties we can feel here. The forest here is a continuous patch, which is home to diverse habitat types, including rare flora and fauna. Around 22 species of trees, 74 species of herbs and shrubs and 16 species of climbers have been spotted here. The fauna wealth includes 14 species of birds, 9 species of mammals, 100 species of butterflies and 93 species of moths.

We went their as part of our Employee Engagement Programe.The main purpose behind arranging the camp was to create an environmental awareness among all and to create a rapport between staff at different departments. The camp was organized in co operation with Department of Wild Life and Forest, Munnar.

The entire team was divided into four groups and we started the journey from Ernakulam on February 21^st by 2 p.m. We were expecting to reach Munnar by 6 p.m. but ride was delayed due to traffic on the way and we reached the destination by 9 p.m. Most of us were tired due to the tedius journey.

On reaching the camp location everyone was overwhelmed by the sight there. A group of gaur were resting on the courtyard. Everyone jumped out of car and started clicking photos. We have been told that we were lucky to see these gaurs because they were coming there after a long time.

We went to sleep after having dinner. Sleeping at dormitory was quite interesting that nobody was sleeping…instead making some different noices and comments each other…

Most of the team members woke up by 6 a.m. for the morning walk. The early morning view was beautiful that the surroundings were full of mist and sun rays coming through it… 

No Electricity…No mobile coverage.. that was the specialty there… Now a days we cannot even imagine a life without these..We enjoyed the real freedom there.

   

For breakfast we had chappathi and egg curry. After breakfast, we headed towards the Forest Office for trekking. There were two guides with us and they were explaining about the forest, different animals etc… At certain places they showed us the footprints of different animals.

Other animals commonly found in the park are elephant, gaur, wild boar, sambar and common langur. Few of us were lucky to have a glimpse of sambar and Nilgiri Marten Just before the trekking. 

The Nilgiri Marten is the only species of marten found in southern India. It occurs in the hills of the Nilgiris and parts of the Western Ghats.

   

Few of the members were enjoying the trekking for the first time and they enjoyed it to the maximum. We reached back camp by 12.30 p.m.Even though everyone was bit tired after the trekking, all joined together to make the lunch. After the lunch every one visited the nearby places in small groups..

Myself and three of my collegeus went to Munnar Town to purchase some items for the dinner. Nobody had taken the camera since the purchase was the only purpose..but suddenly we come across a group of elephants...

Me and Jithin ran to that area...we had to manage the scene with our mobile cam.

We were back to Camp by 5 p.m. and after tea everyone started preparing for the bigger one…

few were busy to prepare food for dinner (dinner was splendid with chicken curry and chicken fry) rest  joined to prepare for the camp fire…

 

Camp fire started with a small inaugural ceremony and the Forest Officer Mr. Binny took class on wild life and shared his experience inside forest. Everyone enjoyed the songs sung and danced around the around the fire. Most of participants were telling that it was cherishing the college days memories. After campfire everyone went to sleep by 12 p.m. 

Third day morning few of the camp members went for a short trekking near the camp.

This tree is said to be one of the oldest and rarest tree species on earth which once co-existed with Dinosaurs.

After having breakfast everyone gather for the closing ceremony. Everyone was sharing their happy moments and later on paused for Group Photo. Camp has come to an end officially and team started their return journey. 

It was with the great support of Mr Binny, Forest Officer and his staff, we could make this camp a memorable event in our life...

On the way...view from Kundala Lake..

In returns we just visited Mannavan Chola, another view point which is about 8 km from Kundala Lake.

a view from the Watch Tower

ACCESS
Road: Pampadum Shola is nearly 35 Km from Munnar town and can be reached from Kochi ( 135 Km), and Kottayam (148 Mk) by Road. The Kochi - Kodaikanal highway passes through this National Park.
Air: The Park is accessible from Cochin (Kerala) and Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) airports, which are located at about 170 Km and 160 Km respectively.
Rail: The nearest railway station in Kerala is Aluva (180 Km) and Udumalpet (110 Km) in Tamil Nadu.

Nature Camp can be arranged here for which permission need to be taken from Forest & Wildlife Department.