Description of the attraction
The longest lake in India - Vembanad - is located in its southern state of Kerala, also known as Vembanad Kayal or Kol. In addition, it is also the largest lake in the state. Since it is located in several districts of Kerala at once, it is divided into several parts: the part located in Kuttanad is called Punnamada, and the part in the city of Kochi is Lake Kochi.
It is on the waters of Punnamada that the Jawaharlal Nehru water races are held.
In general, Vembanad is a large water system, which includes several small islands and peninsulas, and covers an area of more than 2033 sq. km, which, in turn, makes this system the largest in the country. Its length is 96 km, and its width is 14 km. Almost the entire territory is located at sea level and only about 400 sq. km - below.
Vembanad is separated from the Arabian Sea by many narrow barrier islands. In addition, the lake itself is conditionally divided into 2 parts by the Thanneermukkom dam, the length of which is 1252 kilometers. It was created with the aim of preventing the flooding of the lowlands of the city of Kuttanada with sea water. But it not only made it possible to free up the territory for fields, but also provided almost the entire state with clean and fresh water.
Due to the beauty of the lake and its surroundings, this place has become one of the main attractions of Kerala, the Kumarakaom Tourist Village, located on the eastern shore of the lake, is especially popular among tourists. It is on its territory that the famous bird sanctuary of the same name is located.
Also, Lake Vembanad is famous for its floating houses, or, as they are called there, Kettuvallamami. There are a huge number of them and they not only transport passengers from island to island, but are also a kind of mini-hotels.
