Teak, Karmara (Ebony), Wild Jack, Bhogi and many other native trees have disappeared from many areas of Dakshina Kannada district. Vast areas of evergreen forests which once covered this district, have been destructed due to rapid and unplanned urbanisation and hectic commercial activities. The major rivers are Netravathi, Kumaradhara, Phalguni, Shambhavi, Nandini or Pavanje and Payaswini which all join Arabian sea. The district geography consists of sea shore in the west and Western Ghats in the east. Tulu, Konkani, Kannada and Beary Bashe are the most widely spoken language of the district. The Brahmins belong chiefly to the Shivalli, Saraswat, Havyaka, and Kota sub-sections. Other Tuluvas, Brahmins, Holeyas, Vokkaligas, the hill-tribes ( Koragas), Muslims and the Mangalorean Catholics comprise rest of the population. Bunts, Kulala, Mogaveera, Billava, Devadiga s are the major communities of the Tuluva ethinic group. The people who first settled here were called Tuluvas. Dakshina Kannada has a sex ratio of 1018 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 88.62 %. Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 9.8 %. The district has a population density of 457 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,180 /sq mi). This gives it a ranking of 220th in India (out of a total of 640). DemographicsĪccording to the 2011 census Dakshina Kannada has a population of 2,083,625, roughly equal to the nation of Macedonia or the US state of New Mexico. It was renamed as Dakshina Kannada in 1947. It was the undivided Dakshina Kannada district. It was bifurcated in 1859 from Canara district. The district is famous for red clay roof tiles ( Mangalore tiles), cashew nut & its products, banking, education (professional and non professional) and of course for its exotic cuisine. Three taluks of former DK district namely Udupi, Karkala and Kundapura were made into new Udupi district. Later, the Karnataka Government, for the purpose of administration, split the greater Dakshina Kannada district into Udupi and present day Dakshina Kannada districts on 15 August 1997. Kundapura taluk was earlier included in North Kanara, but was re-included in South Kanara later.ĭuring the Reorganisation of States in 1956, Kasaragod was split and transferred to the newly created Kerala state and Dakshina Kannada was transferred to Mysore state (present day Karnataka). In 1860, the British split the area into South Kanara and North Kanara, the former being retained in the Madras Presidency, while the later was made a part of Bombay Province in 1862.
12 Demand for a separate Tulunadu stateīefore 1860, Dakshina Kannada was part of a district called Kanara, which was under a single administration in the Madras Presidency.Important towns in Dakshina Kannada include Mangalore, Bantwal,Vittal, Puttur, Sullia, Moodabidri, Kadaba, Surathkal, Mulki and Dharmasthala. The Alupas who ruled this region between the 8th and 14th century CE as a feudatory of all the major Kannada empires of those times and it is for this reason that the Tulu speaking districts are a part of Karnataka state. Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kasaragod taluk are often called Tulu Nadu, as Tulu is the majority language in the region. It used to include three northern talukas, Udupi, Kundapur and Karkal, but these were separated in August 1997 to form Udupi district. The district is divided into five talukas, Mangalore, Bantwal, Puttur, Sullia, and Belthangady. Dakshina Kannada district has an area 4,866 square kilometres, and a population density of 390 persons per square kilometre. Mangalore is the headquarters and chief city of the district. It is bordered by Udupi District to the north, Chikkamagaluru district to the northeast, Hassan District to the east, Kodagu to the southeast, and Kasaragod District in Kerala to the south. Mangalore, Bantwal, Puttur, Sullia, Belthangadyĭakshina Kannada, also known as South Kanara, is a coastal district in the state of Karnataka in India.