Kerala at a glance

Location : Southwestern tip of India
Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
Area : 38, 863 sq km. (1.27% of India's land area)
Mother tongue: Malayalam
Other Languages: English, Hindi, Tamil, etc.

Religion : Hinduism, Christianity, Islam
Currency : Indian Rupee (INR)
Summer : February - May (24 - 330C)
Monsoon : June - September (22 - 280C)
Winter : October - January (22 - 320C)
Tourist Season: October - May
Peak Season: November - January

The highest peak : Anamudi
Number of rivers : 44
The longest river : The Periyar
Number of Districts : 14
The largest District : Idukki
The smallest District : Alappuzha
Most Populous District : Malappuram
Least Populous District : Wyanad

Districts 

Thiruvananthapuram(Trivandrum), Kollam (Quilon), Alappuzha(Alleppey), Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur(Trichur), Palakkad(Palghat), Malappuram, Wayanad, Kozhikode(Calicut), Kannur(Cannanore), Kasaragod

Major Cities : Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode

Taluks : 61
Revenue Villages : 1452
City Corporations : 5
Grama Panchayat : 991
Block Panchayat : 152
District Panchayat : 14

Population : 3,18,38,619
Density of Population : 819 per sq kms
Kerala's Share in the National Population : 3.1 per cent
District Average : 22.74 lakhs (2.274 millions)
Sex Ratio : 1058 women for 1000 men

Literacy Rate : 90.92 per cent
Male Literacy Rate : 94.20 per cent
Female Literacy Rate : 87.86 per cent

Educational Infrastructure

Lower Primary Schools (First - Fourth classes) : 6712
Upper Primary Schools (Fifth - Seventh classes) : 2951
High Schools (Eighth - Tenth classes) : 2608
Total number of Schools : 12271

Higher Education

Higher Education Universities : 7
Arts and Science Colleges : 286

Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI)

Kerala has had a commendable record in terms of the Physical Quality of Life Index. Indicators of PQLI like infant mortality (11%), female literacy (87.86%), and life expectancy at birth for males (68.23) and females (73.62), are well above all levels. The major reason for this achievement is Kerala's focus on the service sector. About 37% of the total annual expenditure of the State is earmarked for health and education. Another reason for this is the existence of a larger network of hospital infrastructure under the Directorate of Health Services with 933 primary health centres and 5094 sub centres.

Health Care Infrastructure

Immunisation has been near total in the year 2002 - 03.
T.T for Pregnant Women : 86.1%
T.T for 5 year old : 89.2%
T.T for 10 year old : 98.1%
T.T for 16 year old : 95%
DPT : 95.8%
BCG : 103%
Polio : 95.3%
Anti-measles : 90.6%
Rate of Diseases per 1000 People -
Leprosy : 0.66
Malaria : 0.36
Filaria : 1.28
Tuberculosis : 0.70

Transport

Air: There are three international airports in the state. They are at Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode and Nedumbassery ( Kochi ), operating international flights and domestic flights.
Road and Rail : The state is well connected by rail and road.

Seaports

Major : Kochi
Minor : Beypore ( Kozhikode ), Alappuzha, Kollam

Major Beaches

Kovalam, Varkala, Fort Kochi , Kappad and Bekal

Major Wild Life Sanctuaries

Thekkady (Periyar), Parambikkulam, Wayanad, Silent Valley , Aralm, Peechi-Vazhani, Chimani, Shenduruny, Idukki, Chinnar, Peppara, Neyyar

Bird Sanctuaries

Thattekad, Kumarakom

Major Hill Stations

Ponmudi, Peerumade, Thekkady, Munnar and Wayanad

Farm / Cash Crops

Rubber, Coffee, Tea, Spices, Pepper, Cashew, Coconut, Arecanut and Rice

Exports 

Marine, Coir, Handicrafts, Spices, Food and other products

Major Industries

Tourism, Information Technology, Fertilizers, Oil Refining and Power Generation, Ship Building , Machine Tools, Electronics, Cables, Rubber.