Hosdurg taluk
Hosdurg is one of four taluks that constitute the Kasaragod District, Kerala. Others are Kasaragod, Manjeshwaram and Vellarikundu taluks. In the north, it borders Kasaragod taluk; in south, the Kannur District; in the east, Vellarikundu taluk; and in the west, the Arabian sea. With an area of 900.3 km (90030 hectares), it was the smaller of the two taluks. Then Hosdurg bifurcated into Vellarikund and Hosdurg taluks in 2013 for ease of administration. Kanhangad and Nileshwaram are the municipalities within the taluk. "Hosdurg" (after which the taluk is named) is a kilometer south of Kanhangad town, the latter  being the taluk headquarters. Other major settlements include Trikarpur, Cheruvathur and Udma. Bekal Fort tourism is situated in the taluk. The name "Hosdurg" comes from the Kannada word "hosa" ("new") and Sanskrit word "durg" ("fort"). Demographics. As per the 2011 census, Hosdurg taluk had a total population of 625641 persons, which included 295,859 males and 329,782 females. The literacy rate is 85.82%, higher than the national average. In Hosdurg taluk, 12.42% of the total population is between the ages of 0–6 years. Malayalam is the administrative language of the region. Constituent Villages. Hosdurg taluk has 31 revenue villages. They are  ; Ajanur, Ambalathara, Balla, Bare, Cheemeni, Cheruvathur, Chithari, Hosdurg, Kanhangad, Kayyur, Keekan, Kilayikode, Kodakkad, Madikai, Maniyat, Nileshwaram, North Trikkarippur, Padanna, Pallikkara, Pallikkara-II, Panayal, Periya, Perole, Pilicode, Pudukai, Pullur, South Trikkarippur, Thimiri, Thuruthi, Uduma, Udinoor and Valiyaparamba.