Kunnamangalam: Every region holds a story about its origins. Pantheerpadam near Kunnamangalam in Kozhikode also has one such tale to narrate.
It has been 40 years since the area known as Patham (10th) Mile along the Kozhikode-Wayanad route was named as Pantheerpadam. An all-party meet on December 27, 1980, decided to rename Patham Mile as Pantheerpadam. Residents of this quaint region are all set to celebrate the 40th anniversary of renaming.
The tale
When old Tipu Sultan Road became Wayanad Road, places were renamed without the mile system. It was then pointed out that Patham Mile was not mentioned in the government records and the nondescript name would dampen the chances of the region's development.
Some social workers decided to call for an all-party meet to decide on renaming the place. Several people took part in the meeting. And many names such as Pantheerpadam, Naalangadi, Galaxy Nagar, and Thyagaraja Nagar came up during the meet.
Then a committee and sub-committee were formed to select the name. After voting, Pantheerpadam was picked and accepted by all.
Long stretches of paddy fields on either side of the National Highway at Patham Mile Junction constitute Pantheerpadam. As the field gives 10-folds the normal yield, the name Pantheerpadam was suggested. Then through gazette notification, the place name was officially changed, says long-time Kunnamangalam panchayat president Khalid Kilimunda, who had signed on the original document of renaming.
After renaming, a polling station was set up and Pantheerpadam found a place in the records of the Public Works Department (PWD), he added. Then the adjacent region, which was known as Pathinonam (11th) Mile, was renamed as Pathimangalam.
An all-party meet was recently convened to decide on the 40th anniversary celebrations. V T Jayarajan chaired the meet, which was inaugurated by Khalid.
