About Village
Venganoor is a Village in Athiyannoor Block in Thiruvananthapuram District of Kerala State, India. It belongs to South Kerala Division . It is located 13 KM towards South from District head quarters Thiruvananthapuram. 3 KM from Athiyannoor. 13 KM from State capital Thiruvananthapuram
Demography
Venganoor (CT) is a Town and Census Town located in Thiruvananthapuram Taluk of Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala. Venganoor city has 5837 housholds and town is divided into 1 wards. Venganoor city elections are held of every 5 years to elect representative of each ward. As per the Census India 2011, Venganoor city has population of 23113 of which 11163 are males and 11950 are females. The population of children between age 0-6 is 2093 which is 9.06% of total population. The sex-ratio of Venganoor city is around 1071 compared to 1084 which is average of Kerala state. The literacy rate of Venganoor city is 86.47% out of which 87.9% males are literate and 85.13% females are literate. There are 8.13% Scheduled Caste (SC) and 0.82% Scheduled Tribe (ST) of total population in Venganoor city.
Geography
Vizhinjam ( 2 KM ) , Kottukal ( 3 KM ) , Kalliyoor ( 3 KM ) , Balaramapuram ( 5 KM ) , Pallichal ( 6 KM ) are the nearby Villages to Venganoor. Venganoor is surrounded by Neyyattinkara Block towards East , Nemom Block towards North , Parassala Block towards East , Thiruvananthapuram Block towards North . Neyyattinkara , Thiruvananthapuram , Kollankodu , Nedumangad are the near by Cities to Venganoor. It is near to arabian sea.
Socio-Economic
As a part of the field visit the author visited the BUDS School located in Iduva of Venganoor Grama Panchayath, Thiruvananthapuram District on 23rd November 2017. The main objective of the visit was to study the functioning of the BUDS School and the day to day activities of the children. BUDS School as a special school started for the children with mental and physical challenges. The conditions of such children in their home were not good. The parents went under great depression due to the inability of their child. The level of poverty of such families increased. As such children needed special care, the parents were not able to go for their works and that added hardship to their livelihood. Venganoor is an agricultural village and had many number of children with such disabilities. The study about such children and the hardship of their parents brought a revolutionary change in this village in the form of BUDS School. One of the socio economic surveys conducted by the Venganoor Panchayath brought the miserable conditions of the mentally challenged children and their parents into the light. Then the Panchayath started the discussion for the rehabilitation of such children and families. The prolonged discussions were conducted in the Kudumbashree units and those discussions led to the proposal of a plan for undertake this problem into a acceptable mode. After many long debates and discussions the Panchayath decided to form a school for such children. It planned to set up a rehabilitation centre by the Panchayath and they named it as ‘BUDS’. Hence the first BUDS school was set up in Iduva of Venganoor Panchayath. The special school was inaugurated by Sri A.K. Antony, the then Chief Minister on 16 August 2004. This project, aimed at finding sustainable solution to the psychological and economic hardships of the families of the differently abled and neglected children. BUDS started functioning with 41 children with different disabilities in the 2-20 age range. Currently there are 57 children in the school. The institution had 20 cents of land when it was established and later purchased 16 cents of land nearby. At present the institution planning the extension of building and other facilities. At present there are 57 children in this school. At present Seven teaching staff, four Ayas, one cook, one driver working in this school. Apart from this one Physio Therapist visits the school three days in a week. The school works from10.00 AM to 3.30PM daily. The school day begins with prayer at 10.00AM followed by exercise, physiotherapy and yoga; based on the need of the child. The children are divided into classes according to their disabilities. There is a small garden in front of the school maintained by the children. Their day to day activities included the group activities; learn to read and write, craft, dances, songs etc. The institution provides the delicious lunch to the children. The kitchen is neatly maintained. The institution follows a particular menu for the mid-day meals of the children. After the lunch half an hour is given to the children to watch television. The classrooms and surroundings are maintained neatly. Two DVR teachers are giving vocational training to the children. They work for two to three days in a week. The children who got trained by them are making many crafts. There is a small play ground behind the school. It was funded by the Block Panchayath. It has roofed with sheets and made it usable for all season. Many playing articles are also made available in this play ground. At present Vocational training is also arranged for children and mothers. Adequate sanitation facilities also attached with this BUDS school.
Ecology
Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) submitted the proposal to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change asking for Biodiversity Heritage Site (BHS) tag for the Vellayani Lake. However, the process to demarcate the boundaries, which is crucial for getting the heritage status, is progressing very slowly due to issues concerning the reclamation of the land. As per the estimates, the authorities will have to reclaim around 500 acres of land submerged by the lake, owned by around 750 private parties. According to official sources, the government will have to spend a minimum of `400 crore on compensation. The Venganoor and Kalliyoor panchayat offices will be submitting the complete report on the survey number valuation to the district administration by next week. According to Kerala State Biodiversity Board executives, the BHS status would help conserve the lake and also add to the livelihood of the community. Venganoor village officer R Jayakumar said that the survey number valuations are in the final stages and a report would be submitted to the district administration.
Tourism
Kovalam beach which is known as the paradise of the south is situated at a distance of 16 Kilometers from Trivandrum. This place has developed considerably from the past three decades. Kovalam beach is a paradise for anyone who loves places where the land meets the sea. Its white sand and clean surrounding is an attractive feature of the beach. The meaning of Kovalam is a grove of coconut trees. No wonder a lot of coconut plants can be seen around. Kovalam has an excellent weather throughout the year which makes swimming a pleasant experience for all water lovers. The best period of the year to visit Kovalam is May to September. Kovalam’s adventure sport is taking the speed boat ride into the sea.