Ottapalam, which was the then capital of South Malabar, on the bank of the river Bharathappuzha, which also later demanded a separate state for the Malayalam-speaking regions in future Independent India. Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee was formed in that conference. Before that, Malabar District, Cochin, and Travancore had separate Congress committees. Geography Ottapalam is located at . It has an average elevation of . Climate Administration Ottapalam is sub district of the Palakkad District. Over the last 10 years, the population growth has been 9.2%. The town is listed in the top 18 most populous Urban Agglomeration in Kerala. The First Defence Park in India is established in Ottapalam KINFRA industrial park. The Ottapalam assembly constituency is part of Palakkad Lok Sabha constituency. Ottapalam Taluk Ottapalam is one of the six Taluks of Palakkad district. Transport Road The Palakkad-Shoranur (Kulappully) State Highway passes through the town. Government buses as well as private bus services operate between Ottapalam and other major towns, such as Palakkad,Thrissur,Mannarkkad,Pattambi,Guruvayoor,Perinthalmanna,Thiruvilwamala,Chelakkara (through the Ottapalam-Mayanur Bridge, inaugurated on 22 January 2011.) Rail The town is served by the Ottapalam railway station, which lies between Palakkad and Shoranur Junction on the Jolarpettai–Shoranur line. Forty-nine Indian Railways trains stop at the station. Notable people The following people were either born in and/or are residents of Ottapalam: Ottapalam Pappan, Malayalam Drama and Film Actor Gautham Vasudev Menon, Tamil Film director Stephen Devassy, pianist Lal Jose, Malayalam film director Anil Radhakrishnan Menon, Malayalam film director Unni Mukundan, Malayalam film actor Bhaskar Menon, first Indian to head a multinational corporation, chairman of Lever Brothers (now Unilever) K. P. S. Menon, first Foreign Secretary of India. He also served pre-independence India as an Agent-General to China M. G. K. Menon, former Union Minister and Scientific Adviser in the Rajiv Gandhi administration KP Candeth, was a prominent Lieutenant General in the Indian army Shivshankar Menon, 4th National Security Advisor and 26th foreign secretary V. P. Menon, seniormost Indian officer in pre-independence British India administration M. K. Narayanan, the former chief of the Intelligence Bureau and former National Security Adviser K. Sankaran Nair, former director of Research and Analysis Wing and former High Commissioner of India to Singapore C. Venkataraman Sundaram, former director of Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research and Padma Bhushan recipient Dhruvan, Malayalam Film Actor Srinish Aravind, Television Actor See also Ottapalam railway station NSS College, Ottapalam Ottapalam Assembly constituency Ottapalam Lok Sabha