Vettikulangara Devi Temple, Cheppad

Vettikulangara Devi Temple at Cheppad, near Harippad in Alappuzha district, is counted among the old temples of Kerala. It is dedicated to Durga, worshipped here as Karthyayani Devi, and shrines to Mahadeva, Ganesh, Ayyappan, Nagaraja and Nagayakshi share the grounds.

The area worshipped Mahadeva long before the goddess came. Legend says a Brahmin scholar known as Thampuran, taking his Devi idol back to his native place, lost it in a pond through Mahadeva's power, and could not recover it. Years later the Naluveettil family found it while digging the pond, and blood is said to have flowed where their tools struck it. The name Vettikulangara recalls that digging, and the pond is still preserved. Festivals run through the year, from Navaham in Kanni and Thrikarthika in Vrischikam to the Para Ezhunnallathu in Makaram and the Thiru Utsavam in Kumbham. Cheppad railway station is about 1.5 km away.