Chokkana Estate- Anapantham forest region is a place not much familiar even among the people of Trissur district. This beautiful place lies 35km away from Trissur in Vellikulangara Panchayat. There used to be a tramway through the Anapantham forest to the estate. This tramway was called the Chalakudy-Parambikkulam tramway. The railway lines went through lush green forests, cut across the Western Ghats, crossed streams and rivers. The train was a wonder when you consider that no metro rails were even thought of during those days. This tramway was an example of brilliant engineering skills. Known as Cochin State Forest tramway, it was started in 1901, by the Kochi rulers. The tramway was busy for around 50 years bringing in teak woods from Parambikulam to Chalakudy. From Chalakudy, the timber was taken to Kochi and exported for ship construction to other countries. Kochi timber was famous all over the world including UK. The train travelled through three points- 1) Chalakudy-Anapantham (21 miles) 2) Kavalay- Pothupara (6miles) and 3) Komalapara-Chinnar (22.5 miles). The total length of the tramway was 79.5km. At present permission is not granted to visit here. The tramway was dismantled in 1963 and only a few relics remain.
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