Vatakara, (Malayalam: [ʋɐɖɐgɐɾɐ]), (formerly Badagara), French: Bargaret, is a Municipality, Taluk and a major town in the Kozhikode district of Kerala state, India. The municipality of Vatakara covers an area of 23.33 km2 (9.01 sq mi) and is bordered by Mahé to the north and Payyoli to the south. It is the headquarters of Vatakara taluk, which consists of 22 panchayats. During the reign of the Kolathiris and Zamorins, Vatakara was known as Kadathanadu. During the British Raj, it was part of the North Malabar region of Malabar District in the state of Madras. The historic Lokanarkavu temple, made famous by the Vadakkan Pattukal (ballads of North Malabar), is situated in Vatakara. A new tardigrade (water bear) species collected from Vadakara coast has been named after Kerala State; Stygarctus keralensis.
Vatakara State assembly constituency is one of the 140 state legislative assembly constituencies in Kerala state in southern India. It is also one of the 7 state legislative assembly constituencies included in the Vatakara Lok Sabha constituency.[1] As of the 2021 assembly election, the current MLA is K.K Rema of Revolutionary Marxist Party of India.
