The coffee district next door to Kannur and Wayanad is the least populous of Karnataka's thirty

Background

Chikkamagaluru's coffee country appears in this slot's State Focus; the district that stands second to it in coffee is Kodagu, and Kodagu is also Karnataka's doorstep into Kerala. The district administration records an area of 4,102 square kilometers (1,584 sq mi) and a population of 548,561 as of 2001, making it the least populous of the 30 districts in Karnataka. Its highest peak, Tadiandamol, rises to 1,750 metres (5,740 ft). The Kaveri originates at Talakaveri, located on the eastern side of the Western Ghats, and with its tributaries drains most of the district. Kodagu is divided into the three administrative talukas of Madikeri, Virajpet and Somwarpet, and the principal town and district capital is Madikeri, or Mercara. The administration describes Kodagu as the second coffee production region in India, after the Baba Budangiri hills in Chikkamagaluru district. It borders Kannur district of Kerala to the southwest and Wayanad district of Kerala to the south, which is why a Kerala aspirant meets this district in both states' papers.