Administrative divisions of Kerala

Kerala is divided into districts, revenue divisions, taluks, and villages for revenue administration, and for rural development, it is divided into blocks.

Each state government department has its own administrative divisions, usually all functioning at the district level. Other divisions include police districts and education districts. A police district is usually coterminous with a district or within a district.

Revenue divisions

On the basis of geographical, historical and cultural similarities, the districts are generally grouped into North Kerala, Central Kerala and South Kerala.

Revenue administrative units in Kerala include the district, revenue division, taluk, and revenue village. This hierarchical structure is primarily focused on land revenue collection and management of land-related records and taxes.

Districts

The state is divided into 14 districts. These districts are the pivotal administrative divisions of the state, serving as centers for revenue and general administration. The name and headquarters of each district are usually the major city or town, with the exception of Wayanad district, which is headquartered in Kalpetta. The Collectorate plays a pivotal role as the seat of district administration.

Each district is headed by a District Collector (an IAS officer), who also serves as District Magistrate, District Election Officer, and other roles. The Collector oversees land revenue administration and is assisted by deputy collectors.

Revenue divisions

These 14 districts are further divided into revenue divisions. There are total 27 revenue divisions in Kerala. Each revenue division contains several taluks within its jurisdiction for revenue administration. Each revenue division has a Revenue Divisional Office, headed by Revenue Divisional Officer/Sub Collector (RDO), who is also the Sub Divisional Magistrate.

Taluks

There are 78 taluks in Kerala. A taluk (also known as sub-district) is the administrative level below of a district. A taluk consists of several revenue villages under its jurisdiction and has a Taluk office headed by a Tehsildar. The functions of the taluk office include land revenue administration, election oversight, executive magisterial duties, and disaster management.

Revenue villages

There are 1670 revenue villages in total. Each has a Village Office, headed by Village Officer. It's the primary level of land revenue administration.

The village is divided into Amsoms and Desams for land tax administration.