Tamilnadu

Tamil Nadu or the land of Tamils lies on the eastern coast of the southern Indian Peninsula bordered by Puducherry (Pondicherry), Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It is bound by the Eastern Ghats in the north, the Nilgiri, the Anamalai Hills, and Palakkad on the West, and Palakkad on the west, Bay of Bengal in the east, Gulf of Mannar, Palk Strait in the south east and Indian Ocean in the south. It is the eleventh largest state in India by area (about the size of Greece) and the seventh most populous state.

Prehistory

Tamil Nadu's history dates back to pre-historic times and archaeological evidence points to this area being one of the longest continuous habitations in India.

From early pre-historic times, Tamil Nadu was the home of the four Tamil kingdoms of the Chera, Chola, Pandya and Pallavas. The oldest extant literature, in the west and traded extensively with West Asian kingdoms. dated between 300 BC and 600 BC mentions the exploits of the kings and the princes, and of the poets who extolled them.

In early 19th century, East India Company consolidated most of southern India into the Madras Presidency coterminous with the dominions of Nizam of Hyderabad. Pudukkottai remained as a princely state under British suzerainty.

When India became independent in 1947, Madras Presidency became Madras State, comprising present day Tamil Nadu, coastal Andhra Pradesh up to Ganjam district in Orissa, northern Karnataka, and parts of Kerala. The state was subsequently split up along linguistic lines. In 1968, Madras State was renamed Tamil Nadu, meaning Land of Tamil.

Geography and Climate

Tamil Nadu covers an area of 130,058 square Kilometres (50,216 sq mi),and is the eleventh largest state in India. West and North of the state has lofty hills while the East and South are coastal plains. The bordering states are Kerala to the west, Karnataka to the northwest and Andhra Pradesh to the north. To the east is the Bay of Bengal. The southernmost tip of the Indian Peninsula is located in Tamil Nadu. At this point is the town of Kanyakumari which is the meeting point of the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Indian Ocean.

Tamil Nadu has a coastline of about 1,000 kilometres (600 mi) which forms about 18% of the country’s coastline (third longest). Tamil Nadu's coastline bore the brunt of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami when it hit India, which left behind 7,793 dead in the state. Tamil Nadu falls mostly in a region of low seismic hazard with the exception of western border areas that lie in a low to moderate hazard zone. As per the 2002 Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) map, Tamil Nadu falls in Zones II & III. Historically, parts of this region have experienced seismic activity in the M5.0 range.

Tamil Nadu is dependent heavily on monsoon rains, and thereby is prone to droughts when the monsoons fail. The climate of the state ranges from dry sub-humid to semi-arid. The state has three distinct periods of rainfall: (1) Advancing monsoon period, South West Monsoon (from June to September), with strong southwest winds; (2) North East monsoon (from October to December), with dominant northeast winds; and (3) Dry season (from January to May). The normal annual rainfall of the state is about 945 mm (37.2 in) of which 48% is through the North East monsoon, and 32% through the South West monsoon. Since the state is entirely dependent on rains for recharging its water resources, monsoon failures lead to acute water scarcity and severe drought. Tamil Nadu is classified into seven agro-climatic zones: north-east, north-west, west, southern, high rainfall, high altitude hilly, and Cauvery Delta (the most fertile agricultural zone). The table below shows the maximum and minimum temperatures that the state experiences in the plains and hills.

Tamil Nadu has a wide variety of minerals with the most reserves in India Lignite(45%) and garnet (over 40%) among others. Tamil Nadu contributes 15% of the total Salt production in the country. Forests cover over 17% of the state's geographical area with several Protected areas of Tamil Nadu including wild life and bird sanctuaries. (almost 90% of India's reserves), magnesite.

Governance and Administration

Tamil Nadu had a bicameral legislature until 1986, when it was replaced with a unicameral legislature, like most other states in India. The 'Governor' is the Constitutional head of the state while the 'Chief Minister' is the head of the government and the head of the council of ministers. The Chief Justice of the Madras High Court is the head of the judiciary. It is the fourth largest city in India and is also one of the five A1 Metropolitan cities of India.

Tamil Nadu has been a pioneering state in E - Governance initiatives in India. A large part of the government records like land ownership records are already digitised and all major offices of the state government like Urban Local Bodies - all the Corporations and Municipal Office activities — revenue collection, land registration offices, and transport offices have been computerised, thereby improving the quality of service and transparency in operations.

The 31 districts of Tamil Nadu are listed below, with the numbers corresponding to those in the image at the right. Ariyalur District, which was created in 2001 from the Perambalur District, was restored as the 31st district of Tamil Nadu on the 23rd November, 2007.

Chennai, Coimbatore , Cuddalore , Dharamapuri , Dindigul, Erode, Kanchipuram, Kanyakumari, Karur, Krishnagiri, Madurai, Nagapattinam, Namakkal, Perambalur, Pudukottai, Ramanathapuram, Salem, Sivagangai, Thanjavur, The Nilgiris, Theni,Thoothukudi, Tiruchirapalli, Tirunelveli, Tiruvallur, Tiruvannamalai, Tiruvarur, Vellore, Viluppuram, Virudhunagar, Ariyalur,

TN government has also announced that Tirupur will be the new headquarters of the Tirupur district which will be formed by splitting the Coimbatore and Erode district.

Politics

Prior to Indian independence Tamil Nadu was under British colonial rule as part of the Madras Presidency. The main party in Tamil Nadu at that time was the Congress Party. Regional Parties have dominated state politics since 1916. One of the earliest regional parties was the South Indian Welfare Asoociatioin, which was a forerunner to Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu, was started in 1916. The party was called after its English organ, Justice Party, by it opponents and later the same was adopted as its official name. The reason for victory of the Justice Party in elections was the non-participation of the Congress Party, demanding complete independence of India. Freedom movement saw great leaders like Subramania Bharathiar (Poet who inspired freedom movement by his poetic skills), Subramania Siva, V O Chidhamdaranar (Industrialist, who managed ships under the free India banner), Thirupur Kumaran, Rajagopalachariar (Rajaji) and Sathyamurthi to name a few.

E.V.Ramaswami Naicker popularly known as EVR and also as Periyar, believed in agitational politics and he took the Justice Party away from its original path. The Justice Party which had a moribund existence under E.V.Ramaswami Naicker, died at last in 1944 which he renamed the party Dravidar Kazhagam (DK for short) in 1944. DK was a non-political party which demanded the establishment of an independent state called Dravida Nadu. However, due to the differences between its two leaders Periyar and C.N Annadurai, the party was split. Annadurai left the party to form the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. The DMK decided to enter politics in 1956.

Demographics and Human Rights

Tamil Nadu is the seventh most populous state in India with a population of 66,396,000 as of July 1, 2008 (approximately 5.79% of India's population). It is the eleventh most densely populated state in India. In 2008, its population density was 511 persons per square kilometre, having increased from 429 in 1991, significantly higher than the Indian average of 324 persons per square kilometre. 44% of the state's population live in urban areas, the highest in India.

Tamil Nadu's population grew by 11.19% between 1991 and 2001, the second lowest rate for that period (after Kerala) amongst populous states (states whose population exceeded 20 million in 2001). Its decadal rate of population growth has declined in every decade since 1971, one of only three populous states (along with Kerala and Orissa) to show this trend. The state has registered the lowest fertility rate along with Andhra Pradesh and Goa in India in year 2005-06 with 1.8 children born for each woman, lower than required for population sustainability. According to National Family Health Survey-3 (NFHS-3), Tamil Nadu registered a fertility rate of 1.8, the lowest in India in year 2005-2006

As recorded in the 2001 All India census, 89.43% of the population speak Tamil as their mother tongue. Other languages spoken in the state are Telugu (5.65 %), Kannada (1.68 %), Urdu (1.51 %) and Malayalam(0.89 %). A significant population can speak more than one language, usually English. Also the vast majority of the people follow Hindu religion. The distribution of population based on religion is described in the bar graph at the right. Tamil Nadu has 10 Municipal Corporations: Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Salem, Tirunelveli, Tirupur, Erode, Vellore and Thoothukudi.

Education and Social Development

Tamil Nadu has performed reasonably well in terms of literacy growth during the decade 1991-2001. The state's literacy rate increased from 62.66% in 1991 to 73.47% in 2001. which is well above the national average. A survey conducted by the Industry body Assochaam ranks Tamil Nadu top among Indian states with about 100% Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) in primary and upper primary education.

Tamil Nadu has nearly 19 Universities, 250 engineering colleges and 1150 arts college, 2550 schools and 5000 hospitals. Some of the reputed institutes include University of Madras, IIT Madras, Anna University, VIT Vellore, NIT Tiruchi, PSG Tech, CMC Vellore, Madras Medical College, Stanley Medical College, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University and Tamilnadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS). Also Tamil Nadu produces the highest number of engineering graduates in India (around 30,000) every year which attracts many software companies to set up their shop in south India.

While India ranked 128 in human development index calculated worldwide with 0.619, Tamil Nadu has performed well with an index of 0.736 in year 2006, closer to 0.800 which is considered high development and only 0.041 less than 81st ranked China. The life expectancy at birth for males is 65.2 years and for females it is 67.6 years. However, it has a number of challenges, significantly, the poverty is high, especially in the rural areas. As of 2004-2005, the poverty line was set at Rs. 351.86 / month for rural areas and Rs. 547.42 / month for urban areas. For the period 2004-2005, the Trend in Incidence of Poverty in the state was 22.5% as against the national figure of 27.5%. The World Bank is currently assisting the state in reducing poverty High drop-out and low completion of secondary schools continue to hinder the quality of training in the population. Other problems include class, gender, inter-district and urban-rural disparities. Poverty in the state had dropped from 51.7% in 1983 to 21.1% in 2001

The Dravidian movement, which championed the causes of educating the people and eradicating superstitions, began in Tamil Nadu. In addition, it aimes to uplift the socially repressed Dravidian people and drew considerable support from the middle classes for their efforts in this matter. The movement was committed to social justice which led to the expansion of reservations for the deprived communities. Tamil Nadu now has a 69% reservation in educational institutions, the highest among all Indian states.

The Mid Day Meal Scheme program in Tamil Nadu, initiated by Kamaraj, was expanded considerably during the rule of the AIADMK in 1983. It feeds over a fifth of the state's population.

Tourist Attractions in Kanyakumari District

While While Kanyakumari town has tourist attractions of its own, the district has many more, from centuries-old historic and religious sites to scenic places. The district is also rich in flora and fauna. A unique feature of Kanyakumari district is that it has all kinds of natural eco-systems. Thus, one can see beaches, mountain valleys, evergreen forests in the deep interior, rubber and clove plantations on the highlands, etc. - all in a 50 km radius of Nagercoil, the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District. Nagercoil is 22 km from Kanyakumari town.

The following are some of the many popular tourist attractions around Kanyakumari-

• Vattakottai Fort (literally, "circular fort") is an 18th-century fort overlooking the sea, located six kilometers from Kanyakumari. The small historic fort also gives an enchanting view of the sea around and the hills on the other side.
  
• Suchindram has the Sthanumalayan temple with a repository of art treasures belonging to several kingdoms. The temple is famous for its ninth-century inscriptions, musical columns, and 6-meter-tall statue of the monkey god Hanuman. The main deity in the form of a shivlinga represents Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, the trinity of the Hindu pantheon.
• The Panchappathi, five primary sacred places of Ayyavazhi are all situated within a twenty-kilometer radius of Kanyakumari. It also includes the Swamithope Pathi, a famous temple in Tamilnadu, situated ten kilometers to the northwest. It is not structurally massive temple, but is known for its non-idolatry system of worship.
  
• Nagercoil has the St. Francis Xavier's church at Kottar, where the missionary, St. Francis Xavier resided when he did his missionary work in the nearby areas. In Nagercoil, there is also the Nagaraja Temple, and shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva and Vishnu. The entrance to this temple is reminiscent of the Chinese architecture of a Buddhist Vihar.
  
• Padmanabhapuram Palace is a large 17th century palace of the Travancore kings, made almost entirely of wood - the only one of its kind in India. Udayagiri Fort, built by King Marthanda Varma, has a foundry for casting guns. It is also the tomb-site of the king's trusted European general Captain De Lennoy. Udayagiri Fort is now a bio-diversity park, administered by the Department of Forests, Kanyakumari Division.
• Mathur Hanging Trough, near Thiruvattar in the District, is an aqueduct that carries irrigation water through a canal between two hills. The canal itself goes above a small river. Built on very high pillars, is one of the biggest aqueducts, both in height and length, in Asia. The view from the middle of the aqueduct of the surrounding hills and vegetation, and the small river flowing down below, is breathtaking.
• 'Baywatch' (Water Amusement-park), and Wax museum(which is the only one of its kind in India) are the newest attractions, located within 2 km from Kanyakumari.
  
• Chitharal Jain Monuments (about 35 km near Marthandam), impressive rock shelters and idols dated 9-11th Century.
• Thirunandikkara temple (about 20 km), rock-cut cave temple of Pallava art can be traced back to seventh and eighth century AD.
  
• Thengapattinam Beach. This beach is located on the west coast near Painkulam village in Vilancode Taluk. It is a fine beach adorned with coconut groves. It is also a magnificent estuary where the river meets the sea. Riding in a catamaran (small boat) in the river can be a pleasant experience which can be arranged through local fishermen. It is 35 km from Nagercoil, 12 km from Kuzhithurai and 54 km from Kanyakumari.
  
• Olakaruvi waterfalls, about 20 km from Nagercoil is on the middle of a hill and requires an hour's trek by foot from the base of the hill (better to go in a group, as it is a forested area)
• Keeriparai - for nature-lovers and adventurers - pristine and beautiful, places like Keeriparai haven’t been publicized much by the Forest Department for various reasons - Keeriparai hills (30 km from Nagercoil) and the nearby Kalikesam are good picnic spots - one can enjoy water rushing through small mountain streams - with pebbles and ferns all around. There are also a few small waterfalls in this area - the popular one being Vattaparai Falls. Maramalai, which is further up in the hills of Keeriparai is famous for Wild elephants.
  
• Kodhayar (called Kodhayar Lower Camp) – is about 60 km and takes travellers through some exciting motorable hill roads with some thrilling 'hair-pin bends' and U-turns - Kodhayar forests are famous for bisons. Access to some areas need prior permission from the Forest Department.
• Pechiparai Reservoir, about 30 km from the town,and also Perunchani and Chittar dams are a must-see for the nature-lover (with clouds touching the top of the hills around the dams on a misty day !).
• Thiruparrapu Falls, is a waterfall near Thiruparrapu. There is an ancient temple near the falls, which is popular among the locals and Keralites.
• Muttom, a coastal village, is another popular place with tourists. The terrain in this village and its surroundings is hilly and from a height one can have an idyllic view of the place, with a Portugese style church standing in the middle of the village. The beach-area is somewhat rocky. There is also a 100-year old lighthouse. The lighthouse, though near the sea, is situated on a land mass some 105 feet above sea level. Another attractive feature of this area, is a ravine-like area with casurina trees near the seaside. This place with very popular with Tamil and Keralite film-makers, especially Tamil film director Bharathiraja.

Tourist Information

The state-owned Poompuhar Shipping Corporation runs ferry services between the town and the Vivekanda Rock Memorial and Thiruvalluvar statue, situated on rocky islets off the coast.

Kanyakumari is directly connected by rail with almost all metropolitan cities in India.

Nearest Airport is Trivandrum International Airport, 90 km away from Kanyakumari Town and 70 km from Nagercoil.

Kanyakumari District

History

Kanyakumari takes its name from the Kumari Amman or Kanyakumari Temple, situated in the town, on the sea-shore, the very confluence of the three water-bodies - Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. According to local lore, Kanya Devi, an avatar of Parvati, was to marry Shiva, but as he failed to show up on his wedding day, the rice and other grains meant for the wedding feast remained uncooked and remain unused thereafter. As the local lore goes, the uncooked grains turned into stones as time went by. Some believe that the small stones which look like rice on the shore today, are indeed grains of the wedding that was never solemnized. Kanya Devi is now considered a virgin goddess who blesses pilgrims and tourists who flock the town.

According to another local myth, Lord Hanuman dropped a piece of earth as he was carrying a mountain with his life-saving herb, Mrita Sanjivani from the Himalayas to Lanka (Sri Lanka) during the Rama-Ravana war. This chunk of earth is called Marunthuvazh Malai, which is literally translated to "hills where medicine is found".This is said to be the reason for the abundance of unique native medicinal plants in the area. Marunthuvazh Malai is located near Swamithope about 7 km from Kanyakumari town on the Kanyakumari-Nagercoil highway.

The sage Agasthya, who was himself an expert in medicinal herbs, is believed to have lived around this site in ancient days. The reason why, some believe, so many medicinal herbs are to be found on these hills near Kanyakumari. There is even a village by the name Agastheeswaram close to the town, named after the sage. Today, there is a small Ashram on the middle of the Maruthuvazh Malai hill, which tourists visit (after a short trek from the base of the hill), both to visit the Ashram and also to take a glimpse of the sea near Kanyakumari a few kilometres away, and the greenery below.

The 133 ft tall Thiruvalluvar Statue

Kanyakumari has been a great centre for art and religion for centuries. It was also an area of great trade and commerce. It was ruled by the Cholas, the Cheras, the Pandyas, and the Nayaks. The architectural beauty of the temples in the area are the works of these rulers. Later Kanyakumari became part of the Venad kingdom with its capital at Padmanabhapuram. The king of Venad, Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma, established Travancore by extending his domain further north up to Azhva, during his reign from 1729 to 1758. By this, the present Kanyakumari District came to be known as Southern Travancore. In 1741, Maharaja Marthanda Varma defeated the Dutch East India Company at the famous Battle of Colachel.

Kanyakumari was under the rule of the Kings of Travancore under the overall suzerainty of the British until 1947, when India became independent. Travancore joined the independent Indian Union in 1947. The reign of the Travancore royals came to an end.

Under the Travancore state, the town, and the modern administrative district that bears its name, Kanyakumari District, gained both socially and economically.

In 1949, Kanyakumari became part of the reconstituted Travancore-Cochin State. Around this time, a popular agitation for the amalgamation of Kanyakumari District with Tamil Nadu by the Tamil-speaking majority of the district intensified, under the leadership of Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai Eventually, in 1956, Kanyakumari was integrated with Tamil Nadu (then known as Madras State) as per the language-based reorganisation of States.

Christianity arrived in South India around AD 52 through St. Thomas, one of the twelve Apostles of Christ. However, European missionaries, who arrived in the 16th century, propagated Christianity in the area. St Francis Xavier (April 7, 1506 – December 2, 1552) was the pioneer in preaching Christianity in the present day Kanyakumari district. Islam is believed to have entered the southern part of India through Kanyakumari during the early part of the eighth century AD through traders and missionaries who came through sea-routes. Islam, Christianity and Jainish have also contributed to the architectural wealth and literary heritage of the region.

Geographical Location
Kanniyakumari is located at 8°05′N 77°34′E / 8.08, 77.57. It has an average elevation of 0 metres (0 feet). It lies at the meeting point of the three bodies of water: the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. It is situated at 8° 4′ 41″ N, 77° 32′ 28″ E, and is the terminating point of the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats. On the north and the east, it is bounded by Tirunelveli District, while on the west and northwest it is bounded by Kerala state.

It is suggested that there once existed a continent called Kumari Kandam to the south of Kanyakumari, often compared with Lemuria.

The Town
As of 2001 India Census, Kanyakumari town had a native population of 19,678. Kanyakumari is the southernmost town of the Indian mainland. The land mass in and around the town are hilly and uneven, with many commercial buildings and hotels at the upper crest of the land mass with the sea visible below. The old areas of the town, where the natives live, are on the lower side. Many of the natives are into fishing activity and other maritime professions.

Tourism is one of the main activities of the town ; and many locals are employed in shell-craft and other tourism-related businesses.

Tourism
Beginning the early part of the 1970s, tourism has been an important activity in the town. Today, it is one small town in South India where one can see different languages of India spoken at different street corners, among the tourists and traders. Of late, Tourism is increasingly being promoted in the district also, apart from the town, with several beautiful natural landscapes, historic and religious places found around the district.

A total of 1.9 million tourists (domestic and foreign) visited Kanyakumari in 2007. With tourism also picking up in neighbouring Kerala, the future prospects for the growth of tourism looks bright both in Kanyakumari town and the district.

Though there are several places of tourist-interest in the town and district, Kanyakumari is especially popular in India for its spectacular and unique sunrise and sunset. The confluence of three ocean bodies - the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea - makes the sunrise and sunset even more special. On balmy, full-moon evenings, (locally called Chitra Pournami) one can also see the moon-rise and sunset at the same time - on either side of the horizon
Tourist Sites within the Town
The Kumari Amman or the Kanyakumari Temple, located on the shore, is a Shakti Peetha dedicated to a manifestation of Parvati, the virgin goddess who did penance to obtain Lord Shiva's hand in marriage. The temple and the adjoining ghat, situated overlooking the shore, attract tourists from all over the world. The sparkling diamond nose-ring of the deity is said to be visible even from the sea.

On two rocky islets just off the shore, southeast of the Kumari Amman temple, are the Vivekananda Rock Memorial, built in 1970, and the gigantic 133 feet statue of Tamil saint-poet Thiruvalluvar, one of the biggest statues in Asia. One of the rocks called Sri padhaparai is said to bear the footprints of the virgin goddess. Swami Vivekananda is said to have seated on this rock in deep meditation. Also on this rock, there is a Dhyana mandapam, an area for meditation. Ferry services are available to reach the memorial.

The Gandhi Memorial has been built on the spot where the urn containing the Mahatma's ashes was kept for public viewing before immersion. Resembling central Indian Hindu temples in form, the memorial was designed in such a way that on Mahatma Gandhi's birthday, October 2, the first rays of the sun fall on the exact place where his ashes were kept.