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Namakkal
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Namakkal is a city and a municipality in Namakkal district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of Namakkal district. It is the first ISO 14001-2004 certified municipality in Asia for environmental management, specifically the provision and maintenance of water supply, solid waste and sewage management, town planning, lighting and other social services.
It is a part of Kongu Nadu region of Tamil Nadu ruled by the ancient Western Ganga Dynasty.
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Encyclopedia
Namakkal is a city and a municipality in Namakkal district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of Namakkal district. It is the first ISO 14001-2004 certified municipality in Asia for environmental management, specifically the provision and maintenance of water supply, solid waste and sewage management, town planning, lighting and other social services.
It is a part of Kongu Nadu region of Tamil Nadu ruled by the ancient Western Ganga Dynasty. See also Gounder (caste) for history.
Geography
EGG CITY - EDUCATIONAL CITY - TRANSPORT CITY
Namakkal is located at . It has an average elevation of 218 metres (715 feet). It is close to Kolli Hills - which is part of the Eastern Ghats . The closest river is Kaveri . The city is approximately 360 km southwest of Chennai, 250 km south of Bangalore, 160 km southeast of Coimbatore, 85 km northwest of Tiruchirapalli (Trichy), and 55 km south of Salem. Its landscape is such that it would not be affected by floods.
History
Namakkal is a historic town with reference back to at least the 9th century. The name Namakkal derives from Namagiri, which is the name of the single rock formation at the center of the town. The rock is enormous - 65 meters high and more than a kilometer in circumference. Over this massive rock is a fort. It is called Tippu Sultan's fort. The Hindu sculptures in front of the gate and the Hindu temple inside, leads the main controversy whether it was actually built by Tippu Sultan. Gandhiji held a public meeting in 1933 in Namakkal under the slope of the Namakkal rock. It also falls in the region of Kongu Nadu.
Namakkal was ruled mainly by Cheras. Cholas and Pandyas also ruled this region for sometime. It also has been under the control of self or autonomous rulers for at least a century. It is one of the few places in ancient tamilnadu that has not been affected by famine and wars seriously.
Kolli hills was ruled by the king called Valvil Ori, one of the seven kings of the Sangam age. A statue for him is located at Semmedu at a distance of 65 kilometers from Namakkal.
Lord Murugan is supposed to have visited Kolli hills and evidence is at Belukkurchi, 24 kilometers from Namakkal on the way to Muthugapatty.
Schools, Colleges and education
Schools
- Bharathi High School. Reddipatti, Namakkal - 637001
- Kongu matriculation school, Keerambur
- Municipal High School,Fort,Namakkal
- Government Higher Secondary School,Kalangani.
- Government Higher Secondary School (South) (for Boys) (known as South School)
- Government Higher Secondary School (North) (co-educational)
- Government Higher Secondary School for Girls
- Government Higher Secondary School
- SRV higher secondary school(Rasipuram)
- Vidhya vikas Educational Institution, Tiruchengode
- Vetri Vikas Higher Secondary School, Mallur
- PGP Group of Intitutuions
- KSR Institute
- Government Higher Secondary School, Paramathi
- Kurinji Matriculation Hr Sec School
- Sri Mahabharathi Higher Secondary School, Koolipatti
- Gandhi Matriculation Hr Sec School, Kandampalayam
- Government Higher Secondary School, Kandampalayam
- Trinity Academy Matriculation Higher secondary School
- Kandasamy Kandar Matriculation Higher Secondary School
- Vetha loga vidhyalaya
- Mahendra matriculation higher secondary school(co-educational)
- SPB Matriculation Higher Secondary School
- Anna Nehru Matriculation School - Mudalaipatti
- Surabi Matriculation School, Kamblai, Namakkal
- New Bright Nursery & Primary School, Pothanur, Namakkal
- SunStars Metriculation School,Vadakaraiyathur
- Jack and Jill Matriculation School,Ramapurumpudur, Namakkal
- Sri RamaKrishna Marticulation School,Mallasamudram, Namkkal
- Shri Aanjaneyaa Higher Secondary School,Mohanour,Namakkal
- Government Higher Secondary School,THIRUMALAI PATTY
- king educational institutions, nallur, near Namakkal
- Selvam educational Institutions, Mullampatti, 5 km way from Namakkal
Colleges and Universities
- The is located in Namakkal, and is affiliated with , Chennai. This college has undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral (Veterinary Medicine and Ph.D.) programs in several veterinary and life sciences disciplines.
Arts and Science
- K.S.R. College of Arts and Science, Tiruchengode
- Muthayammal College of Arts and Science, Rasipuram
- A.A. Govt. Arts College for Men, Namakkal
- Alamelu Angappan College for Women, Kumarapalayam
- Kandaswami Kandar's College, Namakkal
- Mahendra College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
- N.K.R. Government Arts College for Women, Namakkal
- P.G.P. College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
- Selvam Arts and Science College, Namakkal
- Sengunthar College of Arts and Science, Tiruchengode
- Subramaniyam College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
- Thiruvalluvar Govt. Arts College for Men, Rasipuram
- Trinity College for Women, Namakkal
- Vivekanandha College of Arts and Science (W), Elayampalayam
Catering and Hotel Management
- Muthayammal College of Arts and Science, Rasipuram
- Mahendra Arts and Science College, Namakkal Dt
- P.G.P. Arts and Science College, Namakkal
Dental
- J.K.K. Natarajah Dental College, Komarapalayam
- K.S.R. Institute of Dental Science & Research, Tiruchengode
- Vivekanandha Dental College for Women, Namakkal
Engineering
- K.S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Namakkal Dt
- K.S.R. College of Engineering, Namakkal Dt
- Muthayammal Engineering College, Namakkal Dt
- S.S.M. College of Engineering, Komarapalayam
- Vivekanadha Institute of Engineering and Technology for Women, Elyampalayam
- Annai Mathammal Sheela Engineering College, Namakkal Dt
- C.M.S. College of Engineering, Namakkal
- Excel Engineering College, Namakkal
- Gnanamani College of Technology, Namakkal Dt
- King College of Technology, Namakkal
- Mahendra Engineering College, Namakkal Dt
- Mahendra Institute of Technology, Namakkal
- P.G.P. College of Engineering and Technology, Namakkal
- Paavai College of Engineering, Namakkal
- Paavai Engineering College, Namakkal
- Selvam College of Technology, Namakkal
- Sengunthar College of Engineering for Women, Namakkal
- Sengunthar Engineering College, Tiruchengode
- Vidhya Vikkas College of Engineering and Technology, Namakkal
- Vivekanadha College of Engineering for Women, Elyampalayam
- The American college
Homoeopathy
- Dr. Hahnemann Homoeopathy Medical College and Research Centre, Namakkal Dt
Management
- K.S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Namakkal Dt
- K.S.R. College of Arts and Science, Tiruchengode
- K.S.R. College of Engineering, Namakkal Dt
- Muthayammal Engineering College, Namakkal Dt
- S.S.M. College of Engineering, Komarapalayam
- Annai Mathammal Sheela Engineering College, Namakkal
- Mahendra Engineering College, Tiruchengode Tk
- P.G.P. College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
- P.G.P. College of Engineering and Technology, Namakkal
- Paavai Engineering College, Namakkal
- Sengunthar Arts and Science College, Tiruchengode
- Sengunthar Engineering College, Tiruchengode
- Vivekanadha College of Engineering for Women, Elyampalayam
- Vivekananda College of Arts and Sciences, Elyampalayam
Economy
The economy of the district was primarily agricultural, but today it has now changed its occupation to lorries, educational institutions, poultry and real estates. A wide variety of crops are grown within the district. Poultry, lorry transport and businesses related to their kind brings economy to the town. Migration to other countries is very common in Namakkal and it started in the 1900s. The early migration was mainly to Malaysia, Singapore and Sri Lanka. Namakkal is famous for its lorry body building industries and poultry farms. It is India's 2nd biggest egg producing region (producing 3 Crore eggs per day). And also it is famous for sago factories (particularly Sellappampatty and attur taluk around the place). It lies in the Sugarcane belt, so sugar factories in Pallipalayam (Ponni Sugars) and Mohannur Sugar Factory is a major source of income. Apart from that a paper mill (Seshasayee Paper and Boards Limited) which produces 250 tonne per day is also present in this district.
It has been recorded several times to be the number one in ATM tansactions in Tamilnadu. Next to Coimbatore it has more number of croresmen followed by Tirupur and Chennai.
Art
V. Ramalingam Pillai, more popularly known as Namakkal Kavignar , is a well known Tamil poet who hailed from Namakkal (born in 1888 in Mohanur). His poems on the non-violent Indian independence movement are popular. His famous patriotic poem is
Pottery and sculpture are promoted by way of traditional festivals and temple celebrations. Most villages in the district, like many other south Indian villages, have a temple to a guardian deity at the perimeter of the village. Aiyanar is the guardian deity of the village. Much artistic expression goes into sculpting the Aiyanar statues.
Two famous Carnatic musicians Pallavi vidwan Namakkal Narasimha Iyengar and his student Namakkal Sesha Iyengar hailed from this village. Narasimha Iyengar studied under Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbayyar of the Thyagaraja sishya parampara. His grooming of Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar is now the stuff of legend. Namakkal Sesha Iyengar also trained V V Sadagopan, an actor, musicologist and musician.
Transport
Road
Namakkal is situated on National Highway 7 (NH7), which is the longest highway in India connecting Kanyakumari to Varanasi. NH7 is part of the North-South corridor of the National Highways Development Project. NH7 runs through Madurai (south of Namakkal), Salem, Bangalore and Hyderabad (all north of Namakkal). The nearest cities are Karur (43 km), Erode (54 km), Salem (47 km), Tiruchirapalli (Trichy, 85 km) and Coimbatore (Coimbatore 154 km). Chennai (Madras), the capital of the state, is 380 km from Namakkal.
Recently the 4-lane (2 lanes on either side) converted road stretch (of NH-7) connecting salem - namakkal - karur was made open to public traffic.
Rail
The nearest major railway station is at Salem, with a travel time of about 75 minutes. Erode railway station is about the same distance from Namakkal, but the travel time is longer by road. A railway station is under construction in Namakkal, on the railway line under construction from Salem to Karur.
Air
The nearest airport is in Tiruchirapalli, with a travel time of about 2 hours. Other major airports close to Namakkal (in the order of distance) are Coimbatore, Madurai, Bangalore (HAL and BIAL) and Chennai. Bangalore and Chennai are the major international airports serving this region. Salem Airport is even closer than Tiruchirapalli, but currently does not have commercial flight service.
Climate
The temperature ranges from 20 to 44 degrees Celsius throughout the year.
Popular facts about the City
- Numerous lorry body building units spread around the city and biggest transport city in India
- About 2,000 poultry farms in Namakkal Zone, the second largest poultry industry area in India
- With about 20,000 lorries, the largest road cargo transport industry in India is based in Namakkal
- Rock Fort in the city centre is a popular tourist destination
- The Famous Anjaneyar temple visited by millions of people in a year
- The two cave temples (Narasimma Temple & Ranganatha Temple) are very popular
- Numerous educational institutions - Namakkal consistently produces top ranking students in the Tamil Nadu State Board Higher Secondary (Class 12) examinations, and the State professional courses entrance examinations to medical, engineering and other professional colleges.
- Sago factories are a predominant agriculture based industry around Namakkal.
- Kolli Hills, situated in Namakkal district, is a popular hill station and a tourist destination.
Places to visit
- Kolli Hills is the most attractive destination in the district of Namakkal. It is accessible by road, and buses are available to Kolli Hills from Namakkal and Salem, via Vettambadi. Various attractions in Kolli Hills include the Agaya Gangai (Ganges of the Sky) waterfalls, Pineapple plantation, Arapaleeswarar temple, and various scenic drives and hikes. The Agaya Gangai waterfalls is accessible on foot by a 1 hour hike on well-paved steps, and is of moderate difficulty. Kolli Hills is also famous for its Jackfruit, various varieties of Pineapple, the small mountain bananas and wild honey. A few well furnished hotels are available on Kolli Hills.
- The most popular attractions within the city of Namakkal are the Rockfort (Malai kottai), and the temples surrounding it. The Rockfort takes about 30 minutes to hike to the top, and is of mild to moderate difficulty. It is a monolith about 65 metres in height, with the ruins of an ancient fort on top, spanning a few acres. It is recommended to hike in the evenings, or early in the mornings, during daylight. It can get extremely hot during the summer days, so avoid these times, or carry enough water and wear a hat. No amenities are available at the top, and please verify with the locals if it is safe to hike alone, as it used to be the hangout for monkeys, and some vandals. It is recommended that you hike with company.
- Arthanatheeswarar temple in Trichengode is a famous religious and tourist attraction
- The small town of Mohanur, about 20 km south of Namakkal, is located on the banks of river Kaveri. The banks of this river provide several picnic spots under shade trees. Other towns on the Kaveri river banks (Velur, Musiri, Thottiyam) also provide nice picnic spots. A very few places are not safe to swim, so the traveler is advised to watch for signs warning about the uncommon rapids or quicksand in the river.
- Puliancholai (Tamil for 'Tamarind Grove') is another small village on the banks of the river that runs from the Kolli Hills. There is a shaded garden on the banks of this river which provides a nice spot for picnics. Puliancholai is located on the Namakkal to Thuraiyur road.
- Three popular temples are located around the Rockfort. The Hanuman Temple is one of the most famous in South India. The "Narasimmar - Namagiri Amman Temple" was an inspiration of renowned mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. They are both located on the west side of the rockfort. The Hanuman Temple tends to be very crowded with lots of pilgrims, and is small but very popular. It was built recently, and reflects contemporary Hindu temple style architecture. The Narasimmar-Namagiri Amman temple sprawls a few acres in size, and parts of it were built by quarrying the granite boulders out of the Rockfort several hundred years ago. It reflects historical temple architecture, and offers several places to sit and reflect in solitude, and is highly recommended. Ranganaathar Temple is located on the foothills of the Rockfort on the east side where Mahatma Gandhi delivered his address in 1933.
- Koolippatti Murugan Temple is located in a small hill, which is 3 km from Namakkal on the way to Thuraiyur. It is one of the temples the saint Kirupanandha Variyar used to visit regularly.
- Thathagiri Murugan Temple is located in a small hill, which is 10 km from Namakkal on the way to Sendamangalam. It is 2 km from Sendamangalam.
- Naina-Malai is a hill located 10 km from Namakkal. One can reach this place from Sendamangalam too (2 km). On top of the hill there is a temple to Swami Varatharaja Perumal . People go this to temple especially on the Saturdays of the months of September and October (Tamil Purataci months - 5 weeks). One can reach the top of the hill by foot. There are more than 2500 steps.
- Muthugapatty PeriyaSwamy temple which is situated at the bottom of the kolli hills is one of the famous place in this area. It is an open space temple there the God idol is located under the banyan trees. Lot of people used to gather here on Sundays to worship the God of farmers.
- at Keerambur is of great sculpturalpillar works.
Demographics
India census, Namakkal had a population of 53,040. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Namakkal has an average literacy rate of 79%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 74%. In Namakkal, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Recent developments
- AIDS epidemic and control
- A "Permanent Legal Aid Clinic" for Namakkal has been proposed by the Madras High Court Chief Justice to protect the rights of HIV/AIDS patients, especially women.
- Namakkal, the zero-garbage eco-city
- Namakkal is one of the few Indian Municipalities which has been successful in running a zero garbage, eco-friendly urban waste management project for which visitors are coming to learn from.
- Train/Railway Station for Namakkal
http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/17/stories/2007071750310100.htm
Politics
Namakkal assembly constituency is part of Rasipuram (Lok Sabha constituency).
External links
See also
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