Namakkal

**Namakkal**
	Namakkal
	Namakkal Location of Namakkal; in Tamil Nadu and India
Country	India
State	Tamil Nadu
District(s)	Namakkal
Population	53,040 (2001)
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area; • Elevation	; • 218 m (715 ft)
• Pincode	• 637 001
• Telephone	• +91 - 4286
• Vehicle	• TN 28

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Coordinates: 11°14′N 78°10′E / 11.23°N 78.17°E / 11.23; 78.17

Namakkal (Tamil: நாமக்கல்) 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^[1], specifically the provision and maintenance of water supply, solid waste and sewage management, town planning, lighting and other social services^[2].

It is a part of Kongu Nadu region of Tamil Nadu ruled by the ancient Western Ganga Dynasty. See also Gounder (caste) for history.

[edit] Geography

EGG CITY - EDUCATIONAL CITY - TRANSPORT CITY Namakkal is located at 11°14′N 78°10′E / 11.23°N 78.17°E / 11.23; 78.17.^[3] It has an average elevation of 218 metres (715 feet). It is close to Kolli Hills (கொல்லிமலை)- which is part of the Eastern Ghats (கிழக்கு தொடர்சிமலை). The closest river is Kaveri (காவேரி). The city is approximately 360 km southwest of Chennai, 250 km south of Bangalore, 55 km from Erode & Salem, 160 km east of Coimbatore & 85 km northwest of Tiruchirapalli. Its landscape is such that it would not be affected by floods.

[edit] 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 to 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 the Cheras. The Cholas and the Pandyas also ruled this region for some time. It has also been under the control of self or autonomous rulers for at least a century. It is one of the few places in ancient Tamil Nadu, that has not been seriously affected by famine and war.

Kolli Hills was ruled by a 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, in the Kolli Hills.

Lord Murugan is supposed to have visited Kolli Hills and evidence is found at Belukkurchi, 24 kilometers from Namakkal, on the way to Muthugapatty.

At Mohanur, on the bank of Cauvery river, one old and famous Sivan temple- Asala Deepeswarar with Madhukaraveni is there.

One new broadgauge railway line is being constructed connecting Salem with Karur and it is expected that this new line will boost the prosperity of Salem, Namakkal and Karur districts.

[edit] Schools, Colleges and Education

[edit] 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) (also known as South School)
Government Higher Secondary School (North) (co-educational)
Government Higher Secondary School for Girls
Government Higher Secondary School, Eranapuram
Government Higher Secondary School
PGP Group of Intitutuions
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
SunStars Metriculation School, Vadakaraiyathur
Jack and Jill Matriculation School, Ramapurumpudur, Namakkal
Government Higher Secondary School, Thirumalaipatti
King Educational Institutions, Nallur, near Namakkal
Selvam Educational Institutions, Mullampatti, 5 km away from Namakkal
Government Higher Secondary School, Pottireddipatty
Kongu Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Paramathy Velur
Government Higher Secondary School, Valayappati - 637020

[edit] Colleges and Universities

The Veterinary College and Research Institute is located in Namakkal and is affiliated with TANUVAS, Chennai. This college has undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral (Veterinary Medicine and Ph.D.) programs in several veterinary and life sciences disciplines.

Arts and Science

A.A. Govt. Arts College for Men, Namakkal
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
Subramaniyam College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
Trinity College for Women, Namakkal
Vivekanandha College of Arts and Science (W), Elayampalayam

Catering and Hotel Management

P.G.P. Arts and Science College, Namakkal

Dental

Vivekanandha Dental College for Women, Namakkal

Engineering

[CMS College of Engineering, Namakkal]http://www.CMSCOLLEGE.net
K. S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode
Vivekanadha Institute of Engineering and Technology for Women, Elyampalayam
Annai Mathammal Sheela Engineering College, Erumapatti, Namakkal Dt
Excel Engineering College, Namakkal
Gnanamani College of Technology, Namakkal Dt
King College of Technology, Namakkal
Paavai College of Engineering, Namakkal
Paavai Engineering College, Namakkal
Selvam College of Technology, Namakkal
Vivekanadha College of Engineering for Women, Elyampalayam
The American College

Homoeopathy

Dr. Hahnemann Homoeopathy Medical College and Research Centre, Namakkal Dt

Management

Annai Mathammal Sheela Engineering College, Namakkal
P.G.P. College of Arts and Science, Namakkal
P.G.P. College of Engineering and Technology, Namakkal
Paavai Engineering College, Namakkal
Vivekanadha College of Engineering for Women, Elyampalayam
Vivekananda College of Arts and Sciences, Elyampalayam
The Spectrum Academy, Namakkal

[edit] Economy

The economy of the district was primarily agricultural, but today it has now changed its occupation to lorries, educational institutions, poultry and real estate. A wide variety of crops are grown within the district. Poultry, lorry transport and businesses related to their kind drive the economy of 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). 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 tonnes per day, is also present in this district.

It has been recorded several times to be the number one location in ATM tansactions in Tamil Nadu.^{[citation needed]} Next to Coimbatore, it has the most number of crorepathis followed by Tirupur and Chennai.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Art

V. Ramalingam Pillai, more popularly known as Namakkal Kavignar (நாமக்கல் கவிஞர்), 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

கத்தி யின்றி ரத்த மின்றி
யுத்த மொன்று வருகுது
சத்தி யத்தின் நித்தி யத்தை
நம்பும் யாரும் சேருவீர்!....

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.

[edit] Transport

[edit] 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 (52 km), Salem (58 km), Tiruchirapalli (Trichy, 85 km) and Coimbatore (Coimbatore 154 km). Chennai, 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 opened for vehicular traffic.

[edit] Rail

The nearest major railway station is at Erode, with a travel time of about 75 minutes. Salem 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.

[edit] 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 (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 services.

[edit] Climate

The temperature ranges from 20 to 44 degrees Celsius throughout the year.

[edit] Popular facts about the City

ROSERAJ FLOWER SHOP is famous for marriage cermony decorations and also for all temple functions flower decorations. Flowers are available in wholesale and retail. All kind of flowers are available for all functions with good service and quality.
Numerous lorry (truck) body building units are spread around the city and it is the biggest transport city in India
With 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 is 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 quaint hill station and a tourist destination.

[edit] Places to Visit

Kolli Hills is the most attractive tourist 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 plantations, the Arapaleeswarar Temple and various scenic drives and hiking trails. The Agaya Gangai waterfalls is accessible by foot on a one 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 in Kolli Hills.

The most popular attractions within the city of Namakkal are the Rockfort (Malai Kottai), and the temples surrounding it. It takes about 30 minutes to hike to the top, and is of mild to moderate difficulty. The Rockfort 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 in the company of other people.

Arthanatheeswarar temple in Tiruchengode 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 quicksands 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 picnicking. Puliancholai is located on the Namakkal to Thuraiyur road.

Three popular temples are located around the Rockfort. The Hanuman Temple (நாமக்கல் ஆஞ்சநேயர் சன்னதி) is one of the most famous in South India. The "Narasimmar - Namagiri Amman Temple" (நரசிம்மர்-நாமகிரி தாயார் சன்னதி) 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. The Ranganaathar Temple (இரங்கநாதர் சன்னதி) is located on the foothills of the Rockfort on the east side where Mahatma Gandhi delivered his address in 1933.

Koolippatti Murugan Temple (கூலிப்பட்டி முருகன் கோயில்) 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 (வரதராச பெருமாள்). People go to this temple especially on Saturdays of the months of September and October (Tamil Purataci (புரட்டாசி) 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 places in this area. It is an open space temple where the God (Idol) is located under the banyan trees. A lot of people gather here on Sundays to worship the God of Farmers.
Ettukkai Amman Temple at Keerambur is one of the great sculpted pillar works.

[edit] Demographics

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[4] 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.

[edit] 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.^[5]
Namakkal, the zero-garbage eco-city
- Namakkal is one of the few Indian Municipalities which have been successful in running a zero garbage, eco-friendly urban waste management project for which visitors are coming to study. ^[6] ^[7] ^[8]
Train/Railway Station for Namakkal
- Work is in progress on a new broad gauge railway line between Salem and Karur via Namakkal and Mohanur, as part of the Southern Railways network. ^[9] A rail bridge across the Kaveri River (Cauvery) is to connect Vangal in Karur District and Mohanur in Namakkal District. ^[10] ^[11]

http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/17/stories/2007071750310100.htm

[edit] Politics

Namakkal assembly constituency is part of Namakkal (Lok Sabha constituency). Mr Gandhiselvan has been elected as M.P. from the newly formed constituency^[12]

[edit] References

^ Photos from Namakkal Municipality website
^ Photo of the ISO certificate
^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Namakkal
^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20040616075334/http://www.censusindia.net/results/town.php?stad=A&state5=999. Retrieved on 2008-11-01.
^ HIV/AIDS Legal Aid Clinic for Namakkal: The Hindu, April 16, 2007
^ Zero Garbage Initiative in Namakkal Town: India Best Practices Catalogue 2003, En route to Urban Reforms: Urban Management Centre, Asia
^ Namakkal, a zero garbage town: ChennaiOnline News, March 23, 2006
^ Namakkal: Dustbin-free town in Tamil Nadu, India: New Delhi TV, June 5, 2006
^ Southern Railway Tender Notice of March 12, 2007
^ Karur-Salem broad gauge line work to be expedited, The Hindu News, Wednesday, December 27, 2006
^ Wiki Map: Namakkal Railway Station, Lathuvadi, Mohanur Road, Namakkal
^ "List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies". Tamil Nadu. Election Commission of India. http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S22/TN_ACPC.pdf. Retrieved on 2008-10-09.

[edit] External links

[edit] See also

[0] Photos from Namakkal Municipality website

[1] Photo of the ISO certificate

[2] Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Namakkal

[3] "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20040616075334/http://www.censusindia.net/results/town.php?stad=A&state5=999. Retrieved on 2008-11-01.

[4] HIV/AIDS Legal Aid Clinic for Namakkal: The Hindu, April 16, 2007

[5] Zero Garbage Initiative in Namakkal Town: India Best Practices Catalogue 2003, En route to Urban Reforms: Urban Management Centre, Asia

[6] Namakkal, a zero garbage town: ChennaiOnline News, March 23, 2006

[7] Namakkal: Dustbin-free town in Tamil Nadu, India: New Delhi TV, June 5, 2006

[8] Southern Railway Tender Notice of March 12, 2007

[9] Karur-Salem broad gauge line work to be expedited, The Hindu News, Wednesday, December 27, 2006

[10] Wiki Map: Namakkal Railway Station, Lathuvadi, Mohanur Road, Namakkal

[11] "List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies". Tamil Nadu. Election Commission of India. http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S22/TN_ACPC.pdf. Retrieved on 2008-10-09.

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