Tamil Nadu - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

2/23/2016
TamilNaduWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia
TamilNadu
Coordinates:13.09N80.27E
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia
TamilNadu(/tmlndu/TAMilNAHdoo Tamilpronunciation
Tamil:literallyTheLandofTamilsorTamilCountry)is
oneofthe29statesofIndia.ItscapitalandlargestcityisChennai
(formerlyknownasMadras).TamilNadu[7]liesinthesouthernmost
partoftheIndianPeninsulaandisborderedbytheunionterritoryof
PuducherryandtheSouthIndianstatesofKerala,Karnataka,and
AndhraPradesh.ItisboundedbytheEasternGhatsonthenorth,bythe
Nilgiri,theAnamalaiHills,andKeralaonthewest,bytheBayof
Bengalintheeast,bytheGulfofMannarandthePalkStraitonthe
southeast,andbytheIndianOceanonthesouth.Italsosharesa
maritimeborderwiththenationofSriLanka.
TamilNadu
StateofIndia
TamilNaduistheeleventhlargeststateinIndiabyareaandthesixth
mostpopulousstateinIndia.Thestatewasrankedsixthamongstatesin
IndiaaccordingtotheHumanDevelopmentIndexin2011.[3][8]Tamil
NaduisthesecondlargeststateeconomyinIndiawith4789billion
(US$70billion)ingrossdomesticproduct.[9]Thestatehasthehighest
number(10.56percent)ofbusinessenterprisesandstandssecondin
totalemployment(9.97percent)inIndia,[10]comparedtothe
populationshareofabout6percent.TamilNaduwasrankedasoneof
theseventopdevelopedstatesinIndiabasedona"Multidimensional
DevelopmentIndex"ina2013reportpublishedbyapanelheadedby
currentRBIgovernorRaghuramRajan.[11]Itsofficiallanguageis
Tamil,whichisoneofthelongestsurvivingclassicallanguagesinthe
world.[12]
TamilNaduishometomanynaturalresources,classicalarts,classical
music,classicalliterature,HindutemplesofDravidianarchitecture,hill
stations,beachresorts,multireligiouspilgrimagesites,andeight
UNESCOWorldHeritageSites.[13][14]
Contents
1 History
1.1 Prehistory
1.2 Indusvalleyscriptbetween2000and1500BC
1.3 SangamPeriod(300BCAD300)
1.4 BhaktiMovement
1.5 MedievalPeriod(6001300)
1.5.1 CholaEmpire
1.6 VijayanagarandNayakperiod(13361646)
1.7 PowerStrugglesofthe18thcentury(16921801)
1.8 DuringBritishrule(18011947)
1.9 India(1947present)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamil_Nadu
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2 Geography
2.1 Climate
3 Floraandfauna
4 Nationalandstateparks
5 Governanceandadministration
6 Administrativesubdivisions
7 Politics
7.1 PreIndependence
7.2 PostIndependence
8 Demographics
9 Religion
10 Language
11 Education
12 Culture
12.1 Literature
12.2 Festivalsandtraditions
12.3 Music
12.4 Artsanddance
12.5 Filmindustry
12.6 Televisionindustry
TamilNadumontage:
VivekanandaRockMemorialatKanyakumariDistrict
SriMeenakshiammanTemple,Madurai
NilgiriTahr(varayadu)atMunnar&BeachesofTiruchendur,
WaterFallsinKolliHills
TeaGardensatNilgiriHills
Clockwisefromtop:,,,
12.7 Cuisine
13 Economy
13.1 Agriculture
13.2 Textilesandleather
SealofTamilNadu
Motto:TruthaloneTriumphs
Largestcity=Coimbatore
Anthem:"InvocationtoTamilMother"#
13.3 Automobiles
13.4 Heavyindustriesandengineering
13.5 Electronicsandsoftware
13.6 Others
14 Infrastructure
14.1 Transport
14.1.1 Road
14.1.2 Rail
LocationofTamilNadu(markedinred)inIndia
14.1.3 Airports
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14.1.4 Seaport
14.2 Energy
15 Sports
16 Tourism
17 Seealso
18 Notes
19 References
20 Externallinks
MapofTamilNadu
History
Prehistory
Archaeologicalevidencepointstothisareabeingoneofthelongest
continuoushabitationsintheIndianpeninsula.[15]InAdichanallur,
24km(15mi)fromTirunelveli,archaeologistsfromtheArchaeological
SurveyofIndia(ASI)unearthed169clayurnscontaininghumanskulls,
skeletons,bones,husks,grainsofrice,charredriceandceltsofthe
Neolithicperiod,3,800yearsago.[16]TheASIarchaeologistshave
proposedthatthescriptusedatthatsiteis"veryrudimentary"Tamil
Brahmi.[17]Adichanallurhasbeenannouncedasanarchaeologicalsite
forfurtherexcavationandstudies.[18]About60percentofthetotal
epigraphicalinscriptionsfoundbytheASIinIndiaarefromTamil
Nadu,andmostoftheseareintheTamillanguage.[19][20][21][22]
[23][24][25][26][27]MythicaltraditionsdictatethatLordShivahimself
taughtsageAgastyathislanguage.[28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35]Sage
AgastyaisconsideredtobethefatherofTamilliteratureandcompiled
thefirstTamilgrammarcalledAgathiyam,butthescriptsofAgathiyam
nolongerexist.[36]
Indusvalleyscriptbetween2000and1500BC
NeolithicpeopleoftheTamilcountryspokeaDravidianlanguage.The
discoveryofaNeolithicstonecelt,ahandheldaxe,withtheIndus
scriptonitatSembianKandiyurinTamilNaduis,accordingto
IravathamMahadevan,"StoneaxewithIndusValleyscriptfoundnear
Mayiladuthurai,TamilNaduwasamajordiscoverybecauseforthefirst
timeatextintheIndusscripthasbeenfoundintheStateonadatable
artefact,whichisapolishedneolithiccelt.Heestimatedthedateofthe
artefactwiththescripttobearound1500BC.[37]
SangamPeriod(300BCAD300)
TheearlyhistoryofthepeopleandrulersofTamilNaduisatopicin
TamilliterarysourcesknownasSangamliterature.Numismatic,
archaeologicalandliterarysourcescorroboratethattheSangamperiod
lastedforaboutsixcenturies,from300BCtoAD300.
Threedynasties,namelytheChera,CholaandPandya,ruledtheareaof
presentdayTamilNaduandKerala.TheCheraruledthewholeofpresent
dayKeralaandpartsofwesternTamilNaducomprisingCoimbatore,
Coordinates:13.09N80.27E
Country
Region
India
SouthIndia
Established
26January1950
Capital
Districts
Chennai
32
Government
Governor
ChiefMinister
Legislature
HighCourt
Area
Total
KonijetiRosaiah
JJayalalithaa(AIADMK)
TamilNaduLegislative
Assembly(234member
Unicameral)
MadrasHighCourt
130,058km2(50,216sqmi)
11th
Arearank
Population(2011)[1]
Total
72,147,030
Rank
6th
Density
550/km2(1,400/sqmi)
Demonym(s)
Tamizhar
Timezone
ISO3166code
IST(UTC+05:30)
INTN
HDI
0.570(medium)[2]
HDIrank
6th(2011)[3]
LiteracyRate
Officiallanguage
80.33%(2011census)[4]
Tamil
Website
tn.gov.in(http://www.tn.gov.in/)
^Establishedin1773MadrasStatewasformedin1950and
renamedasTamilNaduon14January1969[5]^#JanaGana
Manaisthenationalanthem,while"InvocationtoTamilMother"
isthestatesong/anthem.
StatesymbolsofTamilNadu
Language
Tamil
Song
"InvocationtoGoddess
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Dharmapuri,Karur,SalemandErodedistrictsfromthecapitalofVanchi
Muthur(thoughttobemoderndayKarur).TheCholadynastyruledthe
northernandcentralpartsofTamilNadufromtheircapital,Uraiyurand
thePandyadynastyruledsouthernTamilNadu,fromcapitalsatKorkaiand
Madurai.
AllthreedynastieshadextensivetraderelationshipswithRome,Greece,
Egypt,Ceylon,Phoenicia,Arabia,MesopotamiaandPersia.Trade
flourishedincommoditiessuchasspices,ivory,pearls,beadsandgems.
CheratradedextensivelyfromMuzirisonthewestcoast,Cholafrom
ArikameduandPuharandPandyathroughKorkaiport.AGrecoRoman
tradeandtraveldocument,thePeriplusoftheErythraeanSea(c.AD60
100)givesadescriptionoftheTamilcountryanditsports.
Besidesthesethreedynasties,theSangameraTamilakam(Tamil
homeland)wasalsodividedintovariousprovincesnamed'nadu',meaning
'country'.Sangamliteraturereferstheseprovincesas"koduntamil
mandalam"whichwerenotexactlypoliticalorsocioculturalunitsbut
linguisticagglomerationslikeKonguNadu,Puzhinadu,ThondaiNadu,
Nanjilnadu,AyNaduandVenadu.
Tamil"
Dance
Bharathanattiyam
Animal
Nilgiritahr
Bird
Emeralddove
Flower
Gloriosalily
Tree
Palmtree
Sport
Kabaddi
Betweenthe3rdand6thcenturiesAD,thethreeTamilkingdomswere
overwhelmedbytheKalabhras.Theperiodoftheirruleissometimesreferredtoasthe
"DarkAge"inTamilhistoryandlittleisknownaboutit.TheKalabhraswereexpelledby
thePallavas,Mutharaiyar,BadamiChalukyasandPandyasinthe6thcentury.
Megalithic
Sarcophagusburial
fromTamilNadu.
Virampatnamjewelry
fromfuneraryburial,
2ndcenturyBC,Tamil
Nadu.
Souttoukenyjewelry,
2ndcenturyB.C.Tamil
Nadu.
SageAgastyafatherofTamil
literature,Sangamperiod
Mapofancientoceanic Tamiakamduring
trade,andportsof
SangamPeriod.
Tamilakam.
BhaktiMovement
TheBhaktimovementoriginatedinTamilSpeakingregionofsouthIndiaandspreadnorthwardsthroughIndia.TheBhakti
MovementwasarapidgrowthofbhaktibeginninginthisregionwiththeSaivaNayanars(4th10thcenturies)[38]andthe
VaisnavaAlvarswhospreadbhaktipoetryanddevotion.[38][39]TheAlwarsandNayanmarswereinstrumentalinpropagating
theBhaktitradition.
MedievalPeriod(6001300)
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Duringthe4thto8thcenturies,TamilNadusawtheriseofthePallavadynastyunder
MahendravarmanIandhissonMamallaNarasimhavarmanI.[44]ThePallavasruledparts
ofSouthIndiawithKanchipuramastheircapital.Dravidianarchitecturereacheditspeak
duringPallavarule.NarasimhavarmanIIbuilttheShoreTemplewhichisaUNESCO
WorldHeritageSite.
Muchlater,thePallavaswerereplacedbytheCholadynastyasthedominantkingdomin
the9thcenturyandtheyinturnwerereplacedbythePandyanDynastyinthe13th
century.ThePandyancapitalMaduraiwasinthedeepsouthawayfromthecoast.They
hadextensivetradelinkswiththesoutheastAsianmaritimeempiresofSrivijayaand
theirsuccessors,aswellascontacts,evenformaldiplomaticcontacts,reachingasfaras
theRomanEmpire.Duringthe13thcentury,MarcoPolomentionedthePandyasasthe
richestempireinexistence.TemplessuchastheMeenakshiAmmanTempleatMadurai
andNellaiapparTempleatTirunelveliarethebestexamplesofPandyantemple
architecture.[45]ThePandyasexcelledinbothtradeandliterature.Theycontrolledthe
pearlfisheriesalongthesouthcoastofIndia,betweenSriLankaandIndia,which
producedsomeofthefinestpearlsintheknownancientworld.
Sambandar,oneofthesixtythree
Nayanars,(BhaktiMovement)
CholaEmpire
Duringthe9thcentury,theCholadynastywasonceagainrevivedbyVijayalayaChola,
whoestablishedThanjavurasChola'snewcapitalbyconqueringcentralTamilNadu
fromMutharaiyarandthePandyakingVaragunavarmanII.AdityaIandhisson
ParantakaIexpandedthekingdomtothenorthernpartsofTamilNadubydefeatingthe
lastPallavaking,Aparajitavarman.ParantakaCholaIIexpandedtheCholaempireinto
whatisnowinteriorAndhraPradeshandcoastalKarnataka,whileunderthegreat
RajarajaCholaandhissonRajendraChola,theCholasrosetoanotablepowerinsouth
eastAsia.NowtheCholaEmpirestretchedasfarasBengalandSriLanka.Atitspeak,
theempirespannedalmost3,600,000km2(1,400,000sqmi).RajarajaCholaconquered
allofpeninsularsouthIndiaandpartsofSriLanka.RajendraChola'snavywenteven
further,occupyingcoastsfromBurma(nowMyanmar)toVietnam,theAndamanand
NicobarIslands,Lakshadweep,Sumatra,Java,Malaya,Philippines[46]inSouthEastAsia
andPeguislands.HedefeatedMahipala,thekingofBengal,andtocommemoratehis
victoryhebuiltanewcapitalandnameditGangaikondaCholapuram.
TheCholaswereprolifictemplebuildersrightfromthetimesofthefirstmedievalking
VijayalayaChola.ThesearetheearliestspecimenofDravidiantemplesundertheCholas.
HissonAdityaIbuiltseveraltemplesaroundtheKanchiandKumbakonamregions.The
Cholaswentontobecomingagreatpowerandbuiltsomeofthemostimposingreligious
structuresintheirlifetimeandtheyalsorenovatedtemplesandbuildingsofthePallavas,
acknowledgingtheircommonsocioreligiousandculturalheritage.Thecelebrated
NatarajatempleatChidambaramandtheSriRanganathaswamiTempleatSrirangam
heldspecialsignificancefortheCholaswhichhavebeenmentionedintheirinscriptions
astheirtutelarydeities.RajarajaCholaIandhissonRajendraCholabuilttemplessuchas
theBrihadeshvaraTempleofThanjavurandBrihadeshvaraTempleofGangaikonda
Cholapuram,theAiravatesvaraTempleofDarasuramandtheSarabeswara(Shiva)
Temple,alsocalledtheKampahareswararTempleatThirubhuvanam,thelasttwo
templesbeinglocatednearKumbakonam.Thefirstthreeoftheabovefourtemplesare
titledGreatLivingCholaTemplesamongtheUNESCOWorldHeritageSites.
KallanaiorGrandAnicut,an
ancientdambuiltontheKaveri
RiverinTiruchirappalliby
KarikalaCholaaroundthe2nd
centuryAD[40][41][42][43]
ShoreTemplebuiltbythe
PallavasatMamallapuramduring
the8thcentury,nowaUNESCO
WorldHeritageSite
TheCholaperiodisalsoremarkableforitssculpturesandbronzesallovertheworld.
Amongtheexistingspecimensinmuseumsaroundtheworldandinthetemplesof
southernIndiathefinefiguresofSivainvariousforms,VishnuandhisconsortLakshmi,
andtheSivasaintsaretheexamplesofCholabronze.Thoughconforminggenerallyto
TheMeenakshiAmmanTemple
theiconographicconventionsestablishedbylongtradition,thesculptorsworkedwith
greatfreedominthe11thandthe12thcenturiestoachieveaclassicgraceandgrandeur.
ThebestexampleofthiscanbeseenintheformofNatarajatheDivineDancer.ThisisawesomeperiodforCholaEmpire.
VijayanagarandNayakperiod(13361646)
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The
Muslim
ArchitecturefromCholaperiodFromlefttoright:AiravatesvaraTempleat
DarasuramNatarajan,ShivaascelestialdancerandParvathi,theconsortofShiva
invasionsofsouthernIndiatriggeredtheestablishmentoftheHinduVijayanagaraEmpire
withVijayanagarainmodernKarnatakaasitscapital.TheVijayanagaraempire
eventuallyconqueredtheentireTamilcountrybyc.1370andruledforalmosttwo
centuriesuntilitsdefeatintheBattleofTalikotain1565byaconfederacyofDeccan
sultanates.Subsequently,astheVijayanagaraEmpirewentintodeclineafterthemid16th
century,manylocalrulers,calledNayaks,succeededingainingthetrappingsof
independence.Thiseventuallyresultedinthefurtherweakeningoftheempiremany
Nayaksdeclaredthemselvesindependent,amongwhomtheNayaksofMaduraiand
Tanjorewerethefirsttodeclaretheirindependence,despiteinitiallymaintainingloose
linkswiththeVijayanagarakingdom.[45]TheNayaksofMaduraiandNayaksof
ThanjavurwerethemostprominentofNayaksinthe17thcentury.Theyreconstructed
someofthewellknowntemplesinTamilNadusuchastheMeenakshiTemple.
TheCholaEmpireatitsgreatest
extent,duringthereignof
RajendraCholaIin1030
ThirumalaiNayakkarMahalat
Madurai
PowerStrugglesofthe18thcentury(16921801)
Bytheearly18thcentury,thepoliticalsceneinTamilNadusawamajorchangeoverandwasunderthecontrolofmany
minorrulersaspiringtobeindependent.ThefalloftheVijayanagaraempireandtheChandragiriNayakasgavethesultanate
ofGolcondaachancetoexpandintotheTamilheartland.WhenthesultanatewasincorporatedintotheMughalEmpirein
1688,thenorthernpartofcurrentdayTamilNaduwasadministratedbythenawaboftheCarnatic,whohadhisseatinArcot
from1715onward.Meanwhile,tothesouth,thefalloftheThanjavurNayaksledtoashortlivedThanjavurMaratha
kingdom.ThefalloftheMaduraiNayaksbroughtupmanysmallNayakarsofsouthernTamilNadu,whoruledsmallparcels
oflandcalledpalayams.ThechieftainsofthesePalayamswereknownasPalaiyakkarar(or'polygar'ascalledbyBritish)and
wererulingunderthenawabsoftheCarnatic.
Europeansstartedtoestablishtradecentersduringthe17thcenturyintheeasterncoastal
regions.Around1609,theDutchestablishedasettlementinPulicat,[47]whiletheDanes
hadtheirestablishmentinTharangambadialsoknownasTranquebar.[48]In1639,the
British,undertheEastIndiaCompany,establishedasettlementfurthersouthofPulicat,
inpresentdayChennai.BritishconstructedFortSt.George[49]andestablishedatrading
postatMadras.[50]By1693,theFrenchestablishedintradingpostsatPondichry.The
BritishandFrenchwerecompetingtoexpandthetradeinthenorthernpartsofTamil
NaduwhichalsowitnessedmanybattleslikeBattleofWandiwashaspartofSeven
FortDansborgatTharangambadi
Years'War.[51]BritishreducedtheFrenchdominionsinIndiatoPuducherry.Nawabsof
builtbytheDanish
theCarnaticbestowedtaxrevenuecollectionrightsontheEastIndiaCompanyfor
defeatingtheKingdomofMysore.MuhammadAliKhanWallajahsurrenderedmuchof
histerritorytotheEastIndiaCompanywhichfirmlyestablishedtheBritishinthenorthernparts.In1762,atripartitetreaty
wassignedbetweenThanjavurMaratha,CarnaticandtheBritishbywhichThanjavurbecameavassaloftheNawabofthe
CarnaticwhicheventuallycededtoBritish.
Inthesouth,NawabsgrantedtaxationrightstotheBritishwhichledtoconflictsbetweenBritishandthePalaiyakkarar,which
resultedinseriesofwarscalledPolygarwartoestablishindependentstatesbytheaspiringPalaiyakkarar.PuliThevarwas
oneoftheearliestopponentsoftheBritishruleinSouthIndia.[52]Thevar'sprominentexploitswerehisconfrontationswith
Marudhanayagam,wholaterrebelledagainsttheBritishinthelate1750sandearly1760s.RaniVeluNachiyar,wasthefirst
womanfreedomfighterofIndiaandQueenofSivagangai.[53]ShewasdrawntowarafterherhusbandMuthuVaduganatha
Thevar(17501772),KingofSivagangawasmurderedatKalayarKoviltemplebyBritish.Beforeherdeath,QueenVelu
NachigrantedpowerstotheMaruthubrotherstoruleSivaganga.[54]Kattabomman(17601799),Palaiyakkarachiefof
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PanchalakurichiwhofoughttheBritishintheFirstPolygarWar.[55]HewascapturedbytheBritishattheendofthewarand
hangednearKayattarin1799.VeeranSundaralingam(17001800)wastheGeneralofKattabommanNayakan'spalayam,
whodiedintheprocessofblowingupaBritishammunitiondumpin1799whichkilledmorethan150Britishsoldierstosave
KattapommanPalace.Oomaithurai,youngerbrotherofKattabomman,tookasylumundertheMaruthubrothers,Periya
MarudhuandChinnaMarudhuandraisedanarmy[56].TheyformedacoalitionwithDheeranChinnamalaiandKeralaVarma
PazhassiRajawhichfoughttheBritishinSecondPolygarWars.DheeranChinnamalai(17561805),Polygarchieftainof
KonguandfeudatoryofTipuSultanwhofoughttheBritishintheSecondPolygarWar.AfterwinningthePolygarwarsin
1801,theEastIndiaCompanyconsolidatedmostofsouthernIndiaintotheMadrasPresidency.
DuringBritishrule(18011947)
Atthebeginningofthe19thcentury,theBritishfirmlyestablishedgovernanceoverthe
entireTamilNadu.TheVelloreMutinyon10July1806wasthefirstinstanceofalarge
scaleandviolentmutinybyIndiansepoysagainsttheBritishEastIndiaCompany,
predatingtheIndianRebellionof1857byhalfacentury.[57]Therevolt,whichtookplace
inVellore,wasbrief,lastingonlyonefullday,butbrutalasmutineersbrokeintothe
Vellorefortandkilledorwounded200Britishtroops,beforetheyweresubduedby
SrivilliputhurAndalTemple
reinforcementsfromnearbyArcot.[58][59]TheBritishcrowntookoverthecontrol
Gopuramhasbeenadoptedasthe
governancefromtheCompanyandtheremainderofthe19thcenturydidnotwitnessany
officialSealofTamilNadu
nativeresistanceuntilthebeginningof20thcenturyIndianIndependencemovements.
DuringtheperiodofgovernorGeorgeHarrisHarris(18541859),measuresweretakento
improveeducationandincreaserepresentationofIndiansintheadministration.LegislativepowersgiventotheGovernor's
councilundertheIndianCouncilsAct1861and1909MintoMorleyReformseventuallyledtotheestablishmentofthe
MadrasLegislativeCouncil.FailureofthesummermonsoonsandadministrativeshortcomingsoftheRyotwarisystem
resultedintwoseverefamineintheMadrasPresidency,theGreatFamineof187678andtheIndianfamineof189697.The
famineledtomigrationofpeopleasbondedlaboursforBritishtovariouscountrieswhicheventuallyformedthepresent
TamilDiaspora.
India(1947present)
WhenIndiabecameindependentin1947,MadrasPresidencybecameMadrasState,comprisingpresentdayTamilNadu,
coastalAndhraPradeshuptoGanjamdistrictinOrissa,SouthCanaradistrictKarnataka,andpartsofKerala.Thestatewas
subsequentlysplitupalonglinguisticlines.In1969,MadrasStatewasrenamedTamilNadu,meaning"Tamilcountry".[60]
Geography
TamilNaducoversanareaof130,058km2(50,216sqmi),andistheeleventhlargest
stateinIndia.TheborderingstatesareKeralatothewest,Karnatakatothenorthwest
andAndhraPradeshtothenorth.TotheeastistheBayofBengalandthestate
encirclestheunionterritoryofPuducherry.ThesouthernmosttipoftheIndian
PeninsulaisKanyakumariwhichisthemeetingpointoftheArabianSea,theBayof
Bengal,andtheIndianOcean.
Thewestern,southernandthenorthwesternpartsarehillyandrichinvegetation.The
WesternGhatsandtheEasternGhatsmeetattheNilgirihills.TheWesternGhats
traversetheentirewesternborderwithKerala,effectivelyblockingmuchoftherain
bearingcloudsofthesouthwestmonsoonfromenteringthestate.Theeasternparts
arefertilecoastalplainsandthenorthernpartsareamixofhillsandplains.The
centralandthesouthcentralregionsarearidplainsandreceivelessrainfallthanthe
otherregions.
TamilNaduhasacoastlineofabout1,076km(669mi)whichisthecountry'ssecond
longestcoastline.TamilNadu'scoastlineborethebruntofthe2004IndianOcean
TsunamiwhenithitIndia,whichcaused7,793directdeathsinthestate.TamilNadufalls
mostlyinaregionoflowseismichazardwiththeexceptionofthewesternborderareas
thatlieinalowtomoderatehazardzoneasperthe2002BureauofIndianStandards
(BIS)map,TamilNadufallsinZonesII&III.Historically,partsofthisregionhave
experiencedseismicactivityintheM5.0range.[61]
TopographicmapofTamilNadu
WesternGhatstraversealongthe
westernborderofTamilNadu
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Climate
TamilNaduismostlydependentonmonsoonrains,andtherebyispronetodroughts
whenthemonsoonsfail.Theclimateofthestaterangesfromdrysubhumidtosemi
arid.Thestatehastwodistinctperiodsofrainfall:
southwestmonsoonfromJunetoSeptember,withstrongsouthwestwinds
NortheastmonsoonfromOctobertoDecember,withdominantnortheast
winds
ViewofPodhigaihillsfrom
Poovankurichi,Tirunelveli
Theannualrainfallofthestateisabout945mm(37.2in)ofwhich48percentis
throughthenortheastmonsoon,and32percentthroughthesouthwestmonsoon.Since
thestateisentirelydependentonrainsforrechargingitswaterresources,monsoon
failuresleadtoacutewaterscarcityandseveredrought.[62]TamilNaduisdividedinto
sevenagroclimaticzones:northeast,northwest,west,southern,highrainfall,high
altitudehilly,andKaveriDelta(themostfertileagriculturalzone).
Floraandfauna
Paddyfieldsnear
Gobichettipalayamaftermonsoon
Thereareabout2000speciesofwildlifethatarenativetoTamilNadu.Protectedareas
providesafehabitatforlargemammalsincludingelephants,tigers,leopards,wilddogs,
slothbears,gaurs,liontailedmacaques,Nilgirilangurs,Nilgiritahrs,grizzledgiantsquirrelsandsambardeer,residentand
migratorybirdssuchascormorants,darters,herons,egrets,openbilledstorks,spoonbillsandwhiteibises,littlegrebes,
Indianmoorhen,blackwingedstilts,afewmigratoryducksandoccasionallygreypelicans,marinespeciessuchasthe
dugongs,turtles,dolphins,Balanoglossusandawidevarietyoffishandinsects.
IndianAngiospermdiversitycomprises17,672specieswithTamilNaduleadingallstates
inthecountry,with5640speciesaccountingfor1/3ofthetotalfloraofIndia.This
includes1559speciesofmedicinalplants,533endemicspecies,260speciesofwild
relativesofcultivatedplantsand230redlistedspecies.TheGymnospermdiversityofthe
countryis64speciesofwhichTamilNaduhasfourindigenousspeciesandabout60
introducedspecies.ThePteridophytesdiversityofIndiaincludes1022speciesofwhich
TamilNaduhasabout184species.Vastnumbersofbryophytes,lichen,fungi,algaeand
bacteriaareamongthewildplantdiversityofTamilNadu.
Commonplantspeciesincludethestatetree:palmyrapalm,eucalyptus,rubber,cinchona,
clumpingbamboos(Bambusaarundinacea),commonteak,Anogeissuslatifolia,Indian
laurel,grewia,andbloomingtreeslikeIndianlabumusum,ardisia,andsolanaceae.Rare
anduniqueplantlifeincludesCombretumovalifolium(http://www.arsgrin.gov/cgi
bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?311513),ebony(Diospyrosnilagrica),Habenariarariflora
(orchid),Alsophila,Impatienselegans,Ranunculusreniformis,androyalfern.[63]
Nationalandstateparks
TamilNaduhasawiderangeofBiomesextendingeastfromtheSouthWesternGhats
montanerainforestsintheWesternGhatsthroughtheSouthDeccanPlateaudry
deciduousforestsandDeccanthornscrubforeststotropicaldrybroadleafforestsand
thentothebeaches,estuaries,saltmarshes,mangroves,andcoralreefsoftheBayof
Bengal.Thestatehasarangeoffloraandfaunawithmanyspeciesandhabitats.To
protectthisdiversityofwildlifethereareProtectedareasofTamilNaduaswellas
biosphereswhichprotectlargerareasofnaturalhabitatoftenincludeoneormore
NationalParks.TheGulfofMannarBiosphereReserveestablishedin1986isamarine
ecosystemwithseaweedandseagrasscommunities,coralreefs,saltmarshesand
mangroveforests.TheNilgiriBiosphereReservelocatedintheWesternGhatsand
NilgiriHillscomprisespartofadjoiningstatesofKeralaandKarnataka.The
AgasthyamalaiBiosphereReserveisinthesouthwestofthestateborderingKeralainthe
WesternGhats.TamilNaduishometofivedeclaredNationalparkslocatedinAnamalai,
Mudumalai,Mukurithi,GulfofMannarandGuindylocatedinthecentreofChennaicity.
SathyamangalamTigerReserve,MukurthiNationalParkandKalakkadMundanthurai
Theendangeredliontailed
macaque
SathyamangalamTigerReserve
hasthelargestelephantpopulation
inIndia
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TigerReservearethetigerreservesinthestate.SathyamangalamTigerReservehasthelargestelephantpopulationinIndia.
Besidesthesebioreserves,therearemanystateandcentralrunwildlifesanctuariesfortiger,elephantandbirds.
Governanceandadministration
TheGovernoristheconstitutionalheadofthestatewhiletheChiefMinisteristheheadofthegovernmentandtheheadofthe
councilofministers.TheChiefJusticeoftheMadrasHighCourtistheheadofthejudiciary.ThepresentGovernor,Chief
MinisterandtheChiefJusticeareKonijetiRosaiah,J.JayalalithaaandJusticeSanjayKishanKaul[64]respectively.
Administrativelythestateisdividedinto32districts.Chennai(formerlyknownasMadras)isthestatecapital.Itisthefourth
largesturbanagglomerationinIndiaandisalsooneofthemajorMetropolitancitiesofIndia.Thestatecomprises39Lok
Sabhaconstituenciesand234LegislativeAssemblyconstituencies.[65]
TamilNaduhadabicamerallegislatureuntil1986,whenitwasreplacedwithaunicamerallegislature,likemostotherstates
inIndia.Thetermlengthofthegovernmentisfiveyears.ThepresentgovernmentisheadedbyJ.JayalalithaaoftheAllIndia
AnnaDravidaMunnetraKazhagam.TheTamilNadulegislativeassemblyishousedattheFortSt.GeorgeinChennai.The
statehadcomeunderthePresident'sruleruleonfouroccasionsfirstfrom1976to1977,nextforashortperiodin1980,
thenfrom1988to1989andthelatestin1991.
TamilNaduhasbeenapioneeringstateofEGovernanceinitiativesinIndia.Alargepartofthegovernmentrecordslikeland
ownershiprecordsaredigitisedandallmajorofficesofthestategovernmentlikeUrbanLocalBodiesallthecorporations
andmunicipalofficeactivitiesrevenuecollection,landregistrationoffices,andtransportofficeshavebeencomputerised.
TamilNaduisoneofthestateswherelawandorderhasbeenmaintainedlargelysuccessfully.[66]TheTamilNaduPolice
Forceisover140yearsold.ItisthefifthlargeststatepoliceforceinIndia(asof2015,totalpoliceforceofTNis1,11,448)
andhasthehighestproportionofwomenpolicepersonnelinthecountry(totalwomenpolicepersonnelofTNis13,842
whichisabout12.42%)tospecificallyhandledviolenceagainstwomeninTamilNadu.[67][68]In2003,thestatehadatotal
policepopulationratioof1:668,higherthanthenationalaverageof1:717.
Administrativesubdivisions
TamilNaduissubdividedinto32districts,whicharelistedbelow.Adistrictis
administeredbyaDistrictCollectorwhoismostlyanIndianAdministrativeService
(IAS)member,appointedbyStateGovernment.Districtsarefurtherdividedinto226
TaluksadministratedbyTahsildarscomprising1127RevenueBlocks.ADistricthasalso
oneormoreRevenueDivisions(intotal76)constitutedbymanyRevenueBlocks.16,564
Revenuevillages(VillagePanchayat)aretheprimarygrassrootsleveladministrative
unitswhichinturnmightincludemanyvillagesandadministeredbyaVillage
AdministrativeOfficer(VAO),manyofwhichformaRevenueBlock.Citiesandtowns
areadministeredbyMunicipalcorporationsandMunicipalitiesrespectively.Theurban
bodiesinclude12citycorporations,125municipalitiesand529town
panchayats.[69][70][71]Theruralbodiesinclude31districtpanchayats,385panchayat
unionsand12,524villagepanchayats.[72][73][74]
DistrictsofTamilNadu
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District
DistrictsofTamilNadu
Population
Headquarters
Area
(2011)
Population
density
Ariyalur
Ariyalur
1,944km2
752,481
387/km2
Chennai
Chennai
174km2
4,681,087
26,903/km2
Coimbatore
Coimbatore
4,642km2
3,172,578
648/km2
Cuddalore
Cuddalore
3,705km2
2,600,880
702/km2
Dharmapuri
Dharmapuri
4,527km2
1,502,900
332/km2
Dindigul
Dindigul
6,054km2
2,161,367
357/km2
Erode
Erode
5,692km2
2,259,608
397/km2
Kanchipuram
Kanchipuram
4,305km2
2,690,897
666/km2
Kanyakumari
Nagercoil
1,685km2
1,863,174
1,106/km2
10 Karur
Karur
2,902km2
1,076,588
371/km2
11 Krishnagiri
Krishnagiri
5,091km2
1,883,731
370/km2
12 Madurai
Madurai
3,695km2
2,441,038
663/km2
13 Nagapattinam
Nagapattinam
2,416km2
1,614,069
668/km2
14 Namakkal
Namakkal
3,402km2
1,721,179
506/km2
15 Nilgiris
Udagamandalam 2,552km2
735,071
288/km2
16 Perambalur
Perambalur
1,748km2
564,511
323/km2
17 Pudukkottai
Pudukkottai
4,652km2
1,618,725
348/km2
18 Ramanathapuram Ramanathapuram 4,180km2
1,337,560
320/km2
19 Salem
Salem
5,249km2
3,480,008
663/km2
20 Sivaganga
Sivaganga
4,140km2
1,341,250
324/km2
21 Thanjavur
Thanjavur
3,477km2
2,302,781
661/km2
22 Theni
Theni
2,872km2
1,143,684
397/km2
23 Thoothukudi
Thoothukudi
4,599km2
1,738,376
378/km2
24 Tiruchirappalli
Tiruchirappalli
4,508km2
2,713,858
602/km2
25 Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli
6,709km2
3,072,880
458/km2
26 Tirupur
Tirupur
5,192km2
2,471,222
476/km2
27 Tiruvallur
Tiruvallur
3,552km2
3,725,697
1,049/km2
28 Tiruvannamalai
Tiruvannamalai
6,188km2
4,121,965
667/km2
29 Tiruvarur
Tiruvarur
2,379km2
1,268,094
533/km2
30 Vellore
Vellore
6,081km2
4,028,106
671/km2
31 Viluppuram
Viluppuram
7,185km2
3,463,284
482/km2
32 Virudhunagar
Virudhunagar
4,280km2
1,943,309
454/km2
Politics
PreIndependence
PriortoIndianindependenceTamilNaduwasunderBritishcolonialruleaspartoftheMadrasPresidency.Themainpartyin
TamilNaduatthattimewastheIndianNationalCongress(INC).Regionalpartieshavedominatedstatepoliticssince1916.
Oneoftheearliestregionalparties,theSouthIndianWelfareAssociation,aforerunnertoDravidianpartiesinTamilNadu,
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wasstartedin1916.ThepartywascalledafteritsEnglishorgan,JusticeParty,byit
opponents.Later,SouthIndianLiberalFederationwasadoptedasitsofficialname.The
reasonforvictoryoftheJusticePartyinelectionswasthenonparticipationoftheINC,
demandingcompleteindependenceofIndia.
TheJusticePartywhichwasunderE.V.RamaswamywasrenamedDravidarKazhagamin
1944.Itwasanonpoliticalpartywhichdemandedtheestablishmentofanindependent
statecalledDravidaNadu.However,duetothedifferencesbetweenitstwoleadersEVR
andC.N.Annadurai,thepartywassplit.AnnaduraileftthepartytoformtheDravida
MunnetraKazhagam(DMK).TheDMKdecidedtoenterpoliticsin1956.
PostIndependence
FortSt.GeorgehoststheChief
Secretariatofthegovernmentof
TamilNadu
ReorganisationofIndianstatesaccordingtolinguisticandethnicbasishasmoderated
Political
AssemblyLokSabha
Tamilnationalism,especiallythedemandforseparationfromtheIndianUnion.The
Alliance
(2011)
(2014)
AntiHindiagitationsinthemid1960smadetheDMKmorepopularandamore
AIADMK+
203
37
DMK+
31
0
powerfulpoliticalforceinthestate.TheDMKroutedtheINCinthe1967electionsand
Independent/Other
0
2
tookcontrolofthestategovernment,endingINC'sstrongholdinTamilNadu.C.N.
Source:ElectionCommissionofIndia.[75][76]
AnnaduraibecametheDMK'sfirstChiefMinister.MKarunanidhitookoverasChief
MinisterandpartyleaderafterAnnadurai'sdeathin1969.Karunanidhi'sleadershipwassoonchallengedbyMG
Ramachandran,popularlyknownasMGR.In1972,hesplitfromDMKandformedtheAnnaDravidaMunnetraKazhagam
(ADMK)andlaterrenamedthepartyasAllIndiaAnnaDravidMunnetraKazhagam.HewastheChiefMinisterofthestate
from1977untilhisdeathin1987.AfterthedeathofMGR,AIADMKwasdefeatedin1989assemblypollsbecauseofthe
splitofthepartyintotwofactionsheadedbyJanaki(wifeofMGR)andJayalalithaa.LateronJ.Jayalalithaatookcontrolof
theparty.ShewaselectedastheGeneralSecretaryoftheunifiedAIADMK.TherehavebeenseveralsplitsinboththeDMK
andtheAIADMK,butsince1967oneofthosetwopartieshasheldpowerinthestate.
Demographics
TamilNaduistheseventhmostpopulousstateinIndia.48.4percentofthestate's
populationliveinurbanareas,thehighestamonglargestatesinIndia.Thestatehas
registeredthelowestfertilityrateinIndiainyear200506with1.7childrenbornfor
eachwoman,lowerthanrequiredforpopulationsustainability.[78][79]
Atthe2011Indiacensus,TamilNaduhadapopulationof72,147,030.[80]Thesex
ratioofthestateis995with36,137,975malesand36,009,055females.Therearea
totalof23,166,721households.[80]Thetotalchildrenundertheageof6is7,423,832.
Atotalof14,438,445peopleconstituting20.01percentofthetotalpopulation
belongedtoScheduledCastes(SC)and794,697peopleconstituting1.10percentof
thepopulationbelongedtoScheduledtribes(ST).[81][80]
Historicalpopulation
Year
Pop.
1951
1961
1971
1981
1991
2001
2011
30,119,000
33,687,000
41,199,000
48,408,000
55,859,000
62,406,000
72,138,958
+11.8%
+22.3%
+17.5%
+15.4%
+11.7%
+15.6%
Source:CensusofIndia[77]
Thestatehas51,837,507literates,makingtheliteracyrate80.33percent.Thereareatotalof27,878,282workers,
comprising4,738,819cultivators,6,062,786agriculturallaborers,1,261,059inhouseholdindustries,11,695,119other
workers,4,120,499marginalworkers,377,220marginalcultivators,2,574,844marginalagriculturallaborers,238,702
marginalworkersinhouseholdindustriesand929,733othermarginalworkers.[82]
Amongthecitiesin2011,thestatecapital,Chennai,wasthemostpopulouscityinthestate,followedbyCoimbatore,
Madurai,TrichyandTiruppurrespectively.[83]Indiahasahumandevelopmentindexcalculatedas0.619,whilethe
correspondingfigureforTamilNaduis0.736,placingitamongthetopstatesinthecountry.[84][85]Thelifeexpectancyat
birthformalesis65.2yearsandforfemalesitis67.6years.[86]However,ithasahighlevelofpovertyespeciallyintherural
areas.In20042005,thepovertylinewassetat351.86/monthforruralareasand547.42/monthforurbanareas.Poverty
inthestatedroppedfrom51.7percentin1983to21.1percentin2001[87]Fortheperiod20042005,theTrendinIncidence
ofPovertyinthestatewas22.5percentcomparedwiththenationalfigureof27.5percent.TheWorldBankiscurrently
assistingthestateinreducingpoverty,Highdropoutandlowcompletionofsecondaryschoolscontinuetohinderthequality
oftraininginthepopulation.Otherproblemsincludeclass,gender,interdistrictandurbanruraldisparities.BasedonURP
Consumptionfortheperiod20042005,percentageofthestate'spopulationBelowPovertyLinewas27.5percent.The
OxfordPoverty&HumanDevelopmentInitiativeranksTamilNadutohaveaMultidimensionalPovertyIndexof0.141,
whichisinthelevelofGhanaamongthedevelopingcountries.[88]Corruptionisamajorprobleminthestatewith
TransparencyInternationalrankingitthesecondmostcorruptamongthestatesofIndia.[89]
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Religion
Asperthereligiouscensusof2011,TamilNaduhad87.6%Hindus,5.9%Muslims,6.1%
Christians,0.1%Jainsand0.3%followingotherreligionsornoreligion.[91]
ThestateishometothecoreschoolsofmedievalandmodernHinduismaswellas
severalnonmainstreamHindumovements.TheseincludeNayanmarsSaivism,Saiva
Siddhanta,AlvarVaishnavism,SriVaishnavismandAyyaVazhi.Inmoderntimes,well
knownfiguresforHinduisminthestateincludeRamanaMaharishiandtheKanchi
Sankaracharya.AllHindudeitiesinvariousformsandalargenumberofvillagedeities
areworshipedbyHindusinTamilNadu.MuruganisconsideredtobetheGodofTamil
people.TamilNadudominatesthelistoflargestHinduTemplesintheworldwhich
includetheSrirangamRanganathaswamytemple,MaduraiMeenakshiAmmanTemple,
EkambareswararTempleatKanchipuram,ChidambaramNatarajaTemple,
TiruvannamalaiArunachaleswarTemple,BrihadeeswararTempleatTanjoreamong
others.TheemblemofGovernmentofTamilNadudepictstheGopuram(gatewaytower)
oftheAndalTempleatSrivilliputhur.
Christiansform6percentofthepopulation.Christiansaremainlyconcentratedinthe
southerndistrictsofKanyakumari,ThoothukudiandTirunelveli.St.ThomasMountin
Chennai,theplacewhereSt.Thomas,oneofthedisciplesofJesus,wasbelievedtohave
beenmartyred,isanimportantpilgrimagesiteforIndianChristians.TheSanthome
Basilica,builtatopthesitewidelybelievedbyChristianstohavebeenthetombofSt.
Thomas,andtheVailankanniBasilicaofOurLadyofGoodHealtharechurchesrevered
byChristiansinIndia.TheChurchofSouthIndiaandthePentecostalMissionChurchare
headquarteredinChennai.
Muslimsconstitutecloseto6%ofthepopulationofthestateandaremainlyconcentrated
inRamanathapuram,Thanjavur,Nagappattinam,Vellore,Thoothukudi,Maduraiand
Tirunelvelidistricts.AmongMuslims,97.5percentareSunniandtherestareShias.The
SunnisadheretoeitherHanafiorShafischoolsofthought.ErwadiinRamanathapuram
districtandNagoreinNagapattinamdistrictareimportantpilgrimagesitesforMuslims.
KazimarBigMosqueinMaduraiandKarpudaiyarmasjidinKayalpatnamareamongthe
earliermosquesinTamilNadu.
ReligioninTamilNadu
(2011)[90]
Hinduism(87.58%)
Christianity(6.12%)
Islam(5.86%)
Jainism(0.12%)
Sikhism(0.02%)
Buddhism(0.01%)
Otherornotreligious(0.3%)
MeenakshiAmmanTemple,
Maduraihasoneofthelargest
templecomplexes
SamanarsorTamilJainshavealegacydatingbackto250BC.Theymadesignificant
contributionstoTamilliterature.Accordingtothe2001censustherewere83,359Jainsin
TamilNadu.Jainsmakeup0.13percentofthepopulation.Scheduledcastesand
Scheduledtribescomprise19percentand1percentofthepopulationrespectively.An
anticonversionlawcameintoforcein2002whichlawwasrepealedlaterinJune
2004.[92]
Language
Erwadidargahin
TamilistheofficiallanguageofTamilNadu.Englishisalsoincommonusageasan
Ramanathapuramdistrict
officiallanguageofIndia.WhenIndiaadoptednationalstandards,Tamilwasthefirst
languagetoberecognizedasaclassicallanguageofIndia.[93]Asof2001census,Tamil
isspokenasthefirstlanguageby89.43percentofthepopulationfollowedbyTeluguby5.65percent,Kannadaby2.68per
cent,Urduby1.51percentandMalayalamby0.89percent.[78]
Education
TamilNaduisoneofthemostliteratestatesinIndia.[94]TamilNaduhasperformedreasonablywellintermsofliteracy
growthduringthedecade20012011.AsurveyconductedbytheIndustrybodyAssochamranksTamilNadutopamong
Indianstateswithabout100percentGrossEnrolmentRatio(GER)inprimaryandupperprimaryeducation.Oneofthebasic
limitationsforimprovementineducationinthestateistherateofabsenceofteachersinpublicschools,whichat21.4per
centissignificant.[95]TheanalysisofprimaryschooleducationinthestatebyPrathamshowsalowdropoffratebutpoor
qualityofstateeducationcomparedtootherstates.[96]TamilNaduhas37universities,552engineeringcolleges,Listof
engineeringcollegesinTamilNadu[97]449PolytechnicColleges[98]and566artsandsciencecolleges,34335elementary
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schools,5167highschools,5054highersecondaryschoolsand5000hospitals.Someof
thenotableeducationalinstitutespresentinTamilNaduareIndianInstituteof
TechnologyMadras,IndianInstituteofManagementTiruchirappalli,NationalInstituteof
Technology,Tiruchirappalli,TamilNaduDr.AmbedkarLawUniversity,Chennai,
CollegeofEngineering,Guindy,MadrasMedicalCollegeandTamilNaduAgricultural
University.
TamilNadunowhas69percentreservationineducationalinstitutionsforsocially
backwardsectionofthesociety,thehighestamongallIndianstates.[99]TheMiddayMeal
SchemeprogrammeinTamilNaduwasfirstinitiatedbyKamaraj,thenitwasexpanded
byMGRamachandranin1983.
Culture
TamilNaduhasalongtraditionofvenerableculture.[100]TamilNaduisknownforits
richtraditionofliterature,art,musicanddancewhichcontinuetoflourishtoday.Tamil
NaduisalandmostknownforitsmonumentalancientHindutemplesandclassicalform
ofdanceBharataNatyam.[101]UniqueculturalfeatureslikeBharatanatyam[102](dance),
Tanjorepainting,[103]andTamilarchitectureweredevelopedandcontinuetobepractised
inTamilNadu.[104]
TheBasilicaofOurLadyofGood
HealthatVelankanniisa
Christianpilgrimagecenter
TamilBrahmiinscription
Literature
Tamilwrittenliteraturehasexistedforover2000years.[105]TheearliestperiodofTamil
literature,Sangamliterature,isdatedfromca.300BCAD300.[106][107]Itistheoldest
Indianliteratureamongstallothers.[108]Theearliestepigraphicrecordsfoundonrock
edictsandherostonesdatefromaroundthe3rdcenturyBC.[109][110]
MostearlyTamilliteraryworksareinverseform,withprosenotbecomingmore
commonuntillaterperiods.TheSangamliteraturecollectioncontains2381poems
composedby473poets,some102ofwhomremainanonymous.[111]Sangamliteratureis
primarilysecular,dealingwitheverydaythemesinaTamilakamcontext.[112]The
Sangamliteraturealsodealswithhumanrelationshipandemotions.[113]Theavailable
literaturefromthisperiodwascategorizedandcompiledinthe10thcenturyintotwo
categoriesbasedroughlyonchronology.Thecategoriesare:Pathinenmaelkanakku(The
MajorEighteenAnthologySeries)comprisingEuttokai(TheEightAnthologies)andthe
Pattupattu(TenIdylls)andPathinenkilkanakku(TheMinorEighteenAnthologySeries).
MuchofTamilgrammarisextensivelydescribedintheoldestknowngrammarbookfor
Tamil,theTolkppiyam.ModernTamilwritingislargelybasedonthe13thcentury
grammarNalwhichrestatedandclarifiedtherulesoftheTolkppiyam,withsome
modifications.TraditionalTamilgrammarconsistsoffiveparts,namelyeuttu,sol,poru,
yppu,ai.Ofthese,thelasttwoaremostlyappliedinpoetry.[114]Notableexampleof
TamilpoetryincludetheTirukkuralwrittenbyTiruvalluvar.
Districtlevelliteracy(2011data)
PaintingsattheSittanavasal
Cave,7thcentury,Pudukottai,
TamilNadu,India
In1578,thePortuguesepublishedaTamilbookinoldTamilscriptnamed'ThambiraanVanakkam',thusmakingTamilthe
firstIndianlanguagetobeprintedandpublished.[115]TamilLexicon,publishedbytheUniversityofMadras,isthefirst
amongthedictionariespublishedinanyIndianlanguage.[116]DuringtheIndianfreedomstruggle,manyTamilpoetsand
writerssoughttoprovokenationalspirit,socialequityandsecularistthoughtsamongthecommonman,notablySubramanya
BharathyandBharathidasan.
Festivalsandtraditions
Pongal,alsocalledasTamizharThirunaal(festivalofTamils)orMakaraSankrantielsewhereinIndia,afourdayharvest
festivalisoneofthemostwidelycelebratedfestivalsthroughoutTamilNadu.[117]TheTamillanguagesayingThaiPirandhal
VazhiPirakkumliterallymeaning,thebirthofthemonthofThaiwillpavewayfornewopportunitiesisoftenquotedwith
referencetothisfestival.Thefirstday,BhogiPongal,iscelebratedbythrowingawayanddestroyingoldclothesand
materialsbysettingthemonfiretomarktheendoftheoldandemergenceofthenew.Thesecondday,SuryaPongal,isthe
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maindaywhichfallsonthefirstdayofthetenthTamilmonthThai(14Januaryor15
Januaryinwesterncalendar).Thethirdday,MaattuPongal,ismeanttoofferthanksto
thecattle,astheyprovidemilkandareusedtoploughthelands.Jallikattu,abulltaming
contest,marksthemaineventofthisday.AlanganallurisfamousforitsJallikattu[118][119]
contestusuallyheldon3rddayofPongal.Duringthisfinalday,KaanumPongalthe
word"kaanum",means'toview'inTamil.In2011theMadrasHighCourtBenchordered
thecockfightatSanthapadiandModakoorMelbegamvillagespermittedduringthe
Pongalfestivalwhiledisposingofapetitionfiledattemptingtobanthecockfight.[120]
ThefirstmonthintheTamilcalendarisChittiraiandthefirstdayofthismonthinmid
Overflowingduringcookingof
ApriliscelebratedasTamilNewYear.TheThiruvalluvarcalendaris31yearsaheadof
Pongalindicatesoverflowingof
theGregoriancalendar,i.e.Gregorian2000isThiruvalluvar2031.AadiPerukkuis
joyandprosperity.
celebratedonthe18thdayoftheTamilmonthAadi,whichcelebratestherisingofthe
waterlevelintheriverKaveri.Apartfromthemajorfestivals,ineveryvillageandtown
ofTamilNadu,theinhabitantscelebratefestivalsforthelocalgodsonceayearandthetimevaries
fromplacetoplace.MostofthesefestivalsarerelatedtothegoddessMaariyamman,themother
goddessofrain.OthermajorHindufestivalsincludingDeepavali(DeathofNarakasura),Ayudha
Poojai,SaraswathiPoojai(Dasara),KrishnaJayanthiandVinayakaChathurthiarealsocelebrated.
EidulFitr,Bakrid,MiladunNabi,MuharramarecelebratedbyMuslimswhereasChristmas,
GoodFriday,EasterarecelebratedbyChristiansinthestate.Mahamagamabathingfestivalat
KumbakonaminTamilNaduiscelebratedoncein12years.Peoplefromallthecornersofthe
countrycometoKumbakonamforthefestival.ThisfestivalisalsocalledasKumbamelaof
Thiruvalluvarwasthe
South.[121][122]
greatTamilpoetand
Music
philosopher
ThekingsofancientThamizhagamcreatedsangamsforIyalIsaiNadagam(Literature,Musicand
Drama).Musicplayedamajorroleinsangams.MusicinTamilNaduhaddifferentforms.In
villageswherefarmingwastheprimaryoccupation,womenwhoworkedinthefieldsusedtosing
kulavaisongs.Odhuvars,SthanikarsorKattalaiyarsoffershortmusicalprogrammesinthetemples
bysingingthedevotionalThevaramsongs.Insharpcontrastwiththerestrainedandintellectual
natureofCarnaticmusic,Tamilfolkmusictendstobemuchmoreexuberant.Popularformsof
TamilfolkmusicincludetheVilluppu,aformofmusicperformedwithabow,theurumee
mellamorNaiyandimellamwhichincorporatestheuseoftheurumeeandtheNuppur
appu,
balladsthatconveyfolkloreandfolkhistory.
CarnaticmusicistheclassicalmusicformofsouthernIndia.Thisisoneoftheworld'soldest&
richestmusicaltraditions.TheTrinityofCarnaticmusicTyagaraja,MuthuswamiDikshitarand
SyamaSastriwerefromTamilNadu.ThyagarajarAaradhanai(worship)takesplaceeveryyearin
themonthofMarghazhiinThiruvaiyaruallcarnaticmusiciansrendertheirobesiancetoSaint
Thyagarajarbysinginghiscompositions.ThecomposersbelongingtotheTamilTrinity,namely
MuthuThandavar(?1560?1640),ArunachalaKavi(17121779)andMarimutthuPillai(1717
1787)composedhundredsofdevotionalsongsinTamilandhelpedintheevolutionofCarnatic
music.Chennaihostsalargeculturalevent,theannualMadrasMusicSeasonduring
DecemberJanuary,whichincludesperformancesbyhundredsofartistsalloverthecity.
M.S.Subbulakshmi,
wasthefirstmusician
tobeawardedthe
BharatRatna,India's
highestcivilianhonour
Intermsofmoderncinemusic,Ilaiyaraajawasaprominentcomposeroffilmmusicin
Tamilcinemaduringthelate1970sand1980s.HisworkhighlightedTamilfolklyricism
andintroducedbroaderwesternmusicalsensibilitiestothesouthIndianmusical
NadhaswaramandThavilplayers
mainstream.TamilNaduisalsothehomeofthedoubleOscarWinnerA.R.
Rahman[123][124][125]whohascomposedfilmmusicinTamil,Telugu,Hindifilms,
EnglishandChinesefilms,wasoncereferredtobyTimemagazineas"TheMozartofMadras".Now,Tamilnaduislistening
Rapmusic.
Artsanddance
Tamilshavealargenumberoffolkdances.Theseareperformedforeverypossibleoccasion,tocelebratethearrivalof
seasons,birthofachild,weddingsandfestivals.TamildanceiscloselyintertwinedwiththeTamiltheatricaltradition.
Themostcelebratedofthesedancesisthekarakattam.Initsreligiousform,thedanceisperformedinfrontofanimageofthe
goddessMariamman.Thedancerbearsonhisorherheadabrasspotfilledwithuncookedrice,decoratedwithflowersand
surroundedbyabambooframe,andtumblesandleapstotherhythmofasongwithoutspillingagrain.Karakattamisusually
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performedtoaspecialtypeofsongknownastemmanguppuafolksonginthe
modeofaloverspeakingtohisbeloved,totheaccompanimentofanadaswaramand
melam.
OtherTamilfolkdancesincludemayilam,wherethedancerstieastringofpeacock
feathersaroundtheirwaistyilttam,dancedinacirclewhilewavingsmallpiecesof
clothofvariouscolourspoikkalkuthiraiyaaam,wherethedancersusedummy
horsesmanattam,wherethedancersimitatethegracefulleapingofdeerparaiyam,
adancetothesoundofrhythmicaldrumbeats,andthppandam,adanceinvolving
playingwithburningwoodentorches.
BharatanatyamisaclassicaldanceformoriginatingfromTamilNadu.Priortothe
colonialperiod,itusedtobeperformedinHindutemplesbyDevadasis.Inthisform,
itasalsobeencalledsadirorchinnamelam.ManyoftheancientsculpturesinHindu
templesarebasedonBharataNatyamdancepostures.Bharatanatyamisatraditional
BharataNatyamPerformanceDS
danceformknownforitsgrace,purity,tenderness,andsculpturesqueposes.It
continuestobeapopulardancestyleatpresenttimesandispractisedbymaleand
femaledancersalloverIndia.TerukkuttuorKattaikkuttuisatraditionalformofTamilstreettheatrefolkdance/drama.
Filmindustry
TamilNaduisalsohometotheTamilfilmindustryalsoknownas"Kollywood",whichreleasedthemostnumberoffilmsin
Indiain2013.[126]ThetermKollywoodisaportmanteauofKodambakkamandHollywood.[127]Tamilcinemaisoneofthe
largestcentresoffilmproductioninIndia.[128]InTamilNadu,cinematicketpricesareregulatedbythegovernment.Single
screentheatersmaychargeamaximumof50,whiletheaterswithmorethanthreescreensmaychargeamaximumof120
perticket.[129]ThefirstsilentfilminTamilKeechakaVadham,wasmadein1916.[130]Thefirsttalkiewasamultilingual,
Kalidas,whichreleasedon31October1931,barely7monthsafterIndia'sfirsttalkingpictureAlamAra[131]Swamikannu
Vincent,whohadbuiltthefirstcinemaofSouthIndiainCoimbatore,introducedtheconceptof"TentCinema"inwhicha
tentwaserectedonastretchofopenlandclosetoatownorvillagetoscreenthefilms.Thefirstofitskindwasestablishedin
Madras,called"Edison'sGrandCinemamegaphone".Thiswasduetothefactthatelectriccarbonswereusedformotion
pictureprojectors.[132]
Televisionindustry
Therearemorethan30televisionchannelsofvariousgenreinTamil.DDPodhigai,Doordarshan'sTamillanguageregional
channelwaslaunchedonApril14,1993.[133]ThefirstprivateTamilchannel,SunTVwasfoundedin1993byKalanidhi
Maran.InTamilNadu,thetelevisionindustryisinfluencedbypoliticsandmajorityofthechannelsareownedbypoliticians
orpeoplewithpoliticallinks.[134]ThegovernmentofTamilNadudistributedfreetelevisionstofamiliesin2006atan
estimatedcost3.6billion(US$53million)ofwhichhasledtohighpenetrationofTVservices.[135][136]Cableusedtobethe
preferredmodeofreachinghomescontrolledbygovernmentrunoperatorArasuCable.[137]Fromtheearly2010s,Directto
Homehasbecomeincreasinglypopularreplacingcabletelevisionservices.[138]Tamiltelevisionserialsformamajorprime
timesourceofentertainmentandaredirectedusuallybyonedirectorunlikeAmericantelevisionseries,whereoftenseveral
directorsandwritersworktogether.[139]
Cuisine
TamilcuisineistypicalofsouthIndiancuisine,inthatriceandricederiveddishesform
themajorportionofadiet(seericeandcurry).Thereareregionalsubvarietiesnamely
Chettinadu,Kongunadu,Nanjilnadu,Madurai,Tirunelvelivarietiesetc.Traditionally,
foodisservedonabananaleafinsteadofaplateandeatenwiththerighthand.Theworld
famousidlydosaisambarvadaiisasymbolandaswellasanidentityforthemodernday
Tamilcuisine.
RiceisthestaplefoodofTamilsandistypicallyeatenmixedwithsambhar(withor
withoutghee),vegetarianornonvegetariankulambu,rasam,curdandbuttermilk.Thisis
accompaniedwithvariousvegetarianand/ornonvegetariandisheslikekootu,aviyal,
poriyal,thuvayal,chutni,karaisal,kothsu,avial,varuval,peratal,appalam,vadakam,
vatral,varietiesofpickles,uppukandam,urukaaiandchicken,mutton,orfishfry.
VegMealsinTamilNadu
traditionallyservedinbananaleaf
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Breakfastandsnackitemsincludeidly,dosai,adai,vadai,pongal,aappam,paniyaram,
puttu,uppuma,santhakai,idiyappamanduthappam.Theseitemsareeatenalongwith
sambar,varietiesofchatniorpodi(spicepowder).Traditionallypreparedfiltercoffeeis
uniqueintasteandpopularalloverthestate.TheChettinadregionisfamousforitsspicy
nonvegetariancuisine,whileAmburandDindigulareknownfortheirBiriyani.Sweet
itemsthatarenativetoTamilNaduareathirasam,ChakkaraiPongalandKuliPaniyaram.
Salemisrenownedforitsuniquemangoes,Maduraiistheplaceoforiginofmilkdessert
JigarthandawhilePalaniisknownforitsPanchamirtham.[140]
Economy
TamilNaduisthesecondlargestcontributortoIndia'sGDP.Fortheyear201415Tamil
Nadu'sGSDPwas9767billion(US$140billion),andgrowthwas14.86.[141]Itranks
thirdinforeigndirectinvestment(FDI)approvals(cumulative19912002)of225,826
million($5,000million),nextonlytoMaharashtraandDelhiconstituting9.12percentof
thetotalFDIinthecountry.[142]Thepercapitaincomein20072008forthestatewas
72,993rankingthirdamongstateswithapopulationover10millionandhassteadily
beenabovethenationalaverage.[143]
Accordingtothe2011Census,TamilNaduisthemosturbanisedstateinIndia(49per
cent),accountingfor9.6percentoftheurbanpopulationwhileonlycomprising6per
centofIndia'stotalpopulation,[145]andisthemosturbanisedstateinIndia.[8]Services
contributesto45percentoftheeconomicactivityinthestate,followedby
manufacturingat34percentandagricultureat21percent.Governmentisthemajor
investorinthestatewith51percentoftotalinvestments,followedbyprivateIndian
investorsat29.9percentandforeignprivateinvestorsat14.9percent.TamilNadu
hasanetworkofabout113industrialparksandestatesofferingdevelopedplotswith
supportinginfrastructure.AccordingtothepublicationsoftheTamilNadu
governmenttheGrossStateDomesticProductatConstantPrices(Baseyear2004
2005)fortheyear20112012is428,109crores,anincreaseof9.39percentover
thepreviousyear.Thepercapitaincomeatcurrentpriceis72,993.
Dosawithchutneyandsambar
traditionallyservedinbananaleaf
TIDELPark,Coimbatore
Coimbatoreisoneoftheleading
BPOcentersinIndia
TamilNaduIndia'sEconomic
Powerhouse
Agriculture
TamilNaduhashistoricallybeenanagriculturalstateandisaleadingproducerof
agriculturalproductsinIndia.In2008,TamilNaduwasIndia'sfifthbiggestproducer
ofrice.ThetotalcultivatedareaintheStatewas5.60millionhectaresin200910.[146]
TheCauverydeltaregionisknownastheRiceBowlofTamilNadu.[147]Intermsof
production,TamilNaduaccountsfor10percentinfruitsand6percentinvegetables,
inIndia.[148]Annualfoodgrainsproductionintheyear200708was10035,000
mt.[146]MangoandbananaaretheleadingfruitcropsinTamilNaduaccountingfor
over87percentofthetotalfruitproduction.Themainvegetablesgrownaretapioca,
tomato,onion,brinjal(eggplant),anddrumstick.TamilNaduisalsoaleadingstatein
theproductionofflowerswiththetotalproductionofhorticulturalcropsstandingat
9947,000during200304.ThemainflowersgrowninTamilNaduarejasmine,
chrysanthemum,marigoldandrose.
Thestateisthelargestproducerofbananas,turmeric,flowers,[148]tapioca,[148]the
secondlargestproducerofmango,[148]naturalrubber,[149]coconut,groundnutandthe
thirdlargestproducerofcoffee,sapota,[148]Tea[150]andSugarcane.TamilNadu's
sugarcaneyieldperhectareisthehighestinIndia.Thestatehas17,000hectaresof
landunderoilpalmcultivation,thesecondhighestinIndia.[151]
TamilNaduStatistics
TamilNadu'sContributiontoIndia's
IndustrialOutput
DrM.S.Swaminathan,knownasthe"fatheroftheIndianGreenRevolution"wasfromTamilNadu.[152]TamilNadu
AgriculturalUniversitywithitssevencollegesandthirtytworesearchstationsspreadovertheentirestatecontributesto
evolvingnewcropvarietiesandtechnologiesanddisseminatingthroughvariousextensionagencies.AmongstatesinIndia,
TamilNaduisoneoftheleadersinlivestock,poultryandfisheriesproduction.TamilNaduhadthesecondlargestnumberof
poultryamongstallthestatesandaccountedfor17.7percentofthetotalpoultrypopulationinIndia.[153]In20032004,
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TamilNaduhadproduced3783.6millionofeggs,whichwasthe
secondhighestinIndiarepresenting9.37percentofthetotalegg
productioninthecountry.[154]Withthesecondlongestcoastlinein
India,TamilNadurepresented27.54percentofthetotalvalueoffish
andfisheryproductsexportedbyIndiain2006.
GrossStateDomesticProductinCroresat
ConstantPrices[144]
Year GSDP GrowthRate ShareinIndia
200001 142,065
5.87%
7.62%
200102 139,842
1.56%
7.09%
200203 142,295
1.75%
6.95%
200304 150,815
TamilNaduisoneoftheleadingStatesinthetextilesectorandit
housesthecountryslargestspinningindustryaccountingforalmost80 200405 219,003
percentofthetotalinstalledcapacityinIndia.Whenitcomestoyarn
200506 249,567
production,theStatecontributes40percentofthetotalproductionin
thecountry.Thereare2,614HandProcessingUnits(25percentoftotal 200607 287,530
unitsinthecountry)and985PowerProcessingUnits(40percentof
200708 305,157
totalunitsinthecountry)inTamilNadu.Accordingtoofficialdata,the 200809 321,793
textileindustryinTamilNaduaccountsfor17percentofthetotal
200910 356,632
investedcapitalinalltheindustries.[155]Coimbatoreisoftenreferredto
201011 403,416
asthe"ManchesterofSouthIndia"duetoitscottonproductionand
[156]
201112 433,238
textileindustries.
Tirupuristhecountry'slargestexporterof
[157][158][159]
knitwear.
foritscottonproduction.Theregionaround
201213 447,944
Coimbatore,Tirupur,KarurandErodeisreferredtoasthe"Textile
201314 480,618
ValleyofIndia"withtheexportfromtheTirupur50,000million
($1,000million)andKarurgeneratesaround35,500million($750
million)ayearinforeignexchange.Gobichettipalayam,Pollachi,Udumalpet,Theniand
Vedasandurareknownforitscottonspinningmills.Gobichettipalayamisaprominent
producerofwhitesilkwiththecountry'sfirstautomatedsilkreelingunitpresenthere.
KanchipuramandAraniareworldfamousfortheirpuresilksareesandhandloomsilk
weavingindustries.Aruppukottai,Salem,andSathyamangalamarealsofamousforart
silksarees.Sankarankovil,Andipatti,Tiruchengodu,Paramakudi,Kurinjipadi,
Chennimalai,Komarapalayamaremajorhandloomcentres.Sankarankovil,Negamam,
Cinnalapatti,Woraiyur,Pochampalliarefamousforitssoftcottonsareeweaving.
MaduraiisknownforitsChungidicottonsareesandBhavaniforitscottoncarpets.
5.99%
6.79%
11.45%
7.37%
13.96%
7.67%
15.21%
8.07%
6.13%
7.83%
5.45%
7.74%
10.83%
7.89%
13.12%
8.20%
7.39%
8.26%
3.39%
8.17%
7.29%
8.37%
Textilesandleather
Thestateaccountsfor70percentofleathertanningcapacityinIndiaand38percentof
leatherfootwearandcomponents.TheexportsfromTamilNaduarevaluedataboutUS
$762million,whichaccountsfor42percentofIndianleatherexports.Hundredsof
leatherandtanneryindustriesarelocatedaroundDindigulErodeandVellore,itsnearby
townssuchasRanipet,Melvisharam,Pernambut,Ambur,VaniyambadiandPerundurai.
TamilNaduisthelargest
producerofturmeric
Automobiles
TamilNaduhasseenmajorinvestmentsintheautomobileindustryovermanydecades
manufacturingcars,railwaycoaches,battletanks,tractors,motorcycles,automobilespare
partsandaccessories,tyresandheavyvehicles.ChennaiisknownastheDetroitof
India.[160]MajorglobalautomobilecompaniesincludingBMW,Ford,RobertBosch,
RenaultNissan,Caterpillar,Hyundai,MitsubishiMotors,andMichelinaswellasIndian
automobilemajorslikeMahindra&Mahindra,AshokLeyland,HindustanMotors,TVS
Motors,IrizarTVS,RoyalEnfield,MRF,ApolloTyres,TAFETractors,
DaimlerChryslerAGCompanyalsoinvested()4billionforestablishingnewplantin
TamilNadu.[161]KarurisahubforBusbodybuildingindustries.ThegiantslikeAshok
Leyland,TVS,LMW,MRFandELGIareheadquarteredinTamilNadu.Hosurisalsoan
importantautomobilemanufacturingregionwhereTVSMotorsandAshokLeylandhave
setuptheirManufacturingplants
Heavyindustriesandengineering
Agricultureformsamajorportion
ofstate'seconomy
Kanchipuramhandloomsilk
sarees
TamilNaduisoneofthehighlyindustrializedstatesinIndia.Over11%oftheS&PCNX
500conglomerateshavecorporateofficesinTamilNadu.Manyheavyengineeringand
manufacturingcompaniesarelocatedinandaroundthesuburbsofChennai.BharatHeavyElectricals,oneofIndia'slargest
electricalequipmentmanufacturingcompanies,hasmanufacturingplantsatTiruchirapalliandRanipet.India'sleadingsteel
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producer,thestateownedSteelAuthorityofIndiahasasteelplantinSalem.SterliteIndustrieshasacoppersmelterat
TuticorinandanaluminiumplantinMettur.TheChennaiPetroleumCorporationisastateownedoilandgascorporation
headquarteredinChennai,andownsrefineriesatManaliandPanangudi.ThestategovernmentownstheTamilNadu
NewsprintandPapers,[162]inKarur.JointlywiththeTataGroup,thestateownstheworld'ssixthlargestmanufacturerof
watches,underthebrandnameofTitan,atHosur.Anumberoflargecementmanufacturers,includingtheChettinadGroup,
RamcoCements,Tancem,theDalmiaGroup,UltraTechCementsandACCarepresentacrossthestate.
Coimbatoreisalsoreferredtoas"thePumpCity"asitsuppliestwothirdsofIndia'srequirementsofmotorsandpumps.The
cityisoneofthelargestexportersofwetgrindersandautocomponentsandtheterm"CoimbatoreWetGrinder"hasbeen
givenaGeographicalindication.[163]
Electronicsandsoftware
ElectronicsmanufacturingisagrowingindustryinTamilNadu,withmanyinternational
companieslikeNokia,Flextronics,Motorola,SonyEricsson,Foxconn,Samsung,Cisco,
MoserBaerandDellhavingchosenChennaiastheirsouthAsianmanufacturinghub.
Productsmanufacturedincludecircuitboardsandcellularphonehandsets.[164]
TamilNaduisthesecondlargestsoftwareexporterbyvalueinIndia.Softwareexports
MahindraWorldCitynear
fromTamilNadugrewfrom76billion($1.6billion)in200304to207billion{$5
Chennai
billion}by200607accordingtoNASSCOM[165]andto366billionin200809which
shows29percentgrowthinsoftwareexportsaccordingtoSTPI.Majornationaland
globalITCompaniessuchasSyntel,Infosys,Wipro,HCL,TataConsultancyServices,Verizon,HewlettPackard,
Amazon.com,eBay,PayPal,IBM,Accenture,RamcoSystems,ComputerSciencesCorporation,CognizantTechnology
solutions,TechMahindra,Polaris,Aricent,MphasiS,Mindtree,HexawareTechnologiesandmanyothershaveofficesin
TamilNadu.ThetopengineeringcollegesinTamilNaduhavebeenamajorrecruitinghubfortheITfirms.Accordingto
estimates,about50percentoftheHRrequiredfortheITandITESindustrywasbeingsourcedfromtheState.[166]
Coimbatoreisthesecondlargestsoftwareproducerinthestate,nexttoChennai,followedbyMadurai[167]
Others
NamakkalisalsooneofthemajorcentersofeggproductioninIndia.Coimbatoreisoneofthemajorcentersofjewelleryand
poultry.[168][169]KarurisamajorcenterforNylonnets(HDPE)filaments.Sivakasiisamajorcentreoffireworksandsafety
matchproductionandoffsetprintinginIndiawithover60percentoffireworkproductioninIndia.Kanyakumariisfamous
forrubberproduction.ArmouredVehiclesandAmmunitionDepotofIndia(AVADI)whichmanufacturesarmoredvehicles
forIndianmilitaryislocatedabout23kmnorthwestofChennai.IntegralCoachFactoryinPeramburisthelargestproducer
ofrailwaycoachesinAsia.
Infrastructure
Transport
Road
TamilNaduhasatransportationsystemthatconnectsallpartsofthestate.TamilNaduis
servedbyanextensiveroadnetwork,providinglinksbetweenurbancentres,agricultural
marketplacesandruralareas.Thereare29nationalhighwaysinthestate,coveringa
totaldistanceof5,006.14km(3,110.67mi).[170][171]Thestateisalsoaterminusforthe
GoldenQuadrilateralproject,thatconnectsfourmajormetropolitancitiesinIndia(Delhi,
Mumbai,Chennai,Kolkata).Thestatehasatotalroadlengthof167,000km
(104,000mi),ofwhich60,628km(37,672mi)aremaintainedbyHighwaysDepartment.
Thisisnearly2.5timeshigherthanthedensityofallIndiaroadnetwork.[172]Themajor
roadjunctionsareChennai,Vellore,Madurai,Trichy,Coimbatore,Salem,Tirunelveli,
AviewoftheNH47Expressway
Tuticorin,Karur,Krishnagiri,Dindigul,Kanniyakumari.Roadtransportisprovidedby
betweenCoimbatoreandSalemin
stateownedTamilNaduStateTransportCorporationandStateExpressTransport
TamilNadu
Corporation.Almosteverypartofstateiswellconnectedbybuses24hoursaday.The
Stateaccountedfor13.6percentofallaccidentsinthecountryWith66,238accidentsin
2013,11.3percentofallroadaccidentdeathsand15percentofallroadrelatedinjuries,accordingtodataprovidedbythe
MinistryofRoadTransportandHighways.AlthoughTamilNaduaccountsforthehighestnumberofroadaccidentsinIndia,
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italsoleadsinhavingreducedthenumberoffatalitiesinaccidentproneareaswith
deploymentofpersonnelandasustainedawarenesscampaign.Thenumberofdeathsat
areasdecreasedfrom1,053in2011to881in2012and867in2013.[173]
Rail
TamilNaduhasawelldevelopedrailnetworkaspartofSouthernRailway.
HeadquarteredatChennai,theSouthernRailwaynetworkextendsoveralargeareaof
India'ssouthernpeninsula,coveringthestatesofTamilNadu,Kerala,Puducherry,a
smallportionofKarnatakaandasmallportionofAndhraPradesh.Expresstrainsconnect
thestatecapitalChennaiwithMumbai,DelhiandKolkatta.ChennaiCentralisgateway
fortraintowardsnorthwhereasChennaiEgmoreservesasgatewayforsouth.Tamil
Naduhasatotalrailwaytracklengthof5,952km(3,698mi)andthereare532railway
stationsinthestate.ThenetworkconnectsthestatewithmostmajorcitiesinIndia.The
NilgiriMountainRailwayisoneoftheUNESCOWorldHeritageSiteconnectingOoty
onthehillsandMettupalayaminthefoothillswhichisinturnconnectedtoCoimbatore
city.ThecentenaryoldPambanBridgeoverseaconnectingRameswaraminPamban
islandtomainlandisanengineeringmarvel.Itisoneoftheoldestcantileverbridgesstill
inoperation,thedoubleleafbasculebridgesectioncanberaisedtoletboatsandsmall
shipspassthroughPalkStraitinIndianOcean.Chennaihasawellestablishedsuburban
railwaynetworkandisconstructingaChennaiMetrowithphase1operationalsinceJuly
2015.Majorrailwayjunctions(4&abovelines)inthestateareChennai,Coimbatore,
Katpadi,Madurai,Salem,Erode,Dindigul,Karur,Nagercoil,Tiruchirapalliand
Tirunelveli.ChennaiCentral,MaduraiJunction,KatpadiJunction,ChennaiEgmore,
SalemJunction,TiruchirappalliJunction,CoimbatoreJunctionareupgradedtoA1grade
level.LocoshedsarelocatedatErode,Arakkonam,RoyapuraminChennaiand
TondaiyarpetinChennai,Ponmalai(GOC)inTiruchirappalliasDieselLocoShed.The
locoshedatErodeisahugecompositeElectricandDieselLocoshed.MRTSwhich
coversfromChennaiBeachtoVelachery
Airports
ChennaiInternationalAirport,one
ofthemajorinternationalairports
inthecountry
Pambanroad(left)andrail(right)
bridges,connectingtheIndian
mainlandwiththePambanIsland
NilgiriMountainRailway
TamilNaduhasfourinternationalairportsnamelyChennaiInternationalAirport,
CoimbatoreInternationalAirport,TiruchirapalliInternationalAirportandMaduraiInternationalAirport.SalemAirportand
TuticorinAirportaredomesticairports.ChennaiInternationalAirportisamajorinternationalairportandaviationhubin
SouthAsia.Besidescivilianairports,thestatehasfourairbasesoftheIndianAirForcenamelyThanjavurAFS,Tambram
AFS,CoimbatoreAFSandMaduraiAFSandtwonavalairstationsINSRajaliandINSParunduofIndianNavy.
Seaport
TamilNaduhasthreemajorseaportslocatedatChennai,EnnoreandTuticorin,aswellassevenotherminorportsincluding
CuddaloreandNagapattinam.[146]ChennaiPortisanartificialharboursituatedontheCoromandelCoastandisthesecond
principalportinthecountryforhandlingcontainers.EnnorePorthandlesallthecoalandoretrafficinTamilNadu.The
volumeofcargointheportsgrewby13percentduring2005.[174]
Energy
TamilNaduhasthethirdlargestestablishedpowergenerationcapacityinthecountry.
TheKalpakkamNuclearPowerPlant,EnnoreThermalPlant,NeyveliLignitePower
Plant,manyhydroelectricplantsincludingMetturDam,hundredsofwindmillsandthe
NarimanamNaturalGasPlantsaremajorsourcesofTamilNadu'selectricity.TamilNadu
generatesasignificantproportionofitspowerneedsfromrenewablesourceswithwind
powerinstalledcapacityatover7154MW,[175]accountingfor38percentoftotal
installedwindpowerinIndia.[176]ItispresentlyaddingtheKoodankulamNuclear
PowerPlanttoitsenergygrid,whichoncompletionwouldbethelargestatomicpower
plantinthecountrywith2000MWinstalledcapacity.[177]Thetotalinstalledcapacityof
WindfarminMuppandaland
[178]
Aralvaimozhiregion
electricityintheStatebyJanuary2014was20,716MW.
TamilNaduranksfirst
nationwideindieselbasedthermalelectricitygenerationwithanationalmarketshareof
over34percent.[179]Fromapowersurplusstatein200506,TamilNaduhasbecomeastatefacingseverepowershortage
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overtherecentyearsduetolackofnewpowergenerationprojectsanddelayinthecommercialpowergenerationat
KudankulamAtomicPowerProject.TheTuticorinThermalPowerStationhasfive210megawattgenerators.Thefirst
generatorwascommissionedinJuly1979.Thethermalpowerplantsunderconstructionincludethecoalbased1000MW
NLCTNEBPowerPlant.Fromthecurrent17MWinstalledSolarpower,TamilNadugovernment'snewpolicyaimsto
increasetheinstalledcapacityto3000MWby2016.[180]
Sports
Kabbadi,ateamcontactsportoriginatedinTamilNaduandisrecognisedasthestategame.[181]ThetraditionalsportofTamil
NaduincludeSilambam,[182]aTamilmartialartsplayedwithalongbamboostaff,Cockfight,Jallikattu,[183]abulltaming
sportfamousonfestivaloccasions,oxwagonracingknownasRekkala,[184][182]KiteflyingalsoknownasPattam
viduthal,[183]Goli,thegamewithmarbles,[183]AaduPuli,the"goatandtiger"game[183]andKabaddialsoknownas
Sadugudu.[183]MostofthesetraditionalsportsareassociatedwithfestivalsoflandlikeThaiPongalandmostlyplayedin
ruralareas.[183]InurbanareasofTamilNadu,modernsportslikebatandballgamesareplayed.[183]
TheM.A.ChidambaramStadiumchennai
ThemostpopulargameinTamilNadulikerestofIndiaiscricket.TheM.A.
ChidambaramStadiuminChennaiisaninternationalcricketgroundwithacapacityof
50,000andhousestheTamilNaduCricketAssociation.[185]Srinivasaraghavan
Venkataraghavan,[186]KrishnamachariSrikkanth,[187]LaxmanSivaramakrishnan,[188]
LaxmipathyBalaji,[189]MuraliVijay,[190]RavichandranAshwin[191]andDineshKarthik
aresomeprominentcricketersfromTamilNadu.TheMRFPaceFoundationinChennai
isapopularfastbowlingacademyforpacebowlersallovertheworld.Cricketcontests
betweenlocalclubs,franchisesandteamsarepopularinthestate.ChennaiSuperKings
representthecityofChennaiintheIndianPremierLeague,apopularTwenty20league.
TheSuperKingsarethemostsuccessfulteamintheleaguewithtwoIPLtitlesandtwo
CLT20titles.
TamilNaduhasalongstandingmotorsportsculture.Thesportwaspioneeredby
SundaramKarivardhan(195495)initsearlydays.Motorracingbetweenthe1960sand
1980swasconductedatSholavaram,atrackusedasaWorldWarIIairstrip.Modern
motorracingeventsareheldattheIrungattukottaiRaceTrackownedandoperatedby
MadrasMotorSportsClubnearSriperumbudurandKariMotorSpeedwayin
Coimbatore.TheonlytwopeopletorepresentIndiainFormula1arebothfromTamil
Nadu,namelyNarainKarthikeyan,thefirstIndiantoparticipateinF1racing,andKarun
Chandhok.
ViswanathanAnand,worldchess
champion20072013
KariMotorSpeedwayin
Coimbatore
TennisisalsoapopularsportinTamilNaduwithnotableinternationalplayersincludingRameshKrishnan,[192]Ramanathan
Krishnan,[192]VijayAmritraj[193]andMaheshBhupathi.NirupamaVaidyanathan,thefirstIndianwomentoplayina
grandslamtournamentalsohailsfromthestate.TheATPChennaiOpentournamentisheldinChennaieveryJanuary.The
SportsDevelopmentAuthorityofTamilNadu(SDAT)ownsNungambakkamtennisstadiumwhichhostsChennaiOpenand
DavisCupplayofftournaments.
FivetimeWorldChesschampionViswanathanAnandhailsfromTamilNadu.ThestateboastsatotalofeightGrandMasters
andnumerousInternationalMasters.OthernotablechessplayersfromthestateincludeManuelAaron,thefirstIndian
InternationalMaster,G.Akash,theyoungestIndiantowinanationaltournament,KrishnanSasikiran,Grandmaster,S.
20/28
2/23/2016
Vijayalakshmi,SixtimeWomen'snationalchampionofIndiaandtheFirstWomenGrandmasterfromIndia,Aarthie
Ramaswamy,WomenGrandmasterandformerunder18girls'WorldChesschampion.MariaIrudayam,theformerWorld
CarromChampionandIlavazhagi,thedefendingWomen'sWorldCarromChampionarefromTamilNadu.
TheTamilNaduHockeyAssociationisthegoverningbodyofHockeyinthestate.VasudevanBaskaranwasthecaptainof
theIndianteamthatwongoldmedalin1980OlympicsatMoscow.TheMayorRadhakrishnanStadiuminChennaihosts
internationalhockeyeventsandisregardedbytheInternationalHockeyFederationasoneofthebestintheworldforits
infrastructure.[194]
TheSportsDevelopmentAuthorityofTamilNadu(SDAT),agovernmentbody,isvestedwiththeresponsibilityof
developingsportsandrelatedinfrastructureinthestate.[195]TheSDATownsandoperatesworldclassstadiumsandorganises
sportingevents.[196]Italsoaccommodatessportingevents,bothatdomesticandinternationallevel,organisedbyothersports
associationsatitsvenues.TheYMCACollegeofPhysicalEducationatNandanaminChennaiwasestablishedin1920and
wasthefirstcollegeforphysicaleducationinAsia.TheJawaharlalNehruStadiuminChennaiisamultipurposestadium
hostingfootballandtrack&fieldevents.TheIndianTriathlonFederationandtheVolleyballFederationofIndiaare
headquarteredinChennai.ChennaihostedIndia'sfirsteverInternationalBeachVolleyballChampionshipin2008.The
SDATTNSRASquashAcademyinChennaiisoneoftheveryfewacademiesinsouthAsiahostinginternationalsquash
events.
SnookerwasinventedbyGeneralSirFrederickRobertsattheOotyClubinOoty,ahillstationinthestate.TamilNaduhas
six18holegolfcourses,themostpopularofwhichareKodaikanalGolfClub,establishedin1895,OotyGolfCourse,
establishedin1896,andGymkhanaClub,Chennai.TheMadrasBoatClub,setupin1867,hostsregularrowingracesonthe
AdyarRiver.TheGuindyracecourseinChennai,setupin1777,istheoldesthorseracingvenueinIndia.Adventuresports
havegainedpopularity,especiallyamongstthetouristsvisitingthestate.
Tourism
ThetourismindustryofTamilNaduisthelargestinIndia,withanannualgrowthrateof
16percent.TourisminTamilNaduispromotedbyTamilNaduTourismDevelopment
Corporation(TTDC),aGovernmentofTamilNaduundertaking.[197]Accordingto
MinistryofTourismstatistics,4.66millionforeignand327.6milliondomestictourists
visitedthestatein2014makingitthemostvisitedstateinIndiabothdomesticand
foreigntourists.[198]ThestateboastssomeofthegrandHindutemplesbuiltinDravidian
architecture.TheBrihadishwaraTempleinThanjavurandGangaikondaCholapuram
builtbytheCholas,theAiravateswaratempleinDarasuramandtheShoreTemple,along
withthecollectionofothermonumentsinMahabalipuram(alsocalledMamallapuram)
havebeendeclaredasUNESCOWorldHeritageSites.[199][200]
BrihadeeswararTemple,
ThanjavurisaUNESCOworld
heritagesite
MaduraiMeenakshiAmmanTemple,SriRanganathaswamyTemple,Srirangam,
TiruchirappalliisthelargestfunctioningtempleintheTamilNadu,Rameshwaramwhose
templewalkwayscorridorsarethelongest1.2km(0.75mi)ofallIndiantemples,
Chidambaram,Thiruvannaamalai,KanchipuramandSixAbodesofMuruganare
amongsttheimportantpilgrimagesitesforHindus.OtherpopulartemplesinTamilNadu
includethoseinTiruvarur,Kumbakonam,Tirunelveli,Sankarankovil,Srivilliputhur,
Tiruttani,Namakkal,Vellore,Karur,Bhavani,Pariyur,Bannari,Chennai,Coimbatore
andKanniyakumari.
MarinaBeach,thelongesturban
TamilNaduisalsohometohillstationslikeUdhagamandalam(Ooty),Kodaikanal,
beachinthecountry
Yercaud,Coonoor,Topslip,Valparai,MegamalaiandYelagiri.TheNilgirihills,Palani
hills,Shevaroyhills,Megamalaihills,KolliHills,CumbumvalleyandCardamomhills
areallabodesofthickforestsandwildlife.TamilNaduhasmanynationalparks,biospherereserves,wildlifesanctuaries,
elephantandbirdsanctuaries,reservedforests,zoosandcrocodilefarms.ProminentamongthemareMudumalaiNational
Park,TheGulfofMannarBiosphereReserve,AnaimalaiWildlifeSanctuary,VedanthangalBirdSanctuary,Megamalai
WildlifeSanctuaryandArignarAnnaZoologicalPark.[201]ThemangroveforestsatPichavaramarealsoecotourismspotsof
importance.TheprominentwaterfallsinthestateareCourtallam,Hogenakkal,Suruli,kumbakarai,kurangani,Papanasam,
Manimuthar,Thirparappu,PykaraandSilverCascade.TheChettinadregionofthestateisrenownedforitspalatialhouses
andcuisine.WithcheapandqualitytertiarymedicalcareavailableinChennai,Madurai,CoimbatoreandVellore,Tamil
NaduhasthelargestnumbersinmedicaltourisminIndia.Kanyakumari,thesouthernmosttipofpeninsularIndia,isfamous
21/28
2/23/2016
foritsbeautifulsunrise,VivekanandaRockMemorialandThiruvalluvar'sstatuebuiltoffthecoastline.MarinaBeachin
Chennaiisoneofthelongestbeachesintheworld.ThestretchofbeachesfromChennaitoMahabalipuramarehometomany
resorts,themeparksandeateries.
Kanyakumariwith
VivekanandaRock
Memorialand
Thiruvalluvarstatue
TheCorridorof1000
pillarsinside
RameswaramTemple
TheDolphin'sNoseat
Kodaikanal
KanchiKailasanathar
Temple
HogenakkalFallson
theKaveririverin
Dharmapuridistrict
Jambukeswarar
Temple,
Thiruvanaikaval
Courtallammainfalls,
Courtallam,Tirunelveli
Seealso
ChronologyofTamilhistory
ListofcountrieswhereTamilisanofficiallanguage
OutlineofTamilNadu
CoastlineofTamilNadu
Tamilculture
Tamildiaspora
TamilEelam
TamilMuslim
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13.UNESCO2012.
14.PressInformationBureaureleases2012.
15.Nobrega2008,p.20.
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27.KamilVeithZvelebil,CompanionStudiestotheHistoryofTamilLiterature,p12
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30.HandbookofOrientalStudies,Part2.p.63.
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79.Censusbyreligiouscommunities2002.
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81."SC/STpopulationinTamilnadu2011"(PDF).
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83.TheHindu2June2013.
84.TheHindu4July2008.
85.HumanDevelopmentreports2010.
86.BusinessLine20October2004.
87.BusinessLine9April2004.
88.Southasia.oneworld.net28July2010.
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97.ListofEngineeringcollegesinTamilnadu,January31,2015,AICTEDavid
98.DistrictwisePolytechnics2011.
99.rediff.com1May2006.
100."Thestatewheremodernitymeetsculture".blog.tricolorvoyages.com.4August2015.
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102."TamilnaduTheDanceofCelestialDeities".Tamilnadu.com.12February2014.
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TNGovernmentGuidelinevalue(http://www.tnreginet.net/)
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TamilNaduGovernmentWebsite(http://www.tn.gov.in/)
DepartmentofTourism,GovernmentofTamilNadu(http://www.tamilnadutourism.org/)
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