Poonamallee
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Poonamallee | |
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| Coordinates | 13°03′N 80°07′E / 13.05°N 80.11°E |
| Country |  India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District(s) | Thiruvallur |
| Population | 42,522 (2001[update]) |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| Area • Elevation |
• 25 m (82 ft) |
Poonamallee ('Punamalli' or originally 'Pūvirundavalli") is a town in Thiruvallur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a suburb of Chennai. It is a town with rich cultural heritage and also coping up with the fast developments of the adjacent city. It is part of Poonamallee taluka.
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[edit] Location
Poonamallee is about 7km from the city limits, 20km from the Bay of Bengal and 9km from Avadi, a major military base and famous for its tank factory. The nearest railway station is in Avadi and the nearest Airport is Chennai International Airport about 15km away. Poonamallee is an important road junction between Chennai and other western cities including Bangalore, Tirupathi and Vellore.
[edit] History
The town has rich history with its two temples, one dedicated to Lord Shiva and the other dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara, both of which were built during the early Pallava period. Poonamallee was formally a garrison town for the British Army stationed with many British army units in the Pre-Independence era. Poovirundavalli, more popularly know in its corrupted form as Poonamallee, the birth place of Thirukatchi Nambi Alwar, a staunch devotee of Varadaraja Perumal is at a distance of 20 kilometres from Chennai, on the road leading to Bangalore. It has got very good bus facility, served by both the private operators and government transport corporations. Buses to Bangalore, Vellore, Kancheepuram, Tiruttani,l Tiruvallr etc., pass through this town which has become one of the busiest sub urban centre. Nine kilometres from here is the Avadi Railway station, which is the nearest one.
The name 'Poovirundavalli" (or Poonamallee) may be attributed to the fact that the area around, is full of jasmine being cultivated extensively. Jasmine means ' Malli" in Tamil and hence, 'Poonamallee' may refer to the place where jasmine is cultivated. In Sanskrit, the place is called Pushpakavalli. Pushpam' means flower and Valli denotes Goddess. There is a legend that Goddess Laxmi rose from jasmine flower and gave darashan to Thirukatchi Nambi Alwar. It is also said the Alwar worshipped God Varadaraja, deity at Kanchi with the jasmine flowers plucked from here. This place is also called "Lakshmipuram' and Ulagu Vuyya Konda Cholapuram.
Here is an ancient temple for lord Varadaraja Perumal with His Consort, Pushpakavalli Thayar. It is also known as Arulaperumal72. Moved by the prayers of Thirukatchi Nambi Alwar, Sri Varadarajaswami, Sri Venkatesaperumal and Sri Ranganathar gave Darshan to him simultaneously at this place. Tere are shrines for Thirukatchi Nambi Alwar is also constructed here. There is a strong belief that the sun God and Mars (Angarga) worshipped the Lord of this temple. Every year during February - March between the 21st and 25th at 6.00 a.m., the sun's rays fall on the face of the Lord of this temple. Like its counterpart at kanchi, Varadaraja temple , at Poonamallee faces west. This temple is unique in one respect as it possess the most magnificent five storeyed Gopura at its entrance. It is a broad based at the bottom and rises in diminishing tires to a height of about 25 meters from the ground level. The south wall of the central shrine contains epigraphs of 13th , 14th and 17th Centuries. A later addition to the temple in the Vijayanagar time, was the Unjal Mantapa which was built by Achyutappa Nayaka 73. The Annual Brahmotsvam conducted during May - June. A festival for Thirukatchi Nambi Alwar is celebrated in a grand manner every year during February - March, i.e., in the Tamil month of Masi. A few inscriptions are found on the walls of this temple.
There is also another temple, a medium sized one, here for Lord Vaidyanathaswami with His Consort Thaiyal Nayagi. He is known as Theera Vinai Theertha Perumal. Daily poojas are performed here. There is also a Mariamman temple here. Besides these Hindu temples, there are three churches and a mosque was built and completed by Rustom, son of Dhulfiquer of Astrabad, a servant of Nawab Jumlat-ul-mulk. A Persian inscription dated 1653 A.D., found in the mosque reveals this information.
Poonamallee was a Jaghir which was granted to the East India Company 74. A British Cantonment was there. There were barracks for 500 men. There was an old fort constructed by Mughals which was later used as a godown and hospital. This is now the headquarters of the Poonamallee Panchayt Union. There is a town Panchayat for this place.
[edit] Geography
Poonamallee is located at 13°03′N 80°07′E / 13.05°N 80.11°E[1]. It has an average elevation of 25 metres (82 feet). It is located on the south west corner of Chennai. Porur Lake and Chembarambakkam lake, both 4km from here are the primary water resources for the people of Chennai city. 11KM From Sipcot Industrial Estate. Neighbouring Towns : Porur, Avadi, Tiruverkadu, Mangadu.
[edit] Administration
Poonamallee is governed by Municipality of Poonamallee, coming under the Thiruvallur district. The town's traffic is managed by the Chennai City Traffic Police (CCTP). The town's police comes directly under Greater Chennai Police department. The town elects 1 MLAs to the state legislature and comes under Sriperumpudur Parliamentary constituency. The town is famous for its 8 courts including the special courts for bomb blasts. It has gained importance since this court system dealt with the assassination of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
[edit] Demographics
As of 2001[update] India census[2], Poonamallee had a population of 42,522. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Poonamallee has an average literacy rate of 77%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 83%, and female literacy is 71%. In Poonamallee, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
[edit] Politics
Poonamallee assembly constituency is part of Sriperumbudur (Lok Sabha constituency).[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Poonamallee
- ^ "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 2008-11-01.
- ^ "List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies". Tamil Nadu. Election Commission of India. http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S22/TN_ACPC.pdf. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
[edit] External links
- Poonamallee official website
- Poonamallee
- Sri Viswaroopa Panchamukha Anjaneya Swami Ashram , Tiruvallur District
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