Chennai
Historical Description
Earlier known as Madras, Chennai is the capital of the southern Indian state Tamil Nadu. The region has been ruled by different South Indian Kingdoms, most importantly the Pallava, Meenakshi Temple - ChennaiChola, Pandaya, and the Vijayanagar. Portuguese were the first to arrive here in 1522 and the region passed into the hands of Dutch during the early 17th century. With the coming of British, the region was granted to the East India Company by the local chief Iyappa Nayak on August 1639 to built a factory and the place then called as Madras Patnam. By 18th century, British conquered most part around Tamil Nadu and established Madras Presidency with capital Madras. After independence, the Madras Presidency was renamed as Tamil Nadu in 1968. In August 1996, the city was renamed as Chennai. Another major event in the history of Chennai is the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami which lashed the shores of Chennai killing many.
Sightseeing Places With Description
Chennai also called the Gateway to the South and offers a lot to its tourists from its golden sand beaches, historic monuments including temples, churches, forts, palaces and several buildings built during British rule. Some of the major tourist attractions are :
1. St. George Fort
This was the first colonial building built by the British in 1640 and was under the control of Portuguese for a long period of time. It is now the seat of State Legislative Assembly and has several structure inside including St. Mary's Church, Town Hall and the Fort Museum which are worth visiting.
2. High Court
The foundation of the structure was laid in 1889 and completed in 1892. This is an excellent example of Indo-Saracenic architecture. Its stained glass arches and 160 feet tall minaret are the prime features of this building.
3. Marina Beach
Stretching over an area of 13km, the Marina Beach is the second longest in the world. There are several statues & memorials to Tamil leaders which are situated at the northern end of the beach. On the southern side there are a interesting row of Indo-Saracenic buildings including the Senate House, the PWD House, the Presidency College and Madras University.
4. Victoria Memorial
The foundation stone of the building was led by George V who visited Madras as Prince of Wales and was built in Mughal Style. It houses a National Art Gallery, which has a collection of bronze images belonging to 10-13th century, paintings and other handicraft items.
Geographical area & population
Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal and lies on the 13 degree North Latitude and 80 degree East Longitude. With a total area of 1,180 sq. km. the city has a population of 7.60 million according to 2006 census. The city experiences a hot and humid climate most of the year. The maximum temperature during summer goes up to 45 degrees C and the minimum during winters falls below 18 degrees C. The gets an average annual rainfall of about 1,300 mm during September and November.
Fairs And Festivals
Chennai celebrates a number of fairs and festivals throughout the year. There are festivals in every season and every occasion. Some of the popular ones are :
1. Arubathimoovar Festival
During this festival a colourful festival is carried out by taking 63 bronze figures of saints that are worshipped in the kapaliswar Temple through the street of Mylapore.
2. Dance Festival Mamallapuram
Held on a open-air stage, this spectacular dance festival attracts artists of various traditional dance forms including Kuchipudi, Kathakali, Odissi and Bharathanatyam.
3. Pongal Festival
Celebrated in the month of January, it is one of the most important festival that continues for five days with various cultural programmes. Besides, all the major religious festivals like Deepavalli, Id, Christmas are widely celebrated that represent its cosmopolitan character
Getting There
Chennai is well connected to all the major places of India and abroad by Air, Rail and Road.
By Air
The city has an international airport(Anna International) which links Chennai with all the major parts of world and the domestic airport(Kamaraj Domestic) connect it with all the major cities of India.
By Rail
An excellent wide network of railways connects it with all major cities and towns in India. Madras Central and the Egmore are the two main railway stations.
By Road
A good motorable road network connects Chennai with all important cities of Tamil Nadu and other parts of India. NH4 connects Chennai with Bangalore and NH5 with Hyderabad.
