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This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia\'s quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (February 2007) |
| ?Vellore TamilNadu • India | |
| |
| Coordinates: | |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| Area • Elevation | 4,314.29 km² (1,666 sq mi) • 216 m (709 ft) |
| District(s) | Vellore |
| Population • Density | 3,86,746 (2001) • 701/km² (1,816/sq mi) |
| Mayor | |
| Codes • Pincode • Telephone • Vehicle | • 632 001 • +91-(0)416 • TN 23 |
Coordinates: Vellore pronunciation (Tamil: வேலூர்), is a city and a special grade municipal region in Vellore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Vellore is considered to be one of the oldest surviving cities in South India. It is often said that History comes alive in Vellore. The city lies on the banks of the Palar river on the site of Vellore Fort. Vellore is 140 km from Chennai and it is well connected to other cities by road & rail. The nearest railway station is Katpadi (5 km) and the closest airport is in Chennai. Today, with its cosmopolitan look, Vellore stands as one of the fastest growing cities in India.
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The name Vellore is derived from the Tamil words : Vel (spear) + oore (city), means a city of spears. Ancient history shows that Vellore was basically a battle field, where the warriors used to fight. Due to the geography of the place, with high temperature and plain desert like sandy region, the place was always left with the used weapons like spears all around the year. Hence the place came to be called as Velaioore and in later times was called Velai Managaram (The City of Spears).[citation needed]. In another version, name Vellore is supposed to have been derived from some form of precious stone which had a similar sounding name. There are megalithic, proto-historical evidences in and around Vellore for such a semi-precious stone industry being prevalent in ancient times.
Vellore has the blend of rich heritage and culture representing the ancient Dravidian civilization. Vellore had the privilege of being the seat of the Pallavas, Cholas, Nayak, Marathas, Arcot Nawabs and Bijapur Sultan Kingdoms. Vellore was once the capital city of the mighty Vijayanagar empire during 1606-1672. The Fort in Vellore was described as the best and the strongest fortress in the Carnatic War in the 17th Century. The Vellore Mutiny of 1806 was one of the earliest upsurges against the British rule in India and is widely considered as the actual "First War of Independence". Vellore District had always been on the forefront in the struggle for freedom. The Sepoy Mutiny of 1806 A.D. that broke out inside the Vellore fort against the British authority is considered to be a prelude to the Great Revolt of 1857 .This part of history is not well known to the people but adds to the rich heritage of Vellore.
The monuments found in the district give a vivid picture of the evolution of the city through the ages.
Vellore is located at .Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Vellore It has an average elevation of 216 metres (708 feet). Vellore on wikimapia
Vellore fort
The fortification consists of a main rampart broken at irregular intervals by round towers and rectangular projections. The main walls are built of massive granite stones surrounded by a broad moat fed with water by subterranean drains from the Suryagunta tank. Within the fort is the similarly aged Jalakanteswara Temple. The fort is one of the most perfect specimens of military architecture in Southern India. One of the interesting features of this fort is that there is a Hindu temple, Christian church and Muslim mosque within its ramparts. The Fort also houses the famous "Tipu Mahal", where Tipu Sultan is beleived to have stayed with his family during the war with the British. The graveyards of Tipu\'s sons are found at Vellore. The Fort is under the control of the Archeological Survey of India. The Vellore Fort has been declared as a "Monument of National Importance". The fort has today become a must see for visitors thronging Vellore.
The Vellore Central Prison, set up in 1830 A.D. is another historically important land mark as some eminent personalities and freedom fighters like Rajaji, C.N.Annadurai, Kamaraj, the former presidents of India V. V. Giri, R. Venkataraman and other political leaders like Vaiko, had served their prison terms here.
There is a Warders Training Centre at Vellore which conducts 6 months training for Grade II Warders. This Institute also imparts in-service training to Grade I & II Warders. This training centre imparts training in the handling of Modern Weapons, drill and management of Prisons with emphasis on Human Rights. The in-service includes training in Karate & Ninja, Commando, Un-armed combat, Bomb disposal, PSO Temporary Warders training centre at Trichy and Coimbatore started to the train the newly recruited warders.
There is a Regional Institute of Correctional Administration at Vellore for imparting training to officers. This institute is jointly managed by four Southern States viz. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka & Kerala. The object of this institute is to have trained officers in the correctional service who can be able to rehabilitate, re-socialize and reintegrate the offenders in the community effectively.
Christian Medical College & Hospital (popularly known as CMC), the largest and one of the most prestigious hospitals in India, is located in the heart of Vellore. It attracts a floating population of at least 5000 persons every day. The hospital was founded in the early part of the 20th century by an American medical Missionary Dr. Ida S. Scudder.
The CMC Hospital has a Functioning Quality Management programme and is one of the first asian hospitals to have been ISO certified.
Besides having the world famous Cancer and Neurological Wards, it runs
1) Mental Health Hospital, Bagayam, Vellore - a Rehabilitation Centre for the physically disabled.
2) The Schieffelin Leprosy Research and Training Centre (SLRTC) in Karigiri, Gudiyatham, Vellore - a world famous Leprosy Reseach Institute.
2) Community Health and Department(CHAD), Bagayam, Vellore.
3) Rural Healthcare department(RUHSA).
4) "Nambikkai Nilayam" - a centre for handicapped children.
5) The "New Life Centre"- a Rehabilitation Centre for people who have been treated and cured of leprosy and are non-infectious, but who have to live with the stigma of disability caused by leprosy.
6) Virology research department.
CMC Hospital has following departments
Apart from these, there are Low-cost, but Effective Treatment Wards to treat the poorest of the poor.
The Christian Medical College, Thorapadi has been rated as "Best Medical College in India (Factual)" and in overall #7, by India Today. The Perceptual rank, i.e. the perception in the minds of the people who were interviewed ranks CMC third behind AIIMS, Delhi and AFMC, Pune. In an interview with NDTV, Mr. Raj Chengappa, Managing Editor of India Today, stated that as per the data relating to excellence in education, nurture, facilities, faculty, etc., CMC ranks Number One (FACTUAL).India Today - Medical Colleges - National Ranking. India Today. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.India Today - Medical Colleges - National Ranking. CMC Hopitals. Retrieved on 2008-03-11. Every year, tens of thousands of aspiring applicants from all over India and abroad, apply for a written entrance examination in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Statistics and English (which is conducted in various cities of India and abroad) out of which 120 candidates will be selected for further Interviews, Psychological Tests and Aptitude tests in a full-time Assessment Centre (which would be conducted for 3 days). Finally, 60 candidates will be selected for the admission to its prestegious MBBS course.
The State government of Meghalaya has set up permanent accommodation in Vellore for patients travelling from Meghalaya to CMC Hospital.
1. Vellore Government Medical College, Vellore - 11
2. Sri Narayani College of Nursing, Vellore - 55
3. St. John\'s College of Nursing, Vellore.
The Police Recruit School is located inside the Vellore Fort. A training school to recruit constables was opened in Vellore in April 1908. It is one of the two permanent Police Recruit Schools of the present day State of Tamil Nadu (another one is in Coimbatore). Inspector General of Police in his letter (with suggestions) to the Government dated 25th August, 1897 made the Government to form a combined training school at Vellore for police inspectors and station house officers, who were to undergo six months course. In the 1909, a police museum, which was functioning in office of Inspector General of Police since 1901, was shifted to the Police Training School at Vellore. The 1973-74 Batch of directly recruited Sub-Inspectors was the last batch to undergo training at Vellore.
Thiruvalluvar University which was formed by the bifurcation of University of Madras is at present located in Vellore Fort campus. The Foundation stone for a multi-crore University Campus was laid at Serkaadu near Katpadi in Vellore by the Honble. Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Karunanidhi on 16th Feb 2008. Almost all of the Government run Arts and Science colleges present in Vellore District, Tiruvannamalai District, Villupuram District and Cuddalore District are affiliated to Thiruvalluvar University. The University students have taken part in various National and International events.
The Vellore Institute of Technology University (popularly known as VIT) is an internationally known educational institution, recently accredited by IEEE (United Kingdom) (the first to achieve, in India). It has students from every single state in India and several more International students. Apart from educational excellence, it has been recognized for its cosmopolitan culture.
The University has been recently rated as the Best Private Engineering Institution in India (and in overall, 14th rank in India) by India Today.
Thanthai Periyar Government Institute of Technology (TPGIT) is one of the Government Engineering Colleges in Vellore. And it is located at Thorapadi, Vellore.
Other Institutions:
Vellore has Government run, Government aided and private run schools. The list of schools can be found here
SriLakshmi Temple in Sripuram (popularly known as Golden Templehttp://www.sripuram.org, is a newly built Spiritual Park/Temple in Thirumalaikodi (4Kms from Thorapadi), Vellore. The whole exterior of the temple is laid with gold sheets and plates. The construction of this temple is reported to have cost Rs.300 crores (Rs.3 billion). The temple is surrounded by a vast lush green landscaped area. The temple can only be accessed by going through a star shaped walkway.
Jalakandeswarar Temple - Situated inside the Vellore Fort, this temple boasts of a majestic gopuram (tower). Here Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of "Jalakateeswarar".
Assumption Cathedral - This Cathedral is the main church of the Catholic Diocese of Vellore. The bell tower of the church is considered to be the highest in India.
Rathinagiri-(Bala murugan temple)-Situated in a small mount near Vellore(12Km).
This state Government Museum is inside the fort and can be found on map. This Museum was opened to the public in 1985. It consists of objects of art, archaeology, pre-history, weapons, sculptures, bronzes, wood carvings, handicrafts, numismatics, philately, botany, geology and zoology. It treasures ancient and present day curios relating to Anthropology, Art and Archaeology, Botany, Geology, Numismatics, Pre-history, Zoology, etc. The historical monuments of the erstwhile composite North Arcot District are gracefully depicted in the Gallery. Special exhibits include Bronze double antenna sword from Vellore Taluk, dating back to 400 BC., Stone sculptures from Late Pallava to Vijayanagar periods, Ivory chess board and coins used by the last Kandian King of Sri Lanka, Vikrama Raja Singha. The educational activities of this Museum include Art camp for school students, Study of inscriptions and iconography for college students etc.
Kavalur observatory is located in Kavalur in the Javadu Hills (a part of Eastern Ghats) in Alangayam, Vellore District. The observatory is at an altitude of 725 m above mean sea level (longitude 78° 49.6\' E ; latitude 12° 34.6\' N). Apart from being reasonably away from city lights and industrial areas, the location has been chosen in order to be closer to the earth\'s equator for covering both northern and southern hemispheres with equal ease. In addition, its longitudinal position is such that it is the only major astronomical facility between Australia and South Africa for observing the southern objects.
Yelagiri hills, is an idyllic place for a short holiday. Green hills and picture post-card scenery greets you here. It is called the princess of hill stations and is the most pristine and unpolluted among the hill stations in Tamil Nadu. Yelagiri Hills is a backward area with few glaring developments like cottages and farm houses, yet a place that has maintained its \'remote\' label. Its called likely "Mini Ooty"
Amirthi zoological park is situated under the Javvadu/Javadi Hills of Tellai across Amirthi river which is 25 km away from Vellore. This zoological park was started in October, 1967. The area of the park is 25 hectares and one can find beautiful waterfalls. There are also different kinds of birds and animals. Play equipments like swings, seesaw etc., are available for children. Numerous kinds of herbal plants and trees and sandalwood trees grow here. There are 2 rest houses and five members can stay in one dormitory. There is a meditating hall where one can have full concentration and be in serenity.
The inflow of tourists is more only during the holidays. This zoological park has been recognized recently and so the state Government has taken initiative to develop this area. The entrance fees is only Rs.2/- per head, Rs.3/- for cycles, Rs.5/- for vans and Rs.2/- for motor cycles. The Government earns Rs.6000/- per month and Rs.72,000/- per year by way of entrance fees. The tribal people reside in this area.
There is a range office at Amirthi headed by the forest ranger. There is also a hill tribe society at Nimmiyambattu near Amirthi. The main aim is to provide employment opportunities to the hill tribals in that area.
Vellore has an idle airport,at Abdullapuram. Proposal to make the airport fully functional by 2009 for 45 seater ATR aircrafts has been proposed by the government. The Tamil Nadu government has recently announced that it would speed up the construction of terminal buildings and thereby make the airport fully operational by 2009.
Nearest Airports to Vellore are,Chennai International Airport (130 km) and Bangalore Airport (180).
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has embarked on an "idle airports activation programme" in the Southern region that includes Vellore. The Vellore airstrip, located on 51.5-acres, was activated recently to facilitate regular flying by trainee pilots of the Madras Flying Club. The proposed Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Aeronautical science will be shifted from Sriperumpudhur to Vellore.
The main railway station for Vellore lies at the northern part of the city at Katpadi, 4km from Old Central Bus stand, 5km from CMC and 3km from the New Central Bus Terminus.
Two more stations Vellore Town and Vellore Cantonment were on the metre gauge line connecting Katpadi Junction to Villipuram Junction. The metre gauge to broad gauge conversion between Katpadi Junction and Vellore Cantonment is almost complete and a trial run is expexted to be conducted by the end of March 2008.
The station codes are Katpadi:KPD Vellore Cantonment: VLR Vellore Town: VT
Vellore is well connected to all major cities in Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Direct buses are available to Chennai, Bangalore, Tirupathi, Salem, Chittoor, Trichy, Thiruvannamalai, Villupuram, Arani, Kanchipuram, Kalpakkam and other major towns and cities in Tamilnadu.
Vellore is located on NH46, which connects Bangalore and Chennai (NH4 from Ranipet to Chennai) and on Cuddalore - Chittoor highway, thus making it a major transit point for travellers. Golden Quadrilateral (the largest express highway project in India) makes the city extremely easy to access from both Bangalore and Chennai (in an average, 2.1 hrs from Chennai and 3 hrs from Bangalore).
Distance between Vellore and other major towns and cities:
| Sl no | City | Distance (in km) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chennai | 130 |
| 2 | Bangalore (via Hosur) | 180 |
| 3 | Bangalore (via Chittor) | 210 |
| 4 | Coimbatore | 317 |
| 5 | Tuticorin | 542 |
| 6 | Tirupathi | 100 |
| 7 | Ranipet | 30 |
| 8 | Arni | 36 |
| 9 | Tiruvannamalai | 85 |
| 10 | Mysore | 278 |
| 11 | Salem | 175 |
| 12 | Krishnagiri | 110 |
| 13 | Hyderabad | 512 |
| 14 | Tiruppur | 280 |
| 15 | Tirunelveli | 586 |
| 16 | Madurai | 439 |
| 17 | Ooty | 314 |
| 18 | Erode | 264 |
| 19 | Nellore | 304 |
| 20 | Mangalore | 465 |
| 21 | Anantapur (via Tirupati) | 380 |
Leading Tamil, English and other regional languages newspapers are available in Vellore. English dailies such as, The Hindu, The New Indian Express, Deccan Chronicle and Deccan Herald are available in Vellore. Tamil dailies; Thinaththanthi, Dinamalar, Dinakaran, Dinamani and Maalaimalar are printed in Vellore.
Vellore is located in Tamilnadu, thus falls under Tamilnadu Telecom circle.
| Network Name | Type |
|---|---|
| Aircel | GSM |
| Airtel | GSM |
| Vodafone | GSM |
| BSNL | GSM |
| Reliance | CDMA |
| Tata Indicom | CDMA |
The following list gives the Cinema halls in alphabetical order. There are defunct and non-operating theatres which are not included in this list.
| Cinema Theatres | Location | Features |
|---|---|---|
| Adlabs Alankar | Infantry Road,(Near Cantonment Railway Station), Vellore - 1 | A/C,DTS,RDX |
| Adlabs Lakshmi | Officer\'s Line, ( Opp HDFC Bank ), Vellore - 1 | 70mm, A/C, Dolby Digital, RDX |
| Anna Kalai Arangam (State Government owned hall) | Officer\'s Line, Vellore - 1 | |
| Apsa | VIT Road,Katpadi, Vellore - 7 | |
| Apsara | Officer\'s Line, (Opp Voorhees College) Vellore - 1 | A/C, Dolby Digital, Qube Digital |
| Balaji | Chittor Road, Katpadi, Vellore - 7 | Dolby Digital, Qube Digital |
| Blue Theatre | Arni Road,Sainathapuram ,Vellore - 2 | |
| Crown theatre | Arcot Road,Saidapet, Vellore - 12 | |
| Jeyamurugan | Arni Road,Sankaranpalayam, Vellore - 2 | DTS, Qube Digital |
| Kural | Bangalore Road, Konavattam , Vellore - 8 | A/C, DTS, Qube Digital |
| National Talkies | Katpadi road, Near Old Bye pass Road Signal, Vellore - 4 | |
| Ragavendhra | Bangalore Road, Shenbakkam, Vellore - 8 | A/C DTS, Qube Digital |
| Raja | Officer\'s Line, Vellore - 1 | DTS, Qube Digital |
| Silambu | Bangalore Road,Konavattam , Vellore - 8 | 70mm,A/C, Dolby Digital, Qube Digital |
| Sri Murugan | Sathuvachari, Vellore - 9 | DTS, Digital |
| Srinivasa | Arcot Road,Sathuvachari, Vellore - 9 | DTS, Digital |
| Thirumalai | Vellore - 2 | DTS, Digital |
| Sri Vishnu | Old Palar Bridge Road, Viruthampet, Vellore - 6 | A/C, Dolby Digital |
| Venus | Post Office Street, (Opposite ICICI bank ), Vellore - 1 | A/C DTS, Qube Digital |
As of 2001 India census,Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns. (Provisional). Census Commission of India. Retrieved on 2007-09-03. Vellore had a population of 177,413. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Vellore has an average literacy rate of 74%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 68%. In Vellore, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. The population of Vellore excludes the population of other suburban areas such as Katpadi, Thorapadi, Sathuvachari, Konavattam, Bagayam, Otteri, Ariyur, Sainathapuram, Sankaranpalayam, Kangeyanallur and Allapuram.
Tamil is the official language. Apart from English and Tamil, other major languages spoken in the city are Hindi, Urdu, Telugu and Kannada.
The Special grade municipality is hoping for Corporation status soon. The official City tag will boost and speed up its growth.
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