Gobichettipalayam
Gobichettipalayam (also known as Gobi) is
a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is
the second largest city and urban agglomeration in Erode district and
is the administrative headquarters of Gobichettipalayam taluk, revenue and educational
districts. It is situated at the center of the South Indian Peninsula, about
400 kilometers (249 mi) southwest of the state capital Chennai and
about 80 kilometers (50 mi) east of Coimbatore.
Agriculture and textile industries contribute majorly to the economy of the
city. Gobichettipalayam is one of the leading producers of silk cocoon, turmeric, coconut and plantain in
the state.
Gobichettipalayam is also known as 'Chinna
Kodambakkam' ('Mini Kollywood') because of the film shooting that takes place
here. Many films in Tamil and
other languages have been shot here.
History
A major part of present Gobichettipalayam was
previously known as "Veerapandi Gramam", and documents and records
still use that name. The city was named after Gobi Chetti, a
Vijayanagara Polygar and
named as Gobichettipalayam. The place was a part of the country ruled by the
great king Vēl Pāri, who is regarded as one of the Kadai ēzhu vallal
(literally meaning, the last 7 of the lines of great patrons). Pariyur, a
temple town near Gobichettipalayam was named after him. The land was later
ruled by the Cheras and captured by Tipu Sultan. After
Tipu's defeat, British annexed it to their territory.
Transport
The municipality of Gobichettipalayam has
67.604 km of roads, 6.6 km of which are owned by the State Highways
Department. Gobichettipalayam city is well connected by major roads passing
through the center of the city. The following are the arterial roads that
connect the city with other major towns: State Highway 81, State Highway 15, State Highway 15A are some of the state highways that pass via
the town. The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) has a depot apart from a large
central bus stand in Gobichettipalayam. Originally called as Jeeva
Transport Corporation (JTC), it came into being by
bifurcation of the Cheran Transport Corporation (headquartered at Coimbatore).
As of 31 March 2005 it was in possession of 1218 buses. Buses ply from the
Central Bus Stand to all major towns and cities within Tamil Nadu and other
states. A number of Karnataka State Roadways Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses ply to here due to its
proximity to the state of Karnataka.
The nearest major railway station is Erode Junction (38 km).
A proposal to construct a railway line connecting Mysore with Erode
via Gobichettipalayam was mooted during the British rule in 1915. Four official
surveys were made in 1922, 1936, 1942 and as recently as 2008. The plan failed
to take off due to the concerns of railway line passing through the Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary.
The nearest airport is Coimbatore International Airport (74 km)
which has regular flights from/to various domestic destinations like Ahmadabad , Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Kozhikode, Mumbai, Pune and international
destinations like Sharjah and Singapore.
Geography and climate
Gobichettipalayam is located in Kongu Nadu, the
northwestern part of Tamil Nadu about 390 km south west of Chennai. Ghats
forms the border of the region resulting several hill locks. River Bhavani traverses
across the region. The temperature is moderately warm in Gobichettipalayam,
except during the summer months when it is very hot. Rainfall is moderate
to high, unpredictable and unevenly distributed. The city is not windy but
the abundance of trees and vegetation surrounding the city makes its climate
pleasant. The soil mainly consists of black loam, red loam and red
sand. In general, the soil in and around the city is fertile and good for
agriculture purposes. The surrounding water logged rice fields contribute to the
high humidity levels.
Culture
Kongu Tamil, a dialect of Tamil is
the language spoken by majority of the people. English is
used as an official language along with Tamil. Other languages spoken include Malayalam , Kannada and Telugu.
Gobichettipalayam cuisine is predominantly south Indian with rice as its base. Most locals
still retain their rural tradition, with many restaurants still serving food on
a banana leaf. North Indian, Chinese and
continental cuisines are also available. Mysorepa (a
sweet made from lentil flour)
and Halwa (a
sweet made of different ingredients such as milk, wheat or rice) are
famous. Idly, Dosa, Vada-Sambar and Biryani are
popular among the locals. Coffee shops and chat centers cater to young people.
Emergency phone numbers
Ø Police
station – Phone number: 04285-22041
Ø Fire
service station – Phone number: 04285-22101
Ø Ambulance
– Phone number: 04285-22053
Ø Pumping
station – Phone number: 04285-22042
Ø Post
office – Phone number: 04285-22028
Ø Railway
station – Phone number: 04285-222111
Ø Employment
office – Phone number: 222479
Ø Collector
office – Phone number: 218351 (Erode)
Ø Government
Hospital – Phone: 04285-222053
Ø S P
Hospitals – Phone: 04285-222892
Ø Dr.
Sengottaiyan Hospital – Phone: 04285-222047, 04285-222407
Ø Poorani
Ravichandran Hospital- Phone: 04285-223412
Ø Seethalakshmi
Hospital - Phone: 04285-222244
Ø KKS
Hospital – Phone: 04285-228297, 04285-228566
Ø Chakra
Hospital – Phone: 223610
Ø Muthu
Mahal – Phone: 04285-222921
Ø Anbu
Bhavan - Phone: 04285-223994
Ø Town
Biriyani – Phone: 04285-222955
Ø Anbu
Biriyani – Phone: 04285-223994
Ø Amutham
mess – Phone: 9842050076
Ø Dolphin
Continental (Emerald house) – Phone: 04285-223737
Ø Maruthi
Educational Institutions – Phone: 04285-347878
Ø Kamban
School – Phone number: 222983
Ø Amala
Matriculation Hr.Sec.School – Phone: 04285-222280, 04285-225373
Ø Bharathi
Vidhyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School – Phone number: 04285 224996,
04285 224397
Ø Shree
Vidhyalaya – Phone number:+91 -4285-223229, +91 -4285-232429, Emergency:
+91-94892 03272
Ø Saradha
Matriculation Higher Secondary School – Phone number:04285-227061
Ø Palani
Ammal Girls High School – Phone number:91-4285-222181
Ø Gurukulam
School – Phone number: 04285 240997, 241997
Ø Union
Bank of India – Phone number : 04285 – 222271
Ø Indian
Bank - Phone number: (04285) 222078
Ø Central
Bank of India – Phone number:(04285) 221002
Ø City
Union Bank - Phone number:04285 – 226846
Ø Lakshmi
Vilas Bank – Phone number:04285 – 222022
Ø Canara
Bank – Phone number:04285-222218
Ø State
Bank of India – Phone numbers : 04285- 222023,
222211, 222997, 227900
Ø St.courier
service – Phone number:9080527369, 9080365796 (Contact person name
Mr.Kathir)
Ø Professional
courier service – Phone numbers are 04285-222886 and 04285-228217
Ø Blue Dart
courier service – Phone:04285-223747, 09344431313
Ø KPN
travels – Phone: 04285221587, 9842785252, 9360788899
Ø MSS
travels – Phone: 04285-226342
Ø Nagaiya
Theatre – Phone: 04285-222770
Ø Indira
Theatre – Phone: 04285-223419
Ø Srivalli
Theatre – Phone: 04285-222668
Ø Jayamaruthi
theatre – Phone: 04285-222689
Travel agencies
1. KPN travels
KPN Travels is based in Salem, Tamil
Nadu, and was founded in 1973 by Dr. K.P. Natarajan who was born to an
agricultural family in a small village near Salem.
The first service was between the southern town
of Thirunelveli and Bangalore, with a
strong customer based management the company has grown to serve more than 200
destinations in South India covering almost all major towns
Office Address in Gobichettipalayam: Municipal
Vaniga Valagam, Opp Bus Stand, Gobichettipalayam.
Phone numbers: 04285221587, 9842785252, 9360788899
2. MSS travels
Office
address,
Royal Xerox, Opp.H.P.bunk, Gobi Bus stand,
Gobichettipalayam
Phone number: 04285-226342