Perambalur – General Information

Perambalur – General Information

Perambalur is an administrative district in the state of Tamil Nadu in India. The district headquarters are located at Perambalur. The district occupies an area of 1,752 km² and had a population of 565,223 with a sex-ratio of 1,003 females for every 1,000 males in 2011.

Perambalur district is a centrally located inland district of Tamil Nadu, spread over 3, 69,007 ha, which was trifurcated from the erstwhile composite Tiruchirappalli district and was formed on 1 November 1995. The district is bounded by Cuddalore district in the north, Tiruchirappalli district in the south, Ariyalur district in the east and Namakkal and Tiruchirappalli districts in the west.

The total geographical area of the district is 3, 69,007 ha, and net sown area and gross sown area are 2, 16,422 ha and 2, 37,136 ha, respectively. The net area under irrigation is 71,624 ha.

District at Glance

Revenue Administration:

The District has 1 Division, 4 Taluks, 11 Firkas and 152 Revenue Villages

Division	Perambalur
Taluks	Kunnam, Perambalur, Veppanthattai, Alathur
Firkas	Perambalur, Kurumbalur, Vengalam, Pasumbalur, Valikandapuram, Varagur, Vadakalur, Keelapuliyur, Chettikulam, Kolakkanatham, Koothur

Local Administration:

The District has 1 Municipality, 4 Panchayat Unions, 4 Town Panchayats and 121 Village Panchayats

Municipality	Perambalur
Panchayat Unions	Kunnam, Perambalur, Veppanthattai, Alathur
Town Panchayats	Arumbavur, Poolambody, Kurumbalur, Lebbaikudikadu

Taluk Wise Geographical Area:

The total geographical area of the District is 175736 Hectares with the individual area in the taluks as follows

Kunnam	42902 Hectares
Perambalur	33684 Hectares
Veppanthattai	57372 Hectares
Alathur	41778 Hectares

District Boundaries:

East	Ariyalur  District
West	Tiruchirappalli & Salem District
North	Cuddalore & Salem District
South	Tiruchirappalli District

History

In 1741, the Marathas invaded Tiruchirappalli and took Chanda Saheb as captive.  Chanda Saheb succeeded in securing freedom in 1748 and soon got involved in the famous war for the Nawabs place in the Carnatic against Anwardeen, the Nawab of Arcot and his son Mohammed Ali.

Mohamed Ali annexed the two palayams of Ariyalur and Udayarpalayam located within the present Ariyalur District on the grounds of default in payment of Tributes and failure to assist him in quelling the rebellion of Yusuf Khan.  In November 1764, Mohamed Ali represented the issue to Madras Council and obtained military assistance on 3rd January 1765.  The forces led by Umdat-Ul-Umara and Donald Campbell entered Ariyalur and captured it.  The young Poligar together with his followers, there upon fled to Udayarpalayam.

 

On the 19th of January, the army marched upon Udayarpalayam. The Poligar's troops were defeated and the palayams were occupied.  The two poligars fled their town and took refuge in Tharangampadi, then a Danish Settlement. The annexation of the Palayam gave the Nawab un-interrupted possession of all his territories extending Arcot to Tiruchirappalli.

The history followed was a power struggle between Hyder Ali and later Tippu Sultan with the British.   After the death of Tippu Sultan, the British took the civil and military Administration of the Carnatic in 1801.  Thus Tiruchirappalli came in to the hands of the English and the District was formed in 1801.   In 1995 Tiruchirappalli was trifurcated and the new Perambalur and Karur districts were formed.  

Composite Perambalur District came in to existence after trifurcation of Tiruchirappalli district with effect from 30.09.1995 as per G.O MS.No 913 Revenue / Y3 dated 30.09.1995. In the Government Orders G.O (Ms) No. 656, Revenue, Dated. 29.12.2000 and   G.O (Ms) No. 657, Revenue, Dated.  29.12.2000, the Government ordered Perambalur District to be bifurcated into two Districts, Perambalur District with headquarters at Perambalur and Ariyalur District with headquarters at Ariyalur. Subsequently, in the Government orders G.O (Ms) No. 167, Revenue, Dated. 19.4.2002, and    G.O (Ms) No. 168, Revenue, Dated. 19.4.2002, Government   ordered that the above two districts be merged into one as Perambalur District with headquarters at Perambalur.

In the Government Orders G.O (Ms) No: 683    Dated. 19.11.2007 Government   passed orders that Perambalur District be reorganized and bifurcated again into two districts Perambalur and Ariyalur, out of which Perambalur district with Headquarters at Perambalur consists of one Revenue Division of Perambalur and three Taluks of Perambalur, Kunnam and Veppanthattai. It is bounded on the North by Cuddalore and Salem Districts, South by Tiruchirappalli, East by Ariyalur District, West by Tiruchirappalli and Salem Districts.

Perambalur District is centrally located in Tamilnadu and is 267 K.M away, in southern direction, from Chennai. The District has an area of 1,757 Sq.Kms. spread between 10.54’ and 11.30’ degree Northern latitude and 78.40’ and 79.30’ degree of the Eastern longitude.

It is an inland district without coastal line. The District has Vellar River in the North and it has well marked natural divisions. The Pachaimalai hills situated on the North boundary of Perambalur is the most important hill in the district.

As per 2010 Census, the total Population of Perambalur District is 5, 65,223. The density of population in the district is 321 per Sq.Kms

Geography

The district lies in the Southern plateau & hill zone of Agro-climate regional planning with characteristics of semi-arid climate. The soil is predominantly red loamy and black soil. The normal rainfall of the district is 908 mm which is less than 946.9 mm, the normal rainfall of the State. The precipitation during northeast monsoon, southwest monsoon and remaining winter & hot weather period account for 52%, 34% and 14% of annual rainfall, respectively.

Cauvery is the major river flowing in the region and the composite district has a canal system covering just 47 km stretch and ayacut of 11,610 ha. The ground water resource through tube wells and wells contribute nearly 68% of irrigated area command. The major crops grown in the district are paddy, groundnut, sugarcane and millets. 

Cashew is the major plantation crop. Now the major cultivation is small Onion, totally 24% in Tamil Nadu i.e. first place in Tamil Nadu. The Onion cultivation villages are Nakkasalem, Ammapalayam, Siruvayalur, Chettikulam, Kalarampatty, Esanai, Melapuliyur, Navalur, K.Pudur, and Arumbavur.

Perambalur is the largest town and administrative headquarters of Perambalur district, as well as Perambalur Taluk (Sub-District).

The town covers an area of 20.59 square kilometers.

Education

Perambalur has many schools, polytechnic colleges, 9 engineering colleges, one private medical college with multi specialty hospital and one government medical college. There are some Arts and science colleges also situated in & around Perambalur. Perambalur has a central library with internet facilities.

Flora & Fauna

The Flora and Fauna of the district are fairly rich and varied. As regards Fauna, big animals like Elephants and Bisons are not found in the district whereas spotted deer wild boars, Peacocks, Common monkeys, Jackals, Poisonous and non poisonous snakes etc.

Pilgrim Centres

Siruvachur Madura Kaliyamman temple at Siruvachur in Perambalur Taluk is one of the most popular shrines in the district. The presiding deity of the temple is known as Sri Madura Kaliyamman. She is one of the forms of Goddess Kali.

Poojas are performed on Monday and Friday of every week. The main annual festival commences in the last week of Panguni. The Car festival is celebrated in the first week of Chithirai.

The Ancient Arulmigu Ekambareswarar and Thandayuthapani Temples are situated in Chettikulam Village, Perambalur District. The above temples were built by King Kulasekara Pandian, some 800 years ago. These temples are situated 22 Kms. away from Perambalur and 8 Kms. west of Alathurgate on Trichy-Chennai National Highway (NH-45). These temples reflect the architecture of the early days. 

In Arulmigu Ekambareswarar temple, the Thai Poosam festival is celebrated every year in the month of January for 10 days. At the time of the above festival, people from various places visit the temple and get the blessings of Lord Shiva.      

In the same way, Panguni Uthiram Festival is celebrated in Arulmigu Thandayuthapani temple for 14 days in the month of April every year. The above festival is celebrated in a grand manner and various cultural programmes are conducted at that time.

The rock outside Chettikulam Village on the top of which is located the Balathandapani Temple. This is an ancient and well-known shrine built by the Cholas. There are number of stone inscriptions explaining the history of the temple.

Minerals and Mining

Perambalur district is fairly rich in mineral deposits like Celeste, Lime Stone, Shale, Sand Stone, Canker and Phosphate nodules occur at various places in the district. A good deal of building stone (rough stone) is quarried in Perambalur, Kunnam and Veppanthattai Taluks. Cement town (Ariyalur) is situated very near to Perambalur. Lime stone, which is the main ore for production of cement, has been dressed from Ariyalur and being transported to many cement factories in the state.

Agriculture

Sugarcane is grown as a major commercial crop. The Public Sector factory Perambalur Sugar Mills at Eraiyur is functioning in the district with a crushing capacity of 3000 Tonnes per Day. The pre-dominate soil in the district is red sanding with scattered pockets of black soil. The soil in the district is best suited for raising dry crops. The district has a high means of temperature and low degree of humidity.

Economy

Currently, Perambalur district is the top maize and Onion (small) producer in Tamil Nadu, with 27% and 50% of the state's share respectively.

Perambalur is planning to set up multi-product SEZ over an area of 5000 acres (20 km²) specializing in high-technology by SREI Infrastructure Finance Ltd through a Joint Venture with TIDCO (Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation).

The SEZ will have linkages to Cuddalore, Pondicherry and Chennai ports, railway line and Tiruchirapalli Airport. This SEZ will bring in high-technology industries, MROs, biotechnology, pharmaceutical companies, textile & leather clusters. The project is being developed with world-class infrastructure to be able to compete with the best investment centres in the world.

Perambalur SEZ has a large hinterland that offers huge labour force. The SEZ is well connected with all major cities/regions of the country with excellent road/rail network. The SEZ will focus on testing & certification facilities, warehouses, and infrastructure on demand etc. In addition, residential & recreational complexes are planned within the SEZ.

Banking

Most of the leading Nationalized and private Banks including Bank of India, Axis Bank, HDFC, Laxmi Vilas bank, Karur vysya bank, Corporation bank, South Indian bank, Repco bank, Tamil Nadu mercantile bank, HDFC, Union bank, ICICI, SBI, Bank of Baroda, Canara bank, IOB, Indian Bank has opened their branches at Perambalur.

Industries

Perambalur Sugar Mills:

Perambalur Sugar Mills is a sugar mill of Perambalur Sugar Mills Limited, a Subsidiary of Tamil Nadu Sugar Corporation Limited (TASCO) located at Eraiyur, Perambalur. It commenced its operation on 1976 and has a capacity of 2500 TCD.

MRF Limited:

MRF Limited commissioned its 8th plant at Naranamangalam, Perambalur on 2011 for the production of conventional tyres. It commissioned its 9th plant at the same facility on 2012 solely for the manufacture of Radial Tyres.

Divisions

The district for administrative purpose has been divided into three taluks (Perambalur, Kunnam, and Veppanthattai) which is further sub-divided into four blocks viz. Perambalur, Veppanthattai, Veppur, and Alathur. The district comprises 121 village panchayats, four town panchayats and one municipality.

Demographics

According to 2011 census, Perambalur district had a population of 565,223 with a sex-ratio of 1,003 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 59,567 were under the age of six, constituting 31,135 males and 28,432 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 31.01% and .46% of the population respectively.

The average literacy of the district was 66.49%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The district had a total of 149,243 households. There were a total of 299,726 workers, comprising 107,542 cultivators, 91,135 main agricultural labourers, 4,365 in house hold industries, 52,055 other workers, 44,629 marginal workers, 9,762 marginal cultivators, 27,143 marginal agricultural labourers, 978 marginal workers in household industries and 6,746 other marginal workers.