Chennai District
Chennai district is a district in the state of Tamil Nadu, in India. It is the smallest of all the districts in the state, but has the highest human density. The district is a city district which means that it does not have a district headquarters. Most of the city region of Chennai comes under this district. It is divided into fivetalukas, namely,
Chennai district is a district in the state of Tamil Nadu, in India. It is the smallest of all the districts in the state, but has the highest human density. The district is a city district which means that it does not have a district headquarters. Most of the city region of Chennai comes under this district. It is divided into fivetalukas, namely,
- Egmore-Nungambakam.
- Fort Tondiarpet.
- Mambalam-Guindy.
- Mylapore-Triplicane.
- Perambur-Purasawalkkam.
Geography
Chennai district covers an area of 178.2 km2 located on the Eastern Coastal Plains of India. It is situated on the northeastern corner
of Tamil Nadu along the Coramandel coast, a region bounded by the Bay of Bengal and is surrounded inland by the
districts of Tiruvallur and Kanchipuram. It lies
between 12°59' and 13°9' of the northern latitude and 80°12' and 80°19' of the
eastern longitudeat an average altitude of 6 metres above sea level on a 'sandy shelving breaker
swept' beach. Terrain slope varies from 1:5000 to 1:10,000. The terrain is very flat with
contours ranging from 2 m to 10 m above mean sea level with a few isolated hillocks in
the southwest beyond the district limits at St. Thomas Mount, Pallavaram and Tambaram. The district runs inland in a
rugged semi-circular fashion and its coastline is about 25.60 km (2.5% of
the total coastline of Tamil Nadu). Because of its strategic location and
economic importance, it is referred to as the "Gateway of South
India." The drainage system includes two rivers, namely, Cooum (flowing in the northern part)
and Adyar (flowing in the southern part), a canal (the Buckingham), and a stream (the Otteri Nullah) slicing the district into
several islands.
The district falls under Seismic Zone III indicating a moderate risk of earthquake. Geologically the district is divided into three regions, namely, sandy, clayey and hard-rock regions. The soilcomprises clay, shale and sandstone. Of the total land area, reserved forests cover 2.71 km2 and is concentrated in and around the Guindy National Park region, one of the few national parks in the world located within a city. The forest cover of the district is as follows
Class
|
Area (Ha)
|
Percentage
|
Dense forest
|
151.01
|
1.16
|
Moderate dense TOF
|
121.16
|
0.93
|
Non-forest
|
12,215.56
|
94.06
|
Open forest
|
114.24
|
0.88
|
Open TOF
|
153.73
|
1.18
|
Water
|
231.46
|
1.78
|
Total
|
12,987.16
|
100
|
Climate
Climate data for Chennai, India
|
||||||||||||||
Month
|
Jan
|
Feb
|
Mar
|
Apr
|
May
|
Jun
|
Jul
|
Aug
|
Sep
|
Oct
|
Nov
|
Dec
|
Year
|
|
Record high °C (°F)
|
33
(91) |
37
(99) |
39
(102) |
43
(109) |
45
(113) |
43
(109) |
41
(106) |
40
(104) |
39
(102) |
39
(102) |
34
(93) |
33
(91) |
45
(113) |
|
Average high °C (°F)
|
29
(84) |
31
(88) |
33
(91) |
35
(95) |
38
(100) |
38
(100) |
36
(97) |
35
(95) |
34
(93) |
32
(90) |
29
(84) |
29
(84) |
33.3
(91.9) |
|
Average low °C (°F)
|
19
(66) |
20
(68) |
22
(72) |
26
(79) |
28
(82) |
27
(81) |
26
(79) |
26
(79) |
25
(77) |
24
(75) |
22
(72) |
21
(70) |
23.8
(74.9) |
|
Record low °C (°F)
|
14
(57) |
15
(59) |
17
(63) |
20
(68) |
21
(70) |
21
(70) |
22
(72) |
21
(70) |
21
(70) |
17
(63) |
15
(59) |
14
(57) |
14
(57) |
|
Precipitation mm (inches)
|
16.2
(0.638) |
3.7
(0.146) |
3.0
(0.118) |
13.6
(0.535) |
48.9
(1.925) |
53.7
(2.114) |
97.8
(3.85) |
149.7
(5.894) |
109.1
(4.295) |
282.7
(11.13) |
350.3
(13.791) |
138.2
(5.441) |
1,266.9
(49. | |
Chennai climate
|
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Demographics
According to the 2011 census Chennai district has a population of 4,681,087, roughly equal to the nation of Norway or the US state of South Carolina. This gives it a ranking of 27th
in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population
density of 26,903 inhabitants per square kilometre (69,680 /sq mi) .Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 7.77 %.Chennai has a sex ratio of 986 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 90.33 %.
This district is listed as the "most advanced" district in
Tamil Nadu. It had a resident population of 4,681,087 as of 2011, yielding an
average density of 26,903 persons per km2, excluding the huge
commuter traffic from neighbouring districts. This is against a density of
24,963 persons per km2 in 2001, making it the district
with the second highest density in the country.The sex ratio is 1000:951. The
average literacy rate is 80.14%, much higher than the national average of
64.5%. It is 100% urbanised as per Census 2011. Chennai District has 13.39 per
cent of the urban population in the state of Tamil Nadu. The decadal growth of
population in Chennai District during 2001-2011 is 7.77 percent.
Attractions
Beaches
The 15 km long and 400 to 500 meter wide Marina Beach features the Light House, memorials, statues, walkways, gardens and drives alongside the beach front. Towards the south of the city of Chennai, Elliot's Beach in Besant Nagar is preferred by younger Chennaiites with its promenade, restaurants and coffee shops. There are a quite a number of beaches and resorts between Elliot’s Beach and Mahabalipuram, along East Coast Road. The most notable of these is Covelong Beach which has a cove and a fort built by the Nawab of the Carnatic.
Government Museum Complex
The Government Museum Complex in Egmore houses the Government Museum, Connemara Public Library and the National Art Gallery. Established in 1851, the museum consisting of six buildings and 46 galleries covers an area of around 16.25 acres (66,000 m²) of land. The objects displayed in the museum cover a variety of artifacts and objects covering diverse fields including archeology, numismatics, zoology, natural history, sculptures, palm-leafmanuscripts and Amravati paintings. Connemara Public Library is one of the four National Depository libraries which receive a copy of all books, newspapers and periodicals published in India. Established in 1890 the library is a repository of centuries-old publications, wherein lie some of the most respected works and collections in the country. It also serves as a depository library for the UN. The National Art Gallery building is one of the finest Indo-sarcenic type of architectures in the country.
Fort St. George
Fort St George (or historically, White Town) is the name of the first British fortress in India, founded in 1639 at the coastal city of Madras (modern city of Chennai). This fort was completed on April 23, coinciding with St. George's Day, celebrated in honour of St. George, the patron saint of England. The fort, christened Fort St. George faced the sea and a few fishing villages, and soon became the hub of merchant activity. It gave birth to a new settlement area called George Town(historically referred to as Black Town), which grew to envelop the villages and led to the formation of the city of Madras. The fort is a stronghold with 6 meter high walls that withstood a number of assaults in the 18th century. Today, the Fort serves as the administrative headquarters for the legislative assembly of Tamil Nadustate, and still houses a garrison for troops in transit to various locations at South India and the Andamans. The Fort Museum contains many relics of the Raj, including portraits of many of the Governors. Other monuments present inside the fort are St. Mary's Church, the oldest Anglican church in India, and Wellesley House, which holds the paintings of the Governor of the Fort and other high officials of the Regime.
Art and Crafts
Tamil and Indian culture and tradition is on display in several art galleries and cultural centers. Valluvar Kottam is an auditorium in memory of the poet-saint Thiruvalluvar. It also has a 101-feet high temple chariot structure. Kalakshetra, a centre for the revival of Indian art and crafts — especially the dance form of Bharatnatyam — is located in Besant Nagar. The National Art Gallery, built in 1907, houses 11th and 12th century Indian handicrafts, 17th century Deccanpaintings, 16th to 18th century Mughal and Rajasthan paintings and 10th and 13th century bronzes and is part of the Government Museum.
The world headquarters of the Theosophical Society was established in 1886 on the banks of the Adyar River. The shrines of all major faiths stand in its sprawling estate gardens. Cholamandalam Artists' Village, on the East Coast Road offers a view of artists and sculptors at work in their own studios and permanent gallery. DakshinaChitra, run by the Chennai Craft Foundation, is a depiction of the way of life prevalent in South India with exhibitions and workshops of the arts and crafts and performing artists of South India.
Places of Worship
Right from the early ages, Chennai had a cosmopolitan society with people belonging to different religious groups living together. As a consequence places of worship, both historical and modern, belonging to various religions are present in the city. The most famous temples in Chennai are theKapaleeshwarar temple in Mylapore and Parthasarathy Temple in Triplicane. The Vadapalani temple is also an important place of worship for the Hindus.St. Thomas Mount, the site where St. Thomas, one of the disciples of Jesus Christ, was believed to have been martyred is an important pilgrimage site for Indian Christians. The Santhome Basilica, supposedly built atop the tomb of St. Thomas, is a revered church by the Roman Catholics. The St. George's Cathedral, Chennai is an important place of worship for the Protestant Christians. The Thousand Lights Mosque is one of the largest mosques in the country and is a revered place of worship for Muslims.
Parks
The Guindy National Park, the country's smallest National Park with an area of 2.76 km², is located completely inside the city. It hosts a variety of endangered deer, foxes, monkeys and snakes. The Guindy Snake Park situated in the National Park has a large collection of snakes and is an important source of antivenom serum. The Arignar Anna Zoological Park (better known as Vandalur Zoo) is located southwest of the city and covers an area of 5.1 km². It has about eighty species on display, and includes a lion safari, an elephant safari, a nocturnal animal house and an aquarium. South of the city, along the East Coast Road, is an important centre for herpetological research called the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust, which houses several fresh-water and salt-water crocodiles, alligators, gharials, and also turtles and snakes. The Botanical Garden of the Horticulture Department has a very wide variety of plants and even a fossilised tree trunk 20 million years old. A Summer Festival is held here annually during the month of May.
Shopping
Chennai has some unique places to offer for shopping. Art and crafts, contemporary and traditional artwork, antiques, jewellery etc. are available in the city. Traditional items like leaf and palmyra-fiber handicrafts from Tirunelveli, bronze and brass castings and traditional jewelry from Kumbakonam, metal works from Thanjavur, stone carvings from Mahabalipuram, silks from Kanchipuram are for sale in shops and boutiques. George Town and Parrys Cornerare wholesale markets of Chennai where one can purchase almost anything. Many streets are entirely devoted to selling one particular type of merchandise. The nearby Burma Bazaar is famous for its counterfeit electronic goods and media, Moore Market for its large number of bookstores.Pondy Bazaar located in T. Nagar, is home to huge multi-storey stores, unique to Chennai, which deal mainly in textiles and silks or gold, silver and diamond jewellery. Shopping Malls in Chennai: - Spencers Plaza - Chennai City Centre - Ampa Sky Walk Mall - Express Avenue
Entertainment
There are three large amusement parks, MGM Dizzee World, VGP Universal Kingdom and Kishkinta and a water sports center, Dash N Splash located in the outskirts of Chennai. The city also houses a paintball centre and water sports club on the east coast road. There are also a large number of beach resorts all along the East Coast Road highway to Mahabalipuram. The city being home to the Tamil movie industry, has over 100+ large cinema theatres including a few multiplexes which screen Tamil, English, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam films. The city has a large number of restaurants offering a variety of Tamil, Indian and international cuisines. The nightlife in Chennai is vibrant and growing ranging from bars to pool parlours to lounges and clubs.
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