Marthandam
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Marthandam is the second biggest town next to Nagercoil & also a major trade centre across National Highway (NH 47) in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu, India, at the border with Kerala. Originally called Thoduvetty, it was a portion of Kanyakumari district which was added to the state of Tamil Nadu on November 1, 1956. Marthandam may have gotten its name from the ruler of Travancore, Marthanda Varma.
Marthandam is famous for honey, cashew nut processing, rubber and hand-embroidered motifs. The area is full of greenery, and there is a river adjoining. It is also a major trade center due to its location bordering Kerala.
Marthandam is home to the Nesamony Memorial Christian College and the Victory Embroidery School. The latter provides work to women skilled in the art of hand embroidery from the surrounding villages, including Thuckalay, Colachel and Kaliyal. Of the plethora of schools sprouted in recent times, Good Shepherd Matriculation School is the most prominent one.
Marthandam has to its pride an old church built exclusively of stone by the British.
Marthandam is strategically located. It is one of the most fertile lands of Tamil Nadu and has the climatic conditions of Kerala. It has a railway line connecting the capital of Kerala, Trivandrum, with the southernmost tip of India, Kanyakumari. The station is still called Kuzhithurai.
The people here are highly educated. They work throughout the globe.[citation needed]
The main festivals celebrated here are Diwali, Christmas and Pongal.
Marthandam is well connected to Chennai by train and bus services. Marthandam has access to Bangalore by private Omni bus services.
There is a Lord Ayyappa temple in Marthandam at the banks of Kuzhithurai River.
This temple is known as either "Vettuvenni temple" or "Vedisasthan Kovil". The latter one due to the fire cracker being burst at the temple as amrk of prayer to Lord Ayyappa. This temple is just by the side of National Highway NH-47 connecting Thiruvananthapuram with Nagercoil.
