| Udumalpet | |
| — city — | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Country | India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District(s) | Tirupur |
| Population | 59,668 (2001[update]) |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) |
| Website | [http://UDUMALPET.COM UDUMALPET.COM] |
Udumalai also known as Udumalpet is a town and a municipality in Tirupur district,[1] Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Poor Man's Ooty, as it is called, the Udumalpet town is one of the famous summer resorts of Tamil Nadu, surrounded by Mountains on three sides.
Its name in the ancient days was "UDUMALAI" and due to its rural atmosphere, it was also named as Pettai. In latter period it was changed as "UDUMALAIPETTAI" in Tamil.
The city was previously under Coimbatore district but was moved under the newly formed Tirupur district in October 2008. The change was opposed by many of the residents but it was not reverted back.[2] In short known as Udumalai, the city is surrounded by the high mountains of Western Ghats on three sides. This Municipal town has a population of about 60,000. Udumalpet is an industrial town with number of textile, paper and farming related industries established here. Famous landmarks and monuments in and around the town includes Thirumoorthy Hills,which has the Thirumurthi water reservoir that provides water supply to the town, Mariamman Temple, an old worshiping place in the town center and Amaravathi Reservoir, across Amaravathi River which provides irrigation to the agricultural lands around the town. Both Thirumoorthy Hills and Amaravathi Reservoir provide recreational activities such as boating, fishing and hiking and attract tourists from other parts of the state. Udumalpet lies between the famous temple town of Palani (35 km)and Pollachi (28 km)on the National Highway No.209. Udumalpet is also connected by a metre gauge railway line. Udumalpet assembly constituency is part of Pollachi (Lok Sabha constituency).[3]
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As of 2001[update] India census, in Udumalaipettai, there are 14,889 households. The total population is 59,668 with 29,330 males and 30,338 females.[4] Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. Udumalaipettai has an average literacy rate of 81%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85%, and female literacy is 77%. Interestingly, 8% of the population is under 6 years of age. The town is known for its moderate climate ( Max 36 degree - Min 15 Degree), cultured people, good food and good water from Thirumoorthy Hills.
Udumalpet is well known for its schools and educational institutes. There are about eleven higher secondary schools and three colleges. The Government Higher Secondary School was established during British rule and is a model for best performing schools in the government sector. The only Sainik School of Tamil Nadu is located at Amaravathinagar which is 21 km from Udumalpet. Other schools in the town are Sri Kanniga Parameswari higher secondary school, Srinivasa Vidhyalaya, RGMHSS, Stella Maris and a few others. Over the years, schools in Udumalpet have consistently produced students who have scored top ranks in State examinations.
The colleges in the town include Government Arts College, which is a state funded college, Sri GVG Visalakhi College founded by late Sri G.V.Govindasamy Naidu is one of the renowned women's college in the area and the privately owned Vidhysagar College of Arts and Science located on the National Highway 209. Rudhraveni Muthusamy Polytechnic is one of the famous polytechnics in the area which provides technical education. Its located between palani and udumalpet NH 209.
Up until 1980s, the town was blessed with good rains from both the South West and North East monsoons and formed a rich agricultural belt cultivating seasonal/annual crops such as groundnut, cotton, maize, sugarcane etc. However, since then, the area has become part of the tail end of both the monsoons. Shortage of farm labor led to conversion of seasonal cropping areas into coconut groves which require heavy irrigation round the year. Both this and the scarcity of the monsoon rains rapidly led to depletion of ground water resources and to a lower water table. The scarcity of ground water resulted in several non-agricultural activities springing up in the town like poultry farms etc.
The town, in the 1980s and 1990s, had a well-developed spinning industry but it has since declined due to labor shortages and other labor related issues. One of the biggest poultry companies in India, Suguna Poultry Ltd, was founded in this town. There are many paper manufacturing plants located alongside the Amaravathi River. Recently, surrounding areas of the town has seen a huge rise in windmill installations. The location of the town across the Palghat Gap, aids tunneling of the wind flow through the region and aids in wind power generation..
The town is surrounded by hills and has a good weather throughout the year. Waterfalls in Thirumoorthy hills draw quite a few tourists. It takes half an hour to reach the falls by trekking from the Thirumoorthy temple. The Thirumoorthy temple is a scenic place with Amanalingeshwarar Thirukkoil at the foot hills. The way atop the hill is pretty exciting up to some 1 km and extremely challenging to go beyond that. It is said if you bend and crawl for about 40 meters beneath a rock behind Panchalingam, you could reach the next layer of Western Ghats, i.e., the plain between two adjacent hills and it is said that even tigers exist there.
A drive from Udumalpet to Munnar gives one unforgettable views of the Western Ghats. Chinnar is 25 km from Udumalpet and is home to the Indra Gandhi wildlife sanctuary which is famous for known for the elephants that inhabit the area. Chinnar is also the border between Tamil Nadu and Kerala. As you cross the Tamil Nadu border and enter Kerala, you can see a distinct change in the vegetation. While the Tamil Nadu areas have vegetation dominated by shrubs and thorny trees, the vegetation in Kerala is lush green with tall trees. Marayur is 20 km from Chinnar, famous for its sandalwood forests which often fall prey to poachers.
As you drive past Marayur towards Munnar, you can see Anamudi, the highest mountain peak in south part of India to your right. This area also houses the Eravikulam National Park famous for its population of the Nilgiri Tahr, a mountain goat. This area offers abundant scope for mountain trekking. On the trekking route to the Anamudi peak, you can see a Trout farm. The rest of the drive towards Munnar is through neatly manicured tea estates owned by Tata Tea Limited and Waterfall Estate. The landscape is also dotted by tea factories and labour lines.
There is also a trekking route from Amaravathi Dam to Kodaikanal which is frequented by the students of the Amaravathi Sainik School(only one sainik school in Tamil nadu). The villages surrounding Udumalpet are well known for their beauty. Villages are criss-crossed by Amaravathi River and various irrigation canals. Coconut tree farms are common sight and this area is one of the leading producer of coconuts in the region. The countryside is a popular film shooting spot, providing scenic backgrounds and greenery. Thirumoorthy hills houses a beautiful dam which is a very famous shooting spot for Tamil movies and Malayalam movies.
famous temples: 1.Prasanna Vinaayagar Temple,Udumalpet town 2.Maariyamman temple,Udumalpet town 3.kottai mariyamman temple ,sangrama nalloor 4.Ezhumalayaan temple,sevenhills 5.Ujjaini Mahakaalitemple,Chinnaveerampatti
Dams
1.Tirumoorthidam (Thoniyaaru or thirumoorthi falls)
(this dam supplies water to Udumalai for drinking purpose,this water is famouse for its sweetness)
2.Amaravathi dam (Amaravathi river & paambaaru) 3.Kaadambaarai dam
main source of income:
Agriculture is prominent here .coconut is cultivating in more than 22000 hectres.
nearest towns
1.Pollachi 27 km 2.Palani 38 km 3.Coimbatore 65 km 4.Tiruppur 70 km 5.munnar 90 km 6.Trissur 135 km
Transport :
bus service:
frequent buses to
1.pollachi 2.Coimbatore (through Pollachi and also Palladam ) 3.Palani 4.Palladam 5.Tiruppur (through Palladam ) 6.Munnar ( Jeep service also available from here)
Train route: in Dindugal to Palakkad route
Goundamani, the most famous Kollywood comedian (Comedy Kadavul)
Udumalai Narayana Kavi, a renowned poet was from this town,actor vaiyaapuri
Mr.B.Sabarirajan, a growing tamil poet writer in Pallapalayam,Udumalpet.
Mr.Kavignar Kaarko allias Ananth ,a growing tamil poet,cinema song writer,assistant director from Udumalpet town
*Parliamentary constituency:
*Assembly constituency:
2.Madathukkulam
*Revenue divisions
i)Udumalpet Taluk ii)Madathukulam Taluk
*Municipalities
*Village Panchayats
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