Vaniyambadi

Vaniyambadi Leather city
Town
Nickname(s): Leather city of South India
Vaniyambadi Location in Tamil Nadu, India
Coordinates: 12°41′N 78°37′E / 12.68°N 78.62°E / 12.68; 78.62Coordinates: 12°41′N 78°37′E / 12.68°N 78.62°E / 12.68; 78.62
Country	India
State	Tamil Nadu
District	Vellore
Elevation	363 m (1,191 ft)
Population (2011)[1]
• Total	195,061
Languages
• Official	Tamil demographics1_info1 = udru timezone1 = IST
PIN	635751
Telephone code	04174
Vehicle registration	TN-83
Website	{{http://municipality.tn.gov.in/Vaniyambadi/ footnotes =}}

Vaniyambadi is a town and a municipality, part of the Vellore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is known for its leather industries and biryani, for exporting leather goods and shoes in western countries specially sheep crust which may be used for leather garment. As of 2011, the population of the town was 195,061.

Etymology

Vaniyambadi derives from 'Vani', the name of the Hindu goddess Saraswati, and 'Padi', "to sing"; folklore suggests that Vani sang on the banks of the river Palar at the request of the Hindu Gods Vishnu and Shiva. Temples for Sundara Varadaraja Perumal (Vishnu) and Athitheeswarar (Shiva) with Prahannaayagee lie on the either side of the river.^[2]

Geography

Vaniyambadi is located at 12°41′N 78°37′E / 12.68°N 78.62°E / 12.68; 78.62.^[3] It has an average elevation of 6.5 km

(1190 feet) and lies on the banks  of the Palar river. Yelagiri and Javadi Hills are to the south of the town.[2]

Demographics

According to 2011 census, Vaniyambadi had a population of 195,061 with a sex-ratio of 1,023 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929.^[4] A total of 12,013 were under the age of six, constituting 6,121 males and 5,892 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 15.15% and .09% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the town was 74.37%, compared to the national average of 72.99%.^[4] The town had a total of 20559 households. There were a total of 31,013 workers, comprising 94 cultivators, 218 main agricultural labourers, 800 in house hold industries, 26,529 other workers, 3,372 marginal workers, 11 marginal cultivators, 100 marginal agricultural labourers, 202 marginal workers in household industries and 3,059 other marginal workers.^[5] As per the religious census of 2011, Vaniyambadi had 21.75% Hindus, 75.74% Muslims, 1.99% Christians, 0.02% Sikhs, 0.01% Buddhists, 0.2% Jains, 0.29% following other religions and 0.01% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.^[6]

Culture

The major population comprises people following hinduism and Islam. Tamil is the majority spoken language while Urdu is spoken mostly by Muslims. Telugu and Kannada are also prevalent due to the proximity of the neighboring states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Leather tanning is a major industry of the town and leather garments, and making leather shoes is part of the economy of the town even today. Vaniyambadi leathers have separate value in global leather market. Agriculture, especially coconut plantations, is the other major source of livelihood. Urdu is the main language of Muslims. A different form of deccani dialect Urdu.

Economy

Vaniyambadi has shown better economy from many decades. The core business of this town is leather tanning and manufacturing of leather goods such as Garments, Gloves and Shoes.There are around 150 tanneries and 2 effluent water treating plants. Vaniyambadi plays a major role in the field of leather market.

Transport

Vaniyambadi is well connected by road and rail to major cities of India. The town is separated by a distance with Bangalore [144 km] , Chennai [199 km], Vellore [64 km] and Salem [139 km]. The town lies on the highway (NH 46) of the Bangalore-Chennai section which is part of the Golden Quadrilateral. A state highway connects the town to Tirupattur on the Vaniyambai-Salem(SH-18)section, Vaniyambadi-Gudiyattam via Gadambur(SH-130) and Polur-Vaniyambadi via Jamunamarathur, Alangayam(SH-215). The town also has a railway station and is also close to Jolarpet Railway Junction, where most of the long haul trains stop. The nearest Airport is Bangalore International Airport.^[7]

Places of interest

The famous Hill station Yelagiri (Tirupattur Taluk) is about 25 km from the town. Javadi Hills is another small hill station nearby. Asia's second largest telescope, Vainu Bappu Observatory of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics which is situated at Kavalur Village near Vaniyambadi, is also a major attraction. Several centuries-old temples like Sundara Varadaraja (Azhagu) Perumal and Athitheeswarar are prominent places of worship in the town.

References

7.http://ibnlive.in.com/news/from-the-oldest-lucknowi-biryani-to-the-most-renowned-hyderabadi-biryani-10-delicious-varieties-of-biryani-from-different-parts-of-india/494179-79.html Vaniyambadi Biryani 10 delicious varieties of Biryani from different parts of India

External

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vaniyambadi.

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