Ooty

Coordinates: 11°25′N 76°42′E / 11.41°N 76.70°E / 11.41; 76.70
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the place in Tamil Nadu. For the place in Kerala, see
Mini Ooty. For the Indian film, see Ooty (film)
.

Ooty
Ootacamund
town
Udhagamandalam
From top:
Precipitation
1,100 mm (43 in)
Websitetnurbantree.tn.gov.in/

Ooty (listen

Hill Stations
" and is a popular tourist destination.

Originally occupied by the Toda people, the area came under the rule of the East India Company in the 18th century. It later served as the summer capital of the Madras Presidency. The economy is based on hospitality industry serving tourism and agriculture. The town is connected to the plains by the Nilgiri ghat roads and Nilgiri Mountain Railway.

Etymology

The region was earlier known as Ottakal Mandu, with Otha-Cal meaning "single stone" in

Kurunji flower, which used to give the slopes a bluish tinge.[9]

History

The earliest reference to Nilgiri hills is found in the Tamil

Vijayanagara empire.[13][14] Tipu Sultan captured Nilgiris in the eighteenth century and the region came into possession of British in 1799.[15] It became part of Coimbatore district of the Madras Presidency.[8]

Map of Udhagamandalam in 1903

In 1818, J. C. Whish and N. W. Kindersley, assistants to

Indian Independence, the town developed into a popular hill resort and Wellington became the home of the Defence Services Staff College of the Indian Army.[18][19]

Geography

Ooty is located in the Nilgiri hills

Ooty is located in the Nilgiri hills, which form a part of the

Palghat Gap.[20] It is situated at an altitude of 2,240 metres (7,350 feet) above sea level.[2] The total area of the town is 30.36 km2 (11.72 sq mi).[2] Doddabetta is the highest peak (2,623 km or 1,630 mi) in the Nilgiris, about 10 km (6.2 mi) from Ooty.[21]

Avalanche Lake and Porthimund Lake are other lakes in the region.[25]

Climate

Ooty features a

subtropical highland climate (Cwb) under Köppen climate classification.[26] Because of its high altitude, the temperatures are generally lower than the surrounding plains with the average between 10–25 °C (50–77 °F) during summer and 0–21 °C (32–70 °F) during winter.[2] The highest temperature ever recorded was 28.5 °C (83.3 °F) and the lowest temperature was −5.1 °C (22.8 °F).[27] The town gets heavy rainfall during both South-West and North-East monsoons and the average rainfall is about 1,100 millimetres (43 in) of precipitation annually.[2]

Climate data for Ooty (Udagamandalam)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 20.3
(68.5) 		20.9
(69.6) 		22.2
(72.0) 		22.6
(72.7) 		22.0
(71.6) 		18.3
(64.9) 		16.9
(62.4) 		17.4
(63.3) 		18.4
(65.1) 		18.8
(65.8) 		18.7
(65.7) 		19.7
(67.5) 		19.7
(67.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) 12.4
(54.3) 		13.6
(56.5) 		15.2
(59.4) 		16.3
(61.3) 		16.6
(61.9) 		14.8
(58.6) 		14.1
(57.4) 		14.4
(57.9) 		14.4
(57.9) 		14.6
(58.3) 		13.7
(56.7) 		12.9
(55.2) 		14.4
(58.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 5.6
(42.1) 		6.5
(43.7) 		8.8
(47.8) 		10.7
(51.3) 		11.4
(52.5) 		11.2
(52.2) 		11.0
(51.8) 		10.9
(51.6) 		10.4
(50.7) 		10.1
(50.2) 		8.6
(47.5) 		6.7
(44.1) 		9.3
(48.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 20.5
(0.81) 		10.2
(0.40) 		25.8
(1.02) 		75.4
(2.97) 		147.5
(5.81) 		136.7
(5.38) 		181.1
(7.13) 		123.7
(4.87) 		134.9
(5.31) 		189.2
(7.45) 		139.9
(5.51) 		52.8
(2.08) 		1,237.7
(48.74)
Average rainy days 1 1 2 5 8 8 10 9 9 11 7 4 75
Mean daily sunshine hours 8 8 8 8 7 4 4 4 5 5 6 7 6
Source 1: Indian Meteorological Department (1901–2000)[28]
Source 2: Climate-Data.org for mean temperatures, altitude: 2214 meters,[29] Weather2Travel for sunshine and rainy days[30]

Biodiversity and wildlife

A Bengal tiger in Mudumalai National Park

Ooty forms part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, the largest protected forest area in India.

tiger reserve lies on the north-western side, about 31 km (19 mi) from Ooty and was established in 1940 as the first wildlife sanctuary in India.[33]

Nilgiri langur is an endangered primate, found only in the region

The region is part of the South Western Ghats montane rain forests ecoregion.[34] Nilgiris harbours thousands of plant species including medicinal plants and endemic flowering plants.[32] Stunted evergreen trees grow in shola forest patches above 1,800 m (5,900 ft) and are festooned with epiphytes.[35] The native vegetation consisted of Meadows and grasslands on the hillsides with shola forests in the valleys. When the British populated the town, invasive species of pine, wattle and eucalyptus were planted along with tea plantations and they became the dominant species replacing the native vegetation.[36]

The region has one of the largest

gray langur are also found in the region.[49] Nilgiri tahr is an endangered ungulate that is endemic to the Nilgiris and is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.[50] Bats are found in darker caves in the hills.[51] More than 200 species of birds are found in the region.[52]

Demographics

Religious census
Religion Percent(%)
Hindu
 
 64.36%
Christian
 
 21.25%
Muslim
 
 13.37%
Other
 
 1.03%

According to the

Buddhists, 0.4% Jains, 0.28% following other religions and 0.02% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.[56]

Tamil is the

Kannada with 27,070 speakers.[59]

Administration and politics

Ooty is the headquarters of the Nilgiris district.

Nilgiris Lok Sabha constituency.[60] The town is administered by Udagamanadalam municipality which was established in 1866 and the town is divided into 36 wards.[61] The municipality is responsible for water services, sewage disposal and maintenance of public infrastructure.[62]

Economy

Tea plantations in Ooty

Ooty is a market town for the surrounding area, which is still largely dependent on

milk powder.[65] Floriculture and sericulture are also practiced, as is the cultivation of mushrooms. The local area is known for tea cultivation. Nilgiri tea is a black tea variety unique to the region.[66]

The Human Biologicals Institute, established in 1999, is involved in vaccine manufacturing.[67] Other manufacturing industries located on the outskirts include Ketti (manufacture of needles) and Aruvankadu (manufacture of cordite).

Transport

Road

Main article: Ooty bus stand

Ooty is connected by roads known as the Nilgiri Ghat Roads. It is situated on NH 181. The municipality maintains roads in the town.[68] Public bus services are operated by the Coimbatore division of TNSTC.[69] SETC, KSRTC (Karnataka) and KSRTC (Kerala) connect to distant towns in Tamil Nadu and neighboring states.

Rail

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Mountain Railways of India.[71]

Air

The nearest airport is

Sharjah, Colombo and Singapore.[73] Ooty has three helipads, one at Theettukal and two at Kodanad with the Theettukal helipad, approved by the Airports Authority of India for defence and VIP services. Pawan Hans planned to start commercial services with Bell 407, but the plan has been shelved.[74][75]

Education

Government Arts College, established in 1955, is one of the oldest institutions in Ooty and is affiliated with Bharathiar University.[76] There are a few other colleges in the town. Boarding schools have been a feature of Ooty since the British Raj and continue to operate currently, including some of the most expensive schools in India.[77]

Tourism

Botanical Garden in Ooty

There is a

indigenous, of plants, shrubs, ferns, trees, herbal and bonsai plants, and hosts an annual flower show in May.[79] The garden also has a 20-million-year-old fossilized tree.[80] Established in 1986, the Deer Park is located on the edge of Ooty Lake. It hosts a number of species of deer and is the second-highest altitude zoo in India.[81]

Traditional Toda dogle
Fernhils Palace

There are a few traditional Toda dogles (huts) on the hills above the Botanical Garden, where Todas still dwell.

St Stephen's Church, built in 1829, is one of the oldest churches in the Nilgiris district.[85] St. Thomas Church, opened in 1871, hosts many famous graves in the churchyard including those of Josiah John Goodwin, William Patrick Adam, whose grave is topped by a pillar monument dedicated to St. Thomas, the tallest structure in Ooty.[86][87] Spread over an area of nearly 0.40 hectares (1 acre) of land, the tea factory and museum entertains visitors by teaching them the origin of tea leaves and the history of tea in India. In the factory, the process of tea processing and the machines are displayed.[88]

The

Department of Atomic Energy.[89]

Sports and recreation

Neville Chamberlain.[90] There was also a cricket ground with regular matches played between teams from the Army and Indian Civil Service. There were riding stables and kennels at Ooty and the hounds hunted across the surrounding countryside and the open grasslands of the Wenlock downs. Horse racing is held at the Ooty Racecourse.[91][92] Ooty Golf Course is at an altitude of 7,600 feet (2,300 m) and extends over 193.56 acres (78.33 ha).[93]

In popular culture

Ooty varkey is a crispy and crusty cookie snack popular in Ooty.[94] There are a large number of Tamil films shot in Ooty. Films shot here include Ooty Varai Uravu, Moondram Pirai,Gentleman, Ullathai Allitha, Mella Thirandhathu Kadhavu, Rajadhi Raja, Roja, Rhythm, Amaravathi, Kadhal Kottai, Minsara Kanna, Vishnu, Jodi, Thalapathi, Lesa Lesa and Miruthan. The town was used as a setting in David Lean's 1984 movie, A Passage to India, which was based on E. M. Forster's novel of the same name.[95]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Udhagamandalam.

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Further reading

External links

  • Ooty travel guide from Wikivoyage
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