Thiruvarur

Coordinates: 10°46′23″N 79°38′13″E / 10.773°N 79.637°E / 10.773; 79.637
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Thiruvarur
Chola Nadu
Special Grade Municipality
UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
610xxx
Telephone code914366
Vehicle registrationTN:50
Websitewww.thiruvarur.in

Thiruvarur (Tamil:

Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing 360 tonnes (790,000 lb) and measuring 96 feet (29 m) tall is the largest temple chariot in India. Thiruvarur is the birthplace of Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, popularly known as the Trinity of Carnatic music
of the 18th century CE. Thiruvarur Thiyagarajaa Swaamy temple is older than Tanjore big temple.

Thiruvarur was a part of

Vijayanagar Empire, Thanjavur Nayaks, Marathas and the British. The town is known for the Thyagaraja temple, and the annual Asian biggest chariot
festival held in the month of April.

Etymology

The historic name of the town was Aaroor (Arur) and it finds mention in the seventh century saiva canonical work, Tevaram.[4] It was also called Śrīnagara in Sanskrit.[5]

The term Thiru is added to all temple cities that are mostly revered by the verses of Tevaram, which is the case of Arur becoming Thiruvarur. Another name of Thiruvarur is Kamalaalayasetra, meaning the "holy place that is an abode of lotuses"; the town is also referred so due to the presence of the Kamalaalayam tank and the temple deity, Kamalambigai.[6] During the British Raj, the town was termed Tiruvalur,[7] Tiruvaloor,[8] and Thiruvalur.[9] As per the district and municipality websites, the district has the spelling "Tiruvarur", while the town has it as "Thiruvarur".[10][11]

History

outer courtyard of a temple with two temple towers
Thyagaraja Temple – an important landmark of the town and one of the largest temples in Tamil Nadu[12]

As per folk legend, Thiruvarur is mentioned as the capital town of a legendary Chola king,

Manu Needhi Cholan, who killed his own son to provide justice to a cow.[13][14]

Thiruvarur was one of the five traditional capitals of the Chola empire

UNESCO World Heritage Site.[17]

Inscriptions from the temple indicate Thiruvarur as the capital of Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120 CE), during which the town emerged a centre of saivism.

Marathas.[20] During the period of Marathas, the town became a temporary home to the Nataraja of Chidambaram temple.[16] The town was briefly captured by French troops led by Lally (1702–66 CE) in 1759 CE.[21] The Thyagarajar temple was ransacked in a failed attempt to discover hidden treasure.[21] During the attempt, six members of the temple, suspected to be spies of the British, were killed in an encounter.[21] The province and Tanjore were annexed by British after the failed attempt of the French to attack the King of Tanjore.[21] After independence, Thiruvaur continued to be a part of the Thanjavur district and Nagapattinam district until 1991 and 1997 respectively.[11] Thiruvarur was made the headquarters of Tiruvarur district when it was carved out of Nagapattinam district in 1997.[11] In modern days, Thiruvarur regarded as the origin of Carnatic music because of the birth of great three musicians of Carnatic music (Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri - The trinity of Carnatic Music).[22]

Geography

Thiruvarur is located at 9°17′N 79°18′E / 9.28°N 79.3°E / 9.28; 79.3.

green gram, ground nut and gingely.[27]

Climate data for Thiruvarur, India
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 28.4
(83.1) 		29.4
(84.9) 		31.3
(88.3) 		33.3
(91.9) 		36.1
(97.0) 		36.8
(98.2) 		35.9
(96.6) 		35.1
(95.2) 		33.9
(93.0) 		31.7
(89.1) 		29.7
(85.5) 		28.6
(83.5) 		32.5
(90.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 22.5
(72.5) 		23.3
(73.9) 		24.7
(76.5) 		26.9
(80.4) 		27.5
(81.5) 		27.1
(80.8) 		26.4
(79.5) 		26.0
(78.8) 		25.6
(78.1) 		25.1
(77.2) 		24.1
(75.4) 		23.0
(73.4) 		25.2
(77.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 29.9
(1.18) 		16.4
(0.65) 		20.1
(0.79) 		23.1
(0.91) 		41.9
(1.65) 		49.3
(1.94) 		63.1
(2.48) 		79.7
(3.14) 		96.5
(3.80) 		249.2
(9.81) 		549.5
(21.63) 		593.3
(23.36) 		1,403.9
(55.27)
Source: [28]

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±%
197135,858—    
198143,654+21.7%
199149,194+12.7%
200156,341+14.5%
201158,301+3.5%
Sources:
Religious census
Religion Percent(%)
Hindu
 
 84.38%
Muslim
 
 14.13%
Christian
 
 1.39%
Sikh
 
 0.02%
Buddhist
 
 0.01%
Jain
 
 0.02%
Other
 
 0.05%
No religion
 
 0.01%

During 1901, the population of the town stood at 15,436.[18] According to 2011 census, Thiruvarur had a population of 58,301 with a sex-ratio of 1,053 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929.[30] A total of 5,779 were under the age of six, constituting 2,888 males and 2,891 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 32% and .66% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the town was 82.%, compared to the national average of 72.99%.[30] The town had a total of 14997 households. There were a total of 18,953 workers, comprising 672 cultivators, 960 main agricultural labourers, 318 in house hold industries, 15,596 other workers, 1,407 marginal workers, 47 marginal cultivators, 261 marginal agricultural labourers, 52 marginal workers in household industries and 1,047 other marginal workers.[1]

As per the religious census of 2011, Thiruvarur had 84.38%

Buddhists, 0.02% Jains, 0.05% following other religions and 0.01% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.[31]

The population growth rate was higher during the decade of 1981–90 due to increased provision of social, economic and recreational facilities that caused the rural population to migrate to urban areas.[32] The overall growth rate had declined over the last two decades due to poor returns in agriculture and increased migration of agricultural labourers to other urban centres.[32] The population density of the town is high in the centre and low in the peripheral regions.[32]

The town has 55% employed people; 12.7% are involved in primary occupations like agriculture, 2.8% in secondary occupations related to industries and 85% in tertiary occupations such as agricultural trading and tourism.[33] About 33% population of the town is involved in agriculture and most of them are involved in trading activities.[33] As per a survey conducted in 1997 by the Tamil Nadu Urban and Town Planning Department, 30 slums were identified in the town constituting 41% of the total population of the town.[32]

Economy

Thiruvarur lies in the

Kaveri River basin and the main occupation of the inhabitants of the town and surrounding regions is agriculture.[34] More than 70% of the workforce is involved in agriculture; 14% being cultivators and rest are agricultural labourers.[10] Paddy is cultivated in three seasons namely Kuruvai (June–August), Samba (August–January) and Thaladi (January–March).[34] The daily wages of the agricultural labourers is more than the rates fixed by the Tamil Nadu government, but due to the decline in number of days of work, the income levels are lower.[35] As of 1998, the male labourers were employed 150 days a year, while the female labourers for 120 days.[36] A government report in 2006 put these numbers at 120 and 100 days respectively.[36] Due to the discontinuity in the working days, the labourers migrate to other states or countries. They also shift to other professions like construction industry in the urban centres and textile industry in the district.[36] There are no industrial estates in the town and the district – as of 2012, a government proposal is formulated to develop one at Vaippur village.[37] Modern agricultural tools like hullers have replaced labourers and reduce the profit margin of small traders and labourers.[38] There are no co-operative societies who acquire the farm products and the District Purchasing Centre, operated by the government of Tamil Nadu is the major procurer.[39]

Being an agricultural town, the predominant industries are agriculture based like modern rice milling, palm oil refinery, poultry, live stock and coir based.[40] Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation operating a modern rice mill and South India Edible Oil involved in refining oil are the large scale industries in the town.[40] There are small service enterprises involved in automobile servicing, hotels, hospitals, boat repairing and nylon fishnet repairing.[41] There is a weekly market at Thanjai Salai and a daily market maintained by the municipality, where vegetables and fish are sold.[42]

Nationalized banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and private banks like ICICI Bank, City Union Bank have their branches in Thiruvarur.[43] Kumbakonam Co-operative Bank, Tiruvarur Co-operative Bank and Primary Agriculture Bank are the cooperative banks that have their branches in the town.[43] All these banks have their Automated teller machines located in various parts of the town.[43]

Transport

Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation

Thiruvarur municipality accommodates 94.06 km of roads: 54.9 km of BT roads, 10.91 km of metal roads, 9.48 km of cement roads and 18.75 km of highways.

State Express Transport Corporation operates long-distance buses connecting the town to Bangalore, Coimbatore, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram and Marthandam.[45]

passenger trains to Tiruchirapalli, Thanjavur, Mayiladuthurai, Karaikal, Mannargudi and Thiruthuraipoondi.[48] Gauge conversion between Thiruvarur and Karaikudi is completed now so daily trains are available to Karaikudi and manamadurai. There is a daily express train to Chennai via Mayiladuthurai and Ernakulam. There are two trains from Mannargudi to Tirupathi and Velankanni to Goa, operated three times a week that pass through Thiruvarur.[48]
The nearest airport to Thiruvarur is Tiruchirappalli International Airport, which is located 110 km (68 mi) from the town.[49]The nearest seaport is located at Nagapattinam which is about 27 km (17 mi) from the town.

Education and utility services

As of 2001, Thiruvarur has a lower literacy rate compared to other part of the state.[50] There are three government high schools out of a total of 15 schools in the town.[51] The Central University of Tamil Nadu, established by an act of parliament in 2009, provides collegiate education in the fields of arts and science.[52] There are five other arts and science colleges, one teacher training institute, three polytechnic colleges and two Industrial training institutes (ITI) in the town.[51]

Electricity supply to Thiruvarur is regulated and distributed by the Thiruvarur circle of

Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB).[53] Water supply is provided by the Thiruvarur Municipality from Odambokki river; the distribution through water tanks located at Madapuram, Thendral Nagar, Kidarakondan, Kattapomman street, Mettupalayam, IP Koil street, Maruthapttinam and Weekly Shandy having a total capacity of 4,260 kl (1,130,000 US gal).[54] About 18 t (40,000 lb) of solid waste is collected from the town everyday; 56% domestic wastes and 40% commercial wastes.[55] Thiruvarur municipality is implementing underground drainage and the current sewerage system for disposal of sullage is through septic tanks and public conveniences.[56] Roadside drains carry untreated sewage out of the town to let out raw into the sea or accumulates in low-lying area.[56]

Thiruvarur comes under the Thiruvarur Telecom circle of the

broadband internet service.[57] There are three government hospitals in the town; the largest of them is the District Headquarters Government Hospital.[58] There are 11 private hospitals and numerous medical shops catering to the healthcare need of the town.[58]

Municipal administration and politics

Municipality officials
Chairman vacant[59]
Commissioner vacant[60]
Vice Chairman vacant[61]
Elected members
Member of Legislative Assembly Poondi K Kalaivaanan[62]
Member of Parliament Selvaraj[63]

Until 1860, Thiruvarur was the headquarters of a

taluka of the same name.[18] It was declared a third grade municipality in 1914 during the rule of British.[11] It was promoted to a first grade municipality in 1978.[50] The municipality has 30 wards and there is an elected councilor for each of those wards.[23] The municipality has seven revenue villages: Vilamal, Vijayaruram, Thiruvarur south, Thiruvarur North, Keelakavadhukudi, Ramage, Sundaravilakam and Kidaramkondan.[11] The functions of the municipality are devolved into six departments: general administration/personnel, engineering, revenue, health, town planning and information technology (IT).[64] All these departments are under the control of a municipal commissioner who is the executive head.[64] The legislative powers are vested in a body of 30 members, one each from the 30 wards. The legislative body is headed by an elected chairperson assisted by a deputy chairperson.[65] Tiruvarur district was created in January 1997 and Tiruvarur town became the district headquarters.[11]

Thiruvarur comes under the

SC (Scheduled Caste) candidates. From the 1977 elections, the assembly seat was won by DMK for five times during 1977, 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011 elections and Communist Party of India for four times during 1980, 1984, 1989 and 1991 elections.[67] The former MLA of the constituency is Muthuvel Karunanidhi, ex-chief minister and the leader of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).[62]

Thiruvarur is a part of the

Nannilam.[68] The current Member of Parliament from the constituency is Dr. K. Gopal from the AIADMK.[63] From 1957, the Nagapattinam parliament seat was held by the Indian National Congress for four times during 1957–1961,[69] 1962–67,[70] 1967–71[71] and 1991–96.[72] CPI won the seat for 5 times during 1971–77,[73] 1977–80,[74] 1989–91,[75] 1996–98[76] and 1998 elections.[77] DMK won 4 times during 1980–84,[78] 1999–2004,[79] 2004–09[80] and 2009-2014 elections. AIADMK won the seat two times during 1984–89 & 2014.[81]

Law and order in the town in maintained by the Thiruvarur sub division of the Tamil Nadu Police headed by a Deputy Superintendent.[82] There are three police stations in the town, one of them being an all-women police station.[83] There are special units like prohibition enforcement, district crime, social justice and human rights, district crime records and special branch that operate at the district level police division headed by a Superintendent of Police.[82]

Culture

The Thyagaraja temple

bronze idols showing two images in sitting posture
Worship of Lord Thyagaraja is associated with the Somaskanda depiction of Lord(s) Shiva, Skanda and Parvathi.

The ancient

Madurai Meenakshi Temple.[20] Pilgrims take a holy dip in the tank during Hindu auspicious occasions like equinox and eclipse.[86] The temple is also classified as Saptha Vidangam, meaning the seven temples having unique dance moves by Thyagaraja.[13] The Chola inscriptions refer Thyagaraja as Vidhividangar and the name "Thyagaraja" is believed to have emerged during the 15–16th century CE.[15]

Number of tourists
YearPop.
2001260,750
2002275,900
2003301,100
2004321,400
Sources:

Music, dance and literature

Historically Thiruvarur has been a centre of eminent people in religion, arts and science. Sundarar, an eighth-century Saivite saint, mentions "I am the slave of all those born in Thiruvarur" in his works in Tevaram.

Sekkizhar, dedicates a chapter to those born in Thiruvarur including these two saints.[16] The town was a traditional centre of music and dance – the inscriptions from Rajaraja Chola associates a large body of dancers associated with the temple.[16]
Thiruvarur is home to Trinity of
Shyama Shastri (1762–1827 CE).[88] Muthuswami Dikshitar has sung eulogies of the temple deities of the Thyagarajaswami temple.[16] There was large influx of the acumen of South Indian culture to the town during the 17th century CE due to the political unrest in Thanjavur and increased patronage of the Maratha kings to Thiruvarur, resulting in developments in music and dance.[89]
A unique musical instrument called Panchamuga Vadyam with each of its five ends ornamented differently is used in the temple. A type of nadaswaram (pipe instrument) called Barinayanam is also a unique instrument found only in Thiruvarur.[90]

Chariot festival

a temple car drawn by a lot of people
Thiruvarur temple chariot festival depicting the largest temple chariot in World

Kulothunga Chola II (1133–50 CE) enlarged the temple ritual to have fifty six festivals, some of which are followed in modern times.[91][20] The annual chariot festival of the Thygarajaswamy temple is celebrated during April – May, corresponding to the Tamil month of Chitrai.[13] The chariot is the largest of its kind in Tamil Nadu and also No.1 Place of Biggest Chariot in the World weighing 360 tonne with a height of 96 feet.[13] The chariot comes around the four main streets surrounding the temple during the festival.[13] The event is attended by lakhs of people from all over Tamil Nadu.[13] The chariot festival is followed by the "Theppam", meaning float festival. The Carnatic music festival celebrated every year also garners large audience.[87] The town has 10 parks, with the Somasundaram Park at Panagal Road and Municipal Park at Thendral Nagar being the most prominent of them.[87]

Notable people

Notes

Footnotes

  • ^ The official spelling, as per the municipality website is "Thiruvarur".

Citations

  1. ^ a b "Census India 2011". Office of The Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  2. ^ a b Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, p. 5.
  3. ^ a b c d e Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, p. 6.
  4. ^ Muthalam Thirumurai Translation 2012.
  5. ^ Govindan, V. (2 August 2008). "Guru Guha Vaibhavam: Dikshitar Kriti - Sri Nilotpala Naayike - Raga Naree Reethi Gaula". Guru Guha Vaibhavam. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  6. ^ Dhere 2011, p. 53.
  7. ^ Hunter 1908, pp. 225–229.
  8. ^ Dodwell 1920, p. 48.
  9. ^ Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland 1833, p. 146.
  10. ^ a b MSME Development Institute 2012, p. 1.
  11. ^ a b c d e f About the town 2011.
  12. ^ a b Tamil Nadu Tourism 2011.
  13. ^ a b c d e f The Hindu & 16 July 2010.
  14. ^ a b c d Ayyar 1991, pp. 369–374.
  15. ^ a b c Vasudevan 2003, pp. 135–138.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g Ghose 1998, p. 59-60.
  17. ^ a b Ghose 1998, p. 58.
  18. ^ a b c d Francis 2002, p. 167.
  19. ^ Ayyar 1991, p. 215.
  20. ^ a b c Ayyar 1991, p. 375.
  21. ^ a b c d Dodwell 1920, p. 166.
  22. ^ Krishnapriya M & Vishnu Achutha Menon 2020.
  23. ^ a b Citizen's charter of Thiruvarur Municipality 2011.
  24. ^ a b Dhinagaran 2008, p. 3.
  25. ^ Dhinagaran 2008, p. 4.
  26. ^ a b Dhinagaran 2008, p. 1.
  27. ^ Agricultural contigency plan 2008, p. 4.
  28. ^ Climatology of Nagapattinam 2011.
  29. ^ Thiruvarur population 2011.
  30. ^ a b India population dashboard 2011.
  31. ^ "Population By Religious Community - Tamil Nadu" (XLS). Office of The Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  32. ^ a b c d Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, pp. 7–10.
  33. ^ a b Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, pp. 11–13.
  34. ^ a b Palanithurai & Ramesh 2008, p. 102.
  35. ^ Palanithurai & Ramesh 2008, pp. 103–104.
  36. ^ a b c Palanithurai & Ramesh 2008, p. 105.
  37. ^ MSME Development Institute 2012, p. 6.
  38. ^ Palanithurai & Ramesh 2008, p. 124.
  39. ^ Palanithurai & Ramesh 2008, p. 125.
  40. ^ a b Tiruvarur district industrial profile 2012.
  41. ^ MSME Development Institute 2012, p. 9.
  42. ^ Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, p. 30.
  43. ^ a b c Thiruvarur town Banks 2011.
  44. ^ Thiruvarur roads 2011.
  45. ^ a b c d The Hindu & 13 July 2012.
  46. ^ SETC Computer reservation centres 2004.
  47. ^ The Hindu & 15 July 2010.
  48. ^ a b c The Hindu & 2 July 2012.
  49. ^ Thiruvarur transport 2011.
  50. ^ a b Thiruvarur Municipality features 2011.
  51. ^ a b Thiruvarur schools 2011.
  52. ^ Central University of Tamil Nadu 2009.
  53. ^ TNEB region details 2011.
  54. ^ Thiruvarur water supply 2011.
  55. ^ Waste management programme 2011.
  56. ^ a b Thiruvarur sewarage 2011.
  57. ^ BSNL 2011.
  58. ^ a b Thiruvarur hospitals 2011.
  59. ^ Thiruvarur Municipality Chairman 2011.
  60. ^ Thiruvarur Municipality Commissioner 2011.
  61. ^ Thiruvarur Municipality Vice Chairman 2011.
  62. ^ a b MLA of Thiruvarur 2011.
  63. ^ a b MP of Nagapattinam 2014.
  64. ^ a b Commissionerate of Municipal Administration 2006.
  65. ^ Economic and political weekly 1995.
  66. ^ List of Assembly constituencies 2010.
  67. ^ Partywise Comparison Since 1977 2011.
  68. ^ The Hindu & 31 March 2009.
  69. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1957 to the Second Lok Sabha.
  70. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1962 to the Third Lok Sabha.
  71. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1967 to the Fourth Lok Sabha.
  72. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1991 to the Tenth Lok Sabha.
  73. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1971 to the Fifth Lok Sabha.
  74. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1977 to the Sixth Lok Sabha.
  75. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1989 to the Ninth Lok Sabha.
  76. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1996 to the Eleventh Lok Sabha.
  77. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1998 to the Twelfth Lok Sabha.
  78. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1980 to the Seventh Lok Sabha.
  79. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1999 to the Thirteenth Lok Sabha.
  80. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 2004 to the Fourteenth Lok Sabha.
  81. ^ Key highlights of the general elections 1984 to the Eighth Lok Sabha.
  82. ^ a b Thiruvarur district police 2011.
  83. ^ Thiruvarur police 2011.
  84. ^ Ghose 1998, p. 24.
  85. ^ Kersenboom-Story 1998, p. 17.
  86. ^ Ayyar 1991, p. 7.
  87. ^ a b c Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited 2008, pp. 35–36.
  88. ^ Kumar 2003, pp. 216–219.
  89. ^ Kersenboom-Story 1998, p. 41.
  90. ^ Krishnapriya M & Vishnu Achutha Menon 2020, p. 34.
  91. ^ Ghose 1998, p. 331.

References

External links

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