Rajapalayam
—  town  —
Rajapalayam Location of Rajapalayam in Tamil Nadu and India
Coordinates	9°27′0″N 77°33′0″E / 9.45°N 77.55°E / 9.45; 77.55Coordinates: 9°27′0″N 77°33′0″E / 9.45°N 77.55°E / 9.45; 77.55
Country	India
State	Tamil Nadu
District(s)	Virudhunagar
Municipality Chairman	P.S. Dhanalakshmi
M L A	K. Gopalsamy
Population	307,959 (2011[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 100.58 metres (330.0 ft)

Rajapalayam (Tamil:இராஜபாளையம்) is a town and a special grade municipality^[1] in Virudhunagar district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located 85 km southwest of Madurai in the state of Tamil Nadu. Its main attractions are the Ayyanar Falls and the neighbour town of Srivilliputtur. The economy is based on the manufacture of textiles, and there are mills for spinning and weaving cotton, as well as a large cotton market. It's also known for the Rajapalayam breed of dog.

History[link]

Initially, agriculture was the principal source of living for the people of Rajapalayam. In the mid 1900s, Rajapalayam gradually evolved into a thriving business community. Due to various ambitious entrepreneurs and hard-working people, commerce developed quickly in the region and several industries, particularly cotton-based, flourished. Hence it got the name "Cotton city". Today Rajapalayam is one of the most industrialized cities in southern Tamil Nadu and people of all communities and religions live and contribute for its growth.^{[citation needed]}

Today, Rajapalayam is famous for its numerous cotton spinning mills, and a naturally pleasant climate. Surrounded by hills - The Western Ghats, Rajapalayam has a few beautiful attractions like the Ayyanar Temple and the Falls, Shenbagathopu, Sanjeevi Hill, and many more. Nearby towns like Chathirapatti, etc manufacture various cotton products for use in hospitals.

Climate[link]

The climate of the region is semi-arid tropical monsoon type. Temperature range is 20°C to 37°C.It has a high mean temperature and a low degree of humidity. April, May and June are the hottest months of the year. The southwest monsoon which sets in June and lasts till August brings scanty rain. The bulk of the rainfall is received during the northeast monsoon in the months of October, November and December. Rajapalayam is also famous for its Mangoes.

Demographics[link]

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[2] Rajapalayam had a population of 121,982. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Rajapalayam has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 66%. In Rajapalayam, 9% of the population is under 6 years of age.

As of 2011^[update] India census,^[3] Rajapalayam had a total population of 307,959 with 153,529 males and 154,430 females.

Transportation[link]

By Land[link]

Bus[link]

Rajapalayam has two bus stands to cater to the needs of the population. The old bus stand currently serves as the city bus stand. The new bus stand on Sankarankoil Road is where all the mofussil buses stop by. Buses frequently shuttle between Madurai and Rajapalayam. There are buses, every 15 minutes, from Rajapalayam to Tirunelveli and every 30 minutes to Virudhunagar and vice-versa.

Many private buses leave for Chennai during nights. There are also the state-run SETC buses to Chennai. Buses between Chennai and Tenkasi/Sengottai travel via Rajapalayam.

Rail[link]

Express Trains

The Podhigai Express SuperFast train bearing no (12661) from Chennai Egmore to Sengottai reaches Rajapalayam every day at around 6.30 AM. Similarly the Podhigai Express SuperFast train bearing no (12662) from Sengottai to Chennai Egmore reaches Rajapalayam every night at around 08.20 PM. Sengottai Chennai Egmore Express bearing no (06804) from Sengottai to Chennai Egmore reaches Rajapalayam at around 03.45 PM on every Wednesday evening. Similarly Chennai Egmore Sengottai Express bearing no (06803) from Chennai Egmore to Sengottai reaches Rajapalayam at around 5.05 AM on every Wednesday morning. There are also special trains available from Chennai to Sengottai and vice versa via Rajapalayam almost throughout the year. Trains from/towards Tirunelveli can be caught at Virudhunagar Junction.

Passenger Trains

There are 3 passenger train services from Madurai to Sengottai that pass through Rajapalayam on a daily basis at 09.00 AM, 01.20 PM and 07.05 PM respectively. Similarly there are 3 passenger train services from Sengottai to Madurai that pass through Rajapalayam on a daily basis at 08.30 AM, 01.25 PM and 05.20 PM respectively. The passenger train fare is just half of what the buses charge and hence these passengers are always crowded.

By Air[link]

The nearest domestic airport is Madurai Airport (~80 km). Madurai Airport is around 1.5 hours from Rajapalayam. Paramount Airways, Jet Airways, Spicejet and Air India are operating daily flights between Madurai Airport and Chennai International Airport.

School[link]

• Seithur Sevaga Pandiya Government Higher Secondary School (Board High School)
• Shri Rao Bahadur A.K.D. Dharmaraja Girls High School.
• AKD Dharma Raja Boys school.
• Nadar Higher Secondary School.
• PACM Higher Secondary School
• N.A.A.M Hr Secondary School
• Chinmaya Vidyalaya.
• Maharishi Vidya Mandir Matriculation Hr.Sec.School.
• CASA DI MIR Matriculation school
• Ananda Vidyalaya Matriculation School.

College[link]

• Rajapalayam Rajus' College
• AKD Dharma Raja Women's College.

Polytechnic[link]

• P.A.C.Ramasamy Raja's Polytechnic
• Manjammal Polytechnic college.

Tourist attractions[link]

Ayyanar Koil Forest Area (Ayyanar Falls)[link]

Ayyanar Koil forest area is located 10 km west of Rajapalayam on the eastern slope of Western Ghats. The forest area has many of streams, waterfalls, springs and a temple. Hiking in this forest area is one of the main recreations for Rajapalayam residents. Rajapalayam Water Reservoir, which provides water to the entire city, is situated en route to Ayyanar Falls. Rajapalayam Dam and Rajapalayam Water Treatment Plant are also situated adjacent to the Rajapalayam Water Reservoir.Motor pumps are not used for pumping of water supply and distribution system because of water flown on natural gravitational force.

Sanjeevi Hills[link]

Sanjeevi Hills is a small hill situated in south-west Rajapalayam en route Chatrapatti area.The Murugan Temple is at top of the hill. Karthigai Deepam lit on the top spot on thirukarthigai day of every year. The calm and serene ambiance makes it a favorite spot for tourists. Tradition recounts that in order to save the unconscious Lakshmana, Hanuman, the monkey god carried the entire Sanjeevi Hills with the herbal plants to Sri Lanka and threw it away afterwards. It is said that the thrown down hill is the Sanjeevi Hills.

Srivilliputtur[link]

Srivilliputtur is a town nearby Rajapalayam. The primary landmark of Srivilliputtur is twelve-tiered tower structure dedicated to the Lord of Srivilliputtur, known as Vatapatrasayee. The tower of this temple rises 192 feet high and is the official symbol of the Government of Tamil Nadu. It is said to have been built by Periyaazhvar, the father-in-law of the Lord, with a purse of gold that he won in debates held in the palace of Pandya King Vallabhadeva. Another wonder in Srivilliputtur is Chariot which runs on AdiPuram.

Shenbagathoppu Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary[link]

The Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary, spreads over 480 square kilometres was established in 1989 in Shenbagathopu, Srivilliputtur Taluk. This sanctuary is contiguous with the Periyar tiger reserve on the south-western side and the Megamalai reserve forest on the north-western side. The altitude varies from 100 m to 2010 m above sea level. The sanctuary is home to the endangered, arboreal grizzled giant squirrel Ratufa macrora. This greyish brown squirrel weighs from 1 kg to 1.8 kg and is in the size of a small cat. It measures about 735 mm long from nose to tail, with the tail measuring from 360 mm to 400 mm long. These squirrels construct drays at forked branches where the crowns of neighbouring trees meet, enabling these squirrels to move away from the site by jumping from tree to tree when threatened.

• Western Ghats RYM Stream.jpg

  A remote stream near Ayyanar Kovil

• Western Ghats RYM.jpg

  Western Ghats

• Sanjeevi Hills.jpg

  Sanjeevi Hills

• 

  Shenbagathoppu Meenvetti Parai Falls

• Ariel View.jpg

  Aerial view from Sanjeevi Hills

• View from Sanjeevi Hills.jpg

  Sanjeevi Rock

Notable people[link]

• P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja- Former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu (1949–52) and Governor of Orissa (1954–56).^[4][5]

• R. Krishnasamy Naidu Freedom fighter was an Indian politician and former Member of Madras State Legilative Assembly.He was elected to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly as an Indian National Congress candidate from Rajapalayam constituency in 1962 election.

• Indukuri Arangasamy Raja - Freedom fighter.

• P.A.C Ramasamy Raja - The founder of the Ramco Group of Industries, established in the year 1936.^[6]
• A. Chinnasami M.L.A .

Politics[link]

Rajapalayam (State Assembly Constituency) is part of Tenkasi (Lok Sabha constituency). Rajapalayam (State Assembly Constituency) moved from Sivakasi (Lok Sabha constituency) to Tenkasi (Lok Sabha constituency) after 2009

References[link]

External links[link]

• Rajapalayam
• USA Rajapalayam Rajus
• Rajapalayam

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