Karur

Infobox Indian Jurisdiction
native_name = Karur


latd = 10.95
longd = 78.08
state_name = Tamil Nadu
district = Karur
leader_title_1 = Municipal Chairman
leader_name_1 = P.Sivakama Sundari
altitude = 122
population_as_of = 2001
population_total = 76328
population_density = 322
area_magnitude = 9
area_total = 5.96
area_telephone = 91-(0)4324
postal_code = 6390(xx)
vehicle_code_range = TN 47
footnotes =

Karur (Tamil : கரூர் ) is a town and a municipality in Karur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu situated on the banks of Amaravati. It is the administrative headquarters of Karur District.

Karur has a very long history and has been sung by various sangam poets. It has been the battleground of various Tamil Kings like Chera, Chola and Pandya because of its strategic location. The district has a very rich and varied cultural heritage. The district is made fertile by the perennial flows of the Kaveri River on the northern side(Thavittupalayam, Vangal, Mayanur, Kulithalai) and also the Amaravati, Nanganjiyar and Noyyal rivers. Its economy is mainly agrarian. Presently, the district is famous worldwide for its handloom products.

History

KARUR is one of the oldest cities in Tamil Nadu and has played a very significant role in the history and culture of the Tamils. Its history dates back over 2000 years, and has been a flourishing trading centre in the early Sangam days. It was ruled by the Cheras, Gangas, Cholas, the Vijayanagara Nayaks, Mysore and the British successively.

Karur was built on the banks of river Amaravathi which was called Aanporunai during the Sangam days. According to the Hindu mythology, Brahma began the work of creation here, which is referred to as the "place of the sacred cow." The names of the early Chera kings who ruled from Karur, have been found in the rock inscriptions in Aaru Nattar Malai close to Karur. The Tamil epic "Silapathikaram" mentions that the famous Chera King Senguttuvan ruled from Karur.

Epigraphical, numismatic, archaeological and literary evidence have proved beyond doubt that Karur was the capital of early Chera kings of Sangam age. It was called Karuvoor or Vanji during Sangam days. There has been a plethora of rare findings during the archaeological excavations undertaken in Karur. These include mat-designed pottery, bricks, mud-toys, Roman coins, Chera Coins, Pallava Coins, Roman Amphorae, Rasset coated ware, rare rings, etc. [Nagaswami, R. (1995). "Roman Karur: A peep into Tamil's past". Brahad Prakashan, Madras.] Karur may have been the center for old jewellery-making and gem setting (with the gold imported mainly from Rome), as seen from various excavations. In 150 Greek scholar Ptolemy mentioned “Korevora” (Karur) as a very famous inland trading center in Tamil Nadu.

After the Sangam Cheras, Kongus (Gangas), a Chera related native clan ruled Karur.The history of Kongu nadu dates back to the 8th century. The name Kongunadu originated from the term "Kongu", meaning nectar or honey. Kongu came to be called as Kongu nadu with the growth of civilization. Kulasekhara known as Kongar Kon (the king of the Kongu people) ruled Kongu Nadu from Karur during this period.

After them, the arch rivals Chozhas conquered karur and ruled it for forty years. The Kongus (Gangas) again conquered Karur as vassals of Hoysalas. The Muslim looter Malik Kafur ended the Hoysalas and Vijayanagara empire absorbed Karur. Thereafter, Karur was a part of the Mysore state. The hanging of Tipu and defeat of Dheeran Chinnamalai broke up Kongu Nadu and Karur was absorbed into the Tiruchirapalli district by the British.

Later the Naickers followed by Tipu Sultan also ruled Karur. The British added Karur to their possessions after destroying the Karur Fort during their war against Tipu Sultan in 1783. There is a memorial at Rayanur near Karur for the warriors who lost their lives in the fight against the British in the Anglo-Mysore Wars. Thereafter Karur became part of British India and was first part of Coimbatore District and later Tiruchirappalli District.

Karuvoor Thevar born in Karur, is one among the nine devotees who sung the divine Music Thiruvichaippa, which is the ninth Thirumurai. He is the single largest composer among the nine authors of Thiruvichaippa. He lived during the reign of the great Raja Raja Chola I. In addition to the famous Siva temple, there is a Vishnu temple at Thiruvithuvakkodu suburb of Karur, sung by famous Kulasekaraazhvaar [7-8th century AD] . The same temple is presumably mentioned in epic Silappadikaram as "Adaha maadam" Ranganathar whose blessings Cheran Senguttuvan sought before his north Indian expedition [See Mahavidwan R. Raghava Iyengar's Vanjimanagar.]

Karur District

Karur district, with headquarters at Karur, is the most centrally located district of Tamil Nadu. It is bounded by Namakkal district in the north, Dindigul district in the south, Tiruchirapalli district on the east and Erode district on the west.

Karur district has 4 Municipalities (Karur,Inama Karur,Thanthoni,Kulithalai) 10 Town Panchayats and 158 Village Panchayats and 203 Revenue Villages. Karur District has 4 Assembly constituencies of which one is a reserved namely Krishnarayapuram Constituency. Karur Parliamentary constitutes 6 Assembly constituencies, 2 are from Tiruchirappalli revenue district, namely Marungapuri and Thottiam and 4 Assembly Constituencies from Karur.

Politics

Karur assembly constituency is part of Karur (Lok Sabha constituency). [cite web
url = http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S22/TN_ACPC.pdf
title = List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies
accessdate = 2008-10-11
work = Tamil Nadu
publisher = Election Commission of India ]

Geography

Karur is located at coord|10.95|N|78.08|E| [ [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/25/Karur.html Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Karur] ] . It has an average elevation of m to ft|122|m|abbr=on. It is about 371 km south west of Chennai (Madras), the capital of Tamil Nadu.

Climate

The highest temperature is obtained in early May to early June usually about 34 °C, though it usually exceeds 38 °C for a few days most years. Average daily temperature in Karur during January is around 23 °C, though the temperature rarely falls below 17 °C.

The average annual rainfall is about 855 mm. The city gets most of its seasonal rainfall from the north-east monsoon winds, from late September to mid November.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, [GR|India] Karur had a population of 1,54,328. Males constitute 49.5 % of the population and females 50.5 % (1008 females for 1000 males).It is one of the female dominated district in the state.

Karur has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%, male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 72%. In Karur, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Economy

Agriculture

Utilization of land area in Karur district is up to 44.59%. 4.76% of the land area remains as other uncultivated land. 2.74% is forest area in Karur district.

Black soil is the predominant soil type in this district accounting for 35.51% followed by lateritic soil for 23.85%. The remaining 20.31% is alluvium soil.

The main crops are Paddy, Banana, Sugarcane, Battle leaf, Grams&Pulses, Topicco, Kora grass, Groundnuts, Oilseeds, Tropic-Vegetables, Garland Flowers, Medicinal Herbals etc.,.

Home textiles

Karur is famous for its home textiles. Karur has a niche in five major product groups — bed linens, kitchen linens, toilet linens, table linens and wall hangings. Overall Karur generates around Rs.6000 crores ($300 million dollars a year) in foreign exchange through direct and indirect exports. Allied industries like ginning and spinning mills, dyeing factories, weaving etc employs around 300,000 people in and around Karur. On the international textile map Karur has become synonymous with hand-loom “made-ups” first as Tirupur in the hosiery product. The weaving industry came to Karur from Kerala and has earned a reputation for its high quality hand-loom products today. Hand-loom Exports from Karur began on a modest scale with just 15 exporters in 1975 and today Karur has 1000s of exporters and the products are supplied to world leading chain stores like WalMart, Target, IKEA etc. The hand-loom products being exported have been broadly classified under three heads viz., kitchen, bathroom and bedroom furnishing items. Some of the hand-loom made-ups exported from Karur are Bedspreads,Sheet sets, Towels, Floor rugs, Tea towels, Napkins, Aprons, Kitchen towels, Pot holders, Plate mats, Bathmats, Tea mats, Curtains, Pillow, Quilt covers, Shower curtains (above 500 classified varieties).

Paper

[http://www.tnpl.co.in TNPL] is promoted by the Government of Tamil Nadu with loan assistance from the World Bank. Today TNPL is the largest producer of bagasse (sugarcane waste from Sugar mills) based paper in the world and the 2nd largest paper producer in Asia. TNPL produces 230,000 tons of Printing & writing paper and consumes 1 million tones of bagasse every year.

Bus body building

Karur is a hub for bus body building industries. Most of the South Indian private bus bodies are built in Karur. The total business from building bus bodies is estimated to be around Rs.324 crore per annum.DVNcoach is the leading busbody factory in town

Cement

Karur is also home to [http://www.chettinadcement.com/index.htm Chettinad Cements] . It has an installed production capacity of 600,000 tons per annum, with another 1.1 million tons expansion in the pipeline..

ugar

[http://www.eidparry.com/ThePlants.asp EID Parry] has a sugar factory in Pugalur, Karur. It has a capacity of 4000 TCD per year. It also has a 22 MW co-generation Power plant, with TNPL.

Banking

Karur is the home town of India's oldest private scheduled banks, [http://www.kvb.co.in The Karur Vysya Bank] and [http://www.lvbank.com The Lakshmi Vilas Bank] .

HDPE Filaments

HDPE filament and associated product manufacturing. Its mainly for the fruit fields of Himalayas & north-east. Above 50% of nylon nets in India are made in Karur.

Gem Stones

The Karur belt also produces some very good Cats eyes, Feldspar, Moonstones, Aquamarines, Quarts, Sapphires, Jasper and beryls.

Educational Institutions

* [http://www.karurgovtartscollege.com Government Arts College]
* Shri Sarada Niketan college of science for Women(Sarathapuri)
* The Karur Polytechnic College(Kongu Nagar)
* Kongu College of Arts & Science(Karur)
* [http://www.mkce.ac.in Kumaraswamy College of Engineering ]
* [http://www.vsbenggcollege.com VSB College Of engineering And Technology]
* [http://www.chettinadcet.ac.in Chettinad College Of Engineering And Technology]
* Valluvar College Of Science & Management(Karur)
* [http://www.sriannaiartscollege.com Arabindho College of Arts & Science]

Tourism

* [http://www.chennaimuseum.org/draft/district/district.htm Karur District Museum]
* [http://www.dinamalar.com/koil_english/29_Sri%20Kalyana%20Pasupatheeswarar%20Temple%20-%20Karur.asp Sri Kalyanapasupatheeswarar Temple]
* Sri Karuvur Mariyamman temple
* Vennaimalai Shree Balathandayuthapani temple
* Mayanur - Kaveri bed regulator, River side park
* Chettipalayam - Amaravathi bed regulator, park
* Nerur - Sacred Math, Meditation, River side park

Health

Karur district has 29 Primary Health Care centres, 168 health sub-centres and Government General Hospital in the city. In recent years, it has gained notoriety as one of the districts with the [http://www.nacoonline.org/fnlapil06rprt.pdf highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the country] . In response to the epidemic, a massive [http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/16/stories/2006111605130300.htm district-level communication campaign (DLCC)] was launched in 2006 by the USAID-funded [http://apacvhs.org APAC-VHS] project in the district. In 2007, the district received its own ART (Antiretroviral drug therapy) Centre, located at the Government General Hospital. Also in 2007, Karur was selected as an [http://www.who.int/3by5/publications/documents/imai/en/ IMAI] pilot district by the World Health Organization and [http://www.saathii.org Solidarity and Action Against the HIV Infection in India] , with support from the [http://www.karur.tn.nic.in District Collectorate] and [http://www.aidsfreetn.com Tamil Nadu AIDS Control Society] . The IMAI initiative aims to facilitate decentralization of HIV care to the district and sub-district levels.

Transportation

ROAD

Karur is well connected with rest of India through all modern means of transportation. There are 2 National highways NH-7 (North South Corridor(Kashmir to Kanyakumari)) Varanasi - Kanyakumari) and NH-67 (Nagapattinam - Trichy - Karur - Coimbatore - Ooty) that ply through Karur.

TRAIN

Karur (Station Code - KRR) is connected to the Indian Railways network. Trains from Mysore to Tuticorin, Mangalore to Chennai, Coimbatore to Kumbakonam Janshatabdi Express and Mysore to Mayiladuthurai, Nagercoil to CST Mumbai and Madurai to Jammu Tawi via New Delhi, Rohtak, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Pathankot (Chakki Bank) travel via Karur. Karur is also connected by rail to major towns like Coimbatore, Madurai, Chennai, Trichy, Salem, Erode, Bangalore.

AIR PORT

The nearest airport is in Trichy (78 km), Coimbatore (122 km) and Madurai (135).

SEA PORT The nearest major sea port is at Cochin (280 km), Thoothukudi (344 km) and Chennai (332 km).

References

* "Vanjimanagar" by Mahavidwan R. Raghava Iyengar [1918, 1932] UNIV OF MADRAS B.A, TEXT text 1932
* [http://tamilartsacademy.com/books/roman%20karur/cover.html Roman Karur: A peep into Tamil's past". Dr. R. Nagaswamy. 1995. Brahad Prakashan, Madras]
* "Azhwargal Kaala Nilai" on Vithuvakkodu Ranganathar temple by Pt M. Raghava Iyengar
* [http://www.kvb.co.in/scripts/Common.asp?Page=Top50 KVB-Top 50]
* [http://www.hindu.com/2005/11/15/stories/2005111513500100.htm Textile Exports]
* [http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/21/stories/2007112155170800.htm Spread of HIV comes down in Tamil Nadu]
* [http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/15/stories/2007111558540300.htm HIV treatment facilities reviewed]
* [http://www.hindu.com/mp/2008/02/04/stories/2008020450090500.htm Chera/Roman Coins]

External links

* [http://www.karur.tn.nic.in/default.htm Karur District Official Website]
* [http://www.karurexports.org Karur Textile Manufacturer Exporters’ Association (KTMEA)]
* [http://www.karurinfo.com Karur Online Directory]
* [http://www.karurtoday.com Karur Today - News]
* [http://www.chennaimuseum.org/draft/district/district.htm District Museum]

ee also

* Karur (Lok Sabha constituency)