French dreams of an Indian Empire began and ended in Pondicherry. But in the scattered territories of the Union Territory of Pondicherry there remains what little there is left of the French influence in India and that makes the territory, especially its headquarters, Pondicherry, unique, something quite different from the rest of India.
The Union Territory of Pondicherry comprises of 4 coastal regions viz- Pondicherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam . Pondicherry and Karaikal are situated on the East Coasts in Tamil Nadu, Yanam in Andra Pradesh and Mahe on the West Coast in Kerala.
Pondicherry is the Capital of this Union Territory. It is on the east coast about 162 kms south of Chennai ( Madras ) located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal.
| Union Territory (UT) name | Pondicherry |
| UT Capital name | Pondicherry |
| Total Number of Regions | Four |
| Name of the Regions | Pondicherry, Karaikal, Mahe & Yanam |
| Location Details | |
| Pondicherry & Karaikal | East Coast in Tamil Nadu |
| Yanam | East Coast in Andra Pradesh |
| Mahe | West Coast in Kerala |
| Languages Spoken | |
| Regional Languages | Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi. |
| Other Languages | English and French |
| Phone Details: | |
| Country Code for India | 91 |
| Area Code for Pondicherry | 0413 |
| Area Code for Karaikal | 04368 |
| Area Code for Mahe | 0490 |
| Area Code for Yanam | 0884 |
| Currency Rate to Indian Rupees | Click here |
| Climate | Tropical |
Like most ancient cities, the origin of Pondicherry lies buried in legends. It could have been the mythical 'Podhigai' said to have been the sacred abode of the legendary Sage Agusthia or it could be-the now forgotten 'Vedhapuri', a settlement of scholars well-versed in the vedas.
Excavations in the Arikamedu area near Pondicherry have brought to light the remains of a trading port which had connections with the Greeko-Roman world more than a century before the down of the Christian Era. You will be bound to see the glorious remains of Arikamedu excavations in the Archaeology section of the Pondicherry Museum.
We can find references to Poduke, a port town on the coromandal coast, in History. The identification of a Roman trading centre in the immediate vicinity of Pondicherry adds weight to the equation of 'Poduke' with Pondicherry. Although this has been suggested by more than one writer, the equation of 'Poduke' with 'Puduvai' the name by which the town was known in the early days, seems to be more acceptable. According to tradition, the town was once upon a time an abode of scholars well versed in the Vedas and hence came to be known as Vedapuri. Interestingly, during the days of Ottakoothar and Kambar in the 11th and 12th centuries, Puducherry was known in its shortened form as 'Puthuvai'. The Hindus called the town Puthuvai or Puducherry while the Muslims called it Pulcheri. The Portugese ‘Puducheria’ became the Danish ‘Polesere’ and the Dutch 'Pollochire'. But it was the French merchants who mixed up the 'U' for 'N' and transformed "Puducheri" into "Pondicheri". This region assumed the name Pondicherry in due course. Pondicherry otherwise known as 'Poudoucheri' was under Vijayanagar Empire during 14th and 15th centuries. Then it passed to the hands of the Naiks of Thanjavur in the beginning of 16th century, and then came under the rule of Bijapur sultan.
By about 16th century, the Portugese and Danish also used the place as a trading centre. The first Frenchman set his foot in ‘Puduchery’ on 4.2.1673 and till 1690 the French were interested mainly in trade and commerce activities. The name of the place was changed to ‘Pondicherry’ from 'Poudoucheri' by the French. In a war between the French and the Dutch, the former was defeated and Pondicherry came under Dutch rule between 1693 and 1699. In September 1699, the French became the legal owners of the Pondicherry town on payment of 16000 pagodas to the Dutch. The Nawab Dawood Khan, representative of Aurangazeb, donated Kalapet village in 1703 to Francois Martin for getting supply of timber from the forests surrounding it for construction of houses. In 1706, he had further transferred 5 more villages viz. Ozhukarai, Murungapakkam, Olandai, Pakkamudaiyanpet and Karuvadi-kuppam to the French. In 1711, the French government at Paris recognized the importance of Pondicherry town and established a sovereign counsel to aid and advise them in the administration of the colony. Francois Martin was the virtual builder of Pondicherry towns during span of 33 years of his administration here. In 1740, Pondicherry provided asylum to the royal refugees of the ruler of the Karnatic when marattas invaded him. Consequently, the Marattas attacked the French for this gesture but was defeated. In gratification of the gesture, the survivors of the Karnatic dynasty gifted Ariankuppam, Theduvanatham, and Villianur to the French.
Pondy - Geographical Features:
We can find references to Poduke, a port town on the coromandal coast, in History. The identification of a Roman trading centre in the immediate vicinity of Pondicherry adds weight to the equation of 'Poduke' with Pondicherry. Although this has been suggested by more than one writer, the equation of 'Poduke' with 'Puduvai' the name by which the town was known in the early days, seems to be more acceptable. According to tradition, the town was once upon a time an abode of scholars well versed in the Vedas and hence came to be known as Vedapuri. Interestingly, during the days of Ottakoothar and Kambar in the 11th and 12th centuries, Puducherry was known in its shortened form as 'Puthuvai'. The Hindus called the town Puthuvai or Puducherry while the Muslims called it Pulcheri. The Portugese ‘Puducheria’ became the Danish ‘Polesere’ and the Dutch 'Pollochire'. But it was the French merchants who mixed up the 'U' for 'N' and transformed "Puducheri" into "Pondicheri". This region assumed the name Pondicherry in due course. Pondicherry otherwise known as 'Poudoucheri' was under Vijayanagar Empire during 14th and 15th centuries. Then it passed to the hands of the Naiks of Thanjavur in the beginning of 16th century, and then came under the rule of Bijapur sultan. By about 16th century, the Portugese and Danish also used the place as a trading centre. The first Frenchman set his foot in ‘Puduchery’ on 4.2.1673 and till 1690 the French were interested mainly in trade and commerce activities. The name of the place was changed to ‘Pondicherry’ from 'Poudoucheri' by the French. In a war between the French and the Dutch, the former was defeated and Pondicherry came under Dutch rule between 1693 and 1699. In September 1699, the French became the legal owners of the Pondicherry town on payment of 16000 pagodas to the Dutch. The Nawab Dawood Khan, representative of Aurangazeb, donated Kalapet village in 1703 to Francois Martin for getting supply of timber from the forests surrounding it for construction of houses. In 1706, he had further transferred 5 more villages viz. Ozhukarai, Murungapakkam, Olandai, Pakkamudaiyanpet and Karuvadi-kuppam to the French. In 1711, the French government at Paris recognized the importance of Pondicherry town and established a sovereign counsel to aid and advise them in the administration of the colony. Francois Martin was the virtual builder of Pondicherry towns during span of 33 years of his administration here. In 1740, Pondicherry provided asylum to the royal refugees of the ruler of the Karnatic when marattas invaded him. Consequently, the Marattas attacked the French for this gesture but was defeated. In gratification of the gesture, the survivors of the Karnatic dynasty gifted Ariankuppam, Theduvanatham, and Villianur to the French.
Pondy - Geographical Features:
The map of this region presents more or less a flat land. There are no hills or forests in this region. The main soil types in this region are red ferrallitic, black clay and coastal alluvial.
Pondicherry is the Capital of this Union Territory. It is on the east coast about 162 kms south of Chennai ( Madras ) located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal.
The Union Territory of Pondicherry comprises of 4 coastal regions viz- Pondicherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam .
Pondicherry and Karaikal are situated on the East Coasts in Tamil Nadu, Yanam on the East Coast in Andra Pradesh and Mahe on the West Coast in Kerala.
Pondicherry region is located on the coromandal coast between 11 degree 46' and 12 degree 30' of north latitude and between 79 degree 36' and 79 degree 52' of east longitude. Its boundary on the east is the Bay of Bengal and on the other 3 sides is Cuddalore & Villupuram districts of Tamil Nadu State.
This is not a contiguous area but interspersed with some parts of Cuddalore and Villupuram districts of Tamil Nadu state. It presents a picture of scattered parts enclosed within Cuddalore and Villupuram districts.
The lay out of Pondicherry region described above which is located within Tamil Nadu presents a peculiar picture of territorial jurisdiction, perhaps the only one of its kind in the world. The historical reasons, which prompted the French and the British to limit their territories in the intermingling manner, are not known.
Languages and Religion:
Main languages spoken in the region are Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. English and French are other languages, which are spoken by a considerable number of people.
Majorities of the people are Hindus. There are quite a number of Christians and Muslims, whereas very few Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists.
No comments:
Post a Comment