Arakkonam

Arakkonam
—  town  —
Arakkonam Location of Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu and India
Coordinates	13°06′N 79°40′E / 13.1°N 79.667°E / 13.1; 79.667Coordinates: 13°06′N 79°40′E / 13.1°N 79.667°E / 13.1; 79.667
Country	India
State	Tamil Nadu
District(s)	Vellore
Population	101,626 (2011[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Codes • Pincode • 631001 • Vehicle • TN73Z

Arakkonam (also "Arkonam") (Tamil: அரக்கோணம்) is a mid-sized Town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, with a population of about 101,626 as per the census 2011. This town is located in the Vellore District about 69 kilometres (43 mi) (via rail) from the state capital of Chennai.

Arakkonam is supposedly one of the hottest towns in India, where the temperature can exceed 43°C (110°F) for several peak days in the summer.

History

The name of the town is believed to have been derived from the Tamil word Aaru konam meaning hexagon (ancient name was "arunthamizh kundram"), since it has six important places on its six sides. Nearby towns include Kanchipuram, Tiruttani, Tiruvalangadu, Thakkolam, Manavoor and Sholingur Paranji. Arakkonam is one of the important railway junctions in South India. The station was known as Arkonam until a few years ago. It is an important junction since the Chennai-Mumbai railway line branches off from the railway line going to Bangalore, Hubli, Mangalore, Goa, Coimbatore and Kochi. There is also a branch line to Chengalpattu via Kanchipuram. However, many trains coming from the Bangalore side towards Mumbai bypass the station.^[1]

Municipality

The Arakkonam Municipality was constituted as 3rd Grade Municipality on 01.10.1958, it was upgraded as 2nd grade municipality on 1.5.1974 and now it is a 1st grade municipality from 17.4.1984. The area of this municipality is 9.06 km². The population is 78,686 as per the census 2001. This is also one of the assembly and parliamentary constituencies.

This municipality contains 36 wards.

Urban Infrastructure

Arakkonam is third largest railway junction in Vellore district next to Vellore Katpadi Junction and Jolarpet and mostly all trains stop at this junction,except some super fast trains. The town has one of the biggest workshops for Southern Railway, known as the Engineering Workshop (EWS) and the Electric Loco Shed (ELS). A frequent suburban electric train facility is also available towards Chennai.

The second biggest Food Corporation of India (FCI) godown is located at Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu. It is used to store all types of food grains for a long periods.

Transportation is also available by road to all major cities and towns.

The runway at INS Rajali, a naval air force of the Indian Navy in Arakkonam is 4,500 metres in length, making it the second longest airforce runway in South Asia. It is also Asia's second biggest Naval Training Centre.

There are other industries like MRF (Madras Rubber Factory), Ultratech Cements, Ramco Industries, Dennis Steels Pvt. Ltd, Best and Crompton Exports and SANDIVS, all located in Arakkonam.

The Arakkonam Fire station is one of the oldest buildings, built in 1925, and it is still in good condition.

Arakkonam also has a Regional Transport Office (RTO). Arakkonam also CISF in biggest training center in Arakkonam, Takkolam

Demographics

As of 2001 India census Arakkonam had a population of 78,686. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Arakkonam has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 54% of the males and 46% of females literate. 9% of the population is under 6 years of age. A wing of C.I.S.F.(Central Industrial Security Force) is also present at Arakkonam and also consists of a Disaster management team under the NDRF (National Disaster Management and Rescue Force) along with training centre for the recruitment of the personnel

Culture

Language

Tamil is spoken by majority of the people. Hindi and Telugu is also spoken, due to the presence of Indian Navy establishments.

Politics

Arakkonam (SC) (State Assembly Constituency) is part of the Arakkonam (Lok Sabha constituency).^[2] The ADMK candidate S. Ravi won Arakkonam assembly constituency in the 2011 elections. Recently, in the parliamentary elections held in 2009, the DMK candidate Mr.Jagathratchagan got elected as an MP from this constituency.

Education

Schools

• Railway Mixed High School, EM, Haffields pet (In arakkonam first anglo-Indian school and founded in British India
• Govt. Boys Hr. Secondary School, Krishnampet
• Govt. Girls Hr. Secondary School, Housing Board
• CSI Central Higher Secondary School
  • CSI Central High Secondary School, in the center of the town, is one of the oldest schools in India, having recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. This school is managed by the CSI Madras Diocese. Nearly 4,000 students study at this school. This school has been serving the nation for more than 109 years.
• St Andrews Higher Secondary School
  • St. Andrew's High Secondary School, in the center of the town, is one of the oldest schools in India, having recently celebrated its 150th anniversary. This school is managed by the CSI Madras Diocese. Nearly 5,000 students study at this school. This school has been serving the nation for more than 159 years
• Bharathidasanar Matriculation Higher Secondary School. Arakkonam, Vellore Dist school.
• Rajeswari Primary and Nursery School, Griblespet, Arakkonam (founded on 1981)
• GoodWill Nursery & Primary School
• Valluvar Matric Higher Secondary School
• Marry Vision Matriculation Higher Secondary School (formerly known as Steelplant Matriculation Higher Secondary school name change in 2006 as Marry Vision)
• Selvam Matriculation Higher sec. school
• Sacred Heart School Matriculation Higher Secondary
• SMS Vimal Matriculation Higher Secondary School
• Vivekanada Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School
• Dr. V. G. N Matriculation Higher Secondary School
• Krishna Matriculation school
• St.Andrew's matriculation school

Colleges

• Sri Krishna College of Engineering, Arakkonam
• Sri Krishna Polytechnic College, Arakkonam
• Arakkonam Jaya Arts and science, Arakkonam
• Mercury College of Arts and Science, Arakkonam
• Christian Teacher Training Institute, Arakkonam
• VS Isaac College of Education, Arakkonam
• Premkumar Engineering College, Arakkonam
• Doss Community College, Arakkonam
• Dr. Pradeep Prakash College Of Medicine and Pharamists
• Aruna Institute of Hotel Management, Catering and Tourism School. Arakkonam,

Financial institutions

• Canara Bank
• HDFC Bank
• Indian Bank
• Indian Overseas Bank
• State Bank of India
• Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank
• Union Bank of India
• City Union Bank
• South Indian Bank

Industries

• UltraTech Cement Limited., Chitteri
• MRF Limited., Itchiputhur
• FL SMIDTH, Kavanoor.
• Fenner India Limited, Kavanoor
• Dennis Steel plant
• Genius Glass Company Mulvaai
• Saatva Logistics Melpakkam
• SANDIVS, Arakkonam
• Arokya Agrotech Limited,Arakkonam

Nearby towns/cities

• Chennai - Tamil Nadu
• Kancheepuram - Tamil Nadu
• Ranipet - Tamil Nadu
• Sholingur - Tamil Nadu
• Tiruttani - Tamil Nadu
• Tiruvallur - Tamil Nadu
• Tindivanam - Tamil Nadu
• Vellore - Tamil Nadu
• Walajapet - Tamil Nadu
• Tirupathi - Andhra Pradesh
• Nagari - Tamil Nadu

References

See also

• Arakkonam (Lok Sabha constituency)

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