Situated on the banks of River Palar, Vellore is a historical city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Once, the capital of the mighty Vijayanagar Empire, Vellore is situated about around 145 km from Chennai. The city has a stirring heritage reflecting the early Dravidian culture and has been ruled by several rulers, namely Pallavas, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Vijayanagar Empire, Rashtrakutas, Carnatic kingdom, and the British at different times.Pulsating with more activities as a commercial, administrative and medical centre, Vellore was once a battleground. Vellore has developed into one of the top educational hub owin to the presence of India's top medical institute Christian Medical College & Hospital and the best private technological institute VIT University. Geography and Climate Vellore lies at 12.92°N 79.13°E and 220m above the mean sea level on the Eastern Ghats region and Palar river basin. The topography is almost plain with slopes from west to east and there are no important mineral resources found. Black loam soil is found in parts of Vellore Taluk and the other type of soil in the city is chiefly gravelly, stony and sandy of the red variety. Featuring a semi-arid climate with high temperatures throughout the year and relatively low rainfall, Vellore experiences hot and dry weather throughout the year. The temperature ranges from a maximum of 40.5 °C (104.9 °F) to a minimum of 18.4 °C (65.1 °F). Like the rest of the state, April to June are the hottest months and December to January are the coldest. Vellore receives 996.7 mm (39.24 in) of rainfall every year. The southwest monsoon, with an onset in June and lasting up to August, brings scanty rainfall. The bulk of the rainfall is received during the northeast monsoon in October, November and December. The humidity ranges from 40%–63% during summer and 67%–86% during winter. Demographics As per provisional reports of Census India, population of Vellore in 2011 is 185,895; of which male and female are 91,464 and 94,431, respectively. The sex ratio is 1032 females per 1,000 males. The city has 145,192 literates of which 75,321 are males while 69,871 are females with an average literacy rate of 86.67% with a male literacy of 91.68% and a female literacy of 81.84%. A total of 18,363 of the population of the town are under 6 years of age. History of Vellore Known as the City of Spears, Vellore has a long and illustrious history. In Tamil, the word ‘vel’ means spear that is seen as the weapon of Hindu god Murugan and ‘oor’ means place. As per Hindu legend, Murugan is seen as a tribal hunter who appeared in a lotus pond with his weapon to attack the enemies. Thus "Vellore" is seen as the place where Murugan appeared. As per another prodigy, the region was surrounded by Velan trees (Babul trees), resulting in the place to be called Vellore. However, Vellore also means “city of spears” by which it is popularly known suggests that the city was a battle field and has witnessed many wars. It was under the influence of various dynasties and rulers, the prominent among them being the Pallavas , Cholas of Uraiyur, the Rashtrakutaa dynasty of Malkhed, Sambuvarayar, the rulers of Vijayanagarm, Mamathas, the Nawabs of the Carnatic and the British. The Monuments found in the district give a vivid picture of the town through the ages. The recorded history of Vellore dates back to the ninth century, as seen from a Chola inscriptions in the Annamalaiyar Temple in Tiruvannamalai and inscriptions made before ninth century signify the rule of Pallava kings, whose capital was Kanchipuram. The city was under the rule Chola Kings from 850 to 1280 and after the decline of Chola Kingdom, it came under the rule of Rashtrakutaa dynasty and later under the rule of Vijaynagar Kingdom, when it severed as the capital of the kingdom. The Vellore Fort was built during the time of Chinna Bomma Nayak, a subordinate of Vijayanagar kings Sadasivaraja and Srirangaraja during the third quarter of the 16th century. During the 17th century, Vellore came under the dominion of the Nawab of the Carnatic abut as the Mughal Empire came to an end, the Nawab lost their control over the city, with confusion and chaos that resulted afte the year 1753. Subsequently, there were periods of Hindu and Muslim stewardship of the region. The poligars were opposing British rule but were restrained; however, during the first half of the 19th century, the town came under British rule. Culture of Vellore The city of Vellore displays a rich Dravidian culture and the people and festivals in Vellore still represent the deep ethos of Dravidian culture. However, popularity some traditional art and dance forms like Therukoothu Kokkalikottai is slowing diminishing. Pongal is the harvest festival here in which prayers are offered to Mother Nature, the Sun and cattle. Kanthuri festival held at the shrine of Saint Quadirwali, is celebrated with equal flamboyance by people belonging to different communities and faiths of Hindus, Muslims etc. Kavadi festival marks offering of prayers to Lord Murugan. A 'kavadi' is a wooden stick with two baskets hanging to it laden with rice, milk, peacock feathers etc. to be offered to Lord Murugan. Some devotees even walk over burning red hot coal while carrying the 'kavadi'. Tourist Attractions in Vellore Situated 145 km from Chennai, Vellore is a semi-rural bazaar town and the famous Christian Medical College and Hospital which attract patients and research scholars from all corners. The Vijayanagar fort and its temple which are in an excellent state of preservation are major tourist attraction of the city. Being a historic city, it attracts a horde of tourists from different parts of the globe. Some of the famous travel destinations in Vellore city are: Clock Tower Church of South India State Government Museum Vellore Fort Sripuram Golden Temple Amirthi Zoological Park Jalakandeswarar Temple Ratnagiri Murugan Temple Cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese Kavalur Observatory Transportation Air Vellore does not house an airport and the nearest one is the Chennai Airport, which is about 140 km from the city. Railways The main railway station of Vellore is 5 km north at Karpadi and this is the junction of the broad-gauge line from Bangalore to Chennai and the metre-gauge Tirupathi to Madurai line which runs via Tiruvannamalai, Villupuram, Chidambaram, Thanjavur and Tiruchirappalli. Roadways Vellore is well connected with Chennai, Tiruchirappalli and Madurai. The National Highways passing through Vellore are NH 46, NH 23 and NH 4, which connects the city to all major cities of southern India. Vellore is served by a city bus service, which connects the city, suburbs and other places of interest. The bus service extends about 30 km from the city center. There are two bus terminals, namely the Town Bus Terminus and the Central Bus Terminus. Other bus terminals are located at Chittor Bus Stand (near VIT Road), Bagayam and Katpadi Junction bus stop. The bus stands are maintained by the Vellore Municipal Corporation.
