Salem (), is a major city in Salem district, located on the banks of

Thirumanimutharu river The Thirumanimutharu River originates form Manjavadi village in the Shevaroy Mountain Range and flows through the Salem and Namakkal districts of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It rises in the Yercaud hills. Thirumanimutharu River joins the C ...

in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indepen ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

. Salem is the sixth largest urban agglomeration and metropolitan city in the state by population next to

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...

Tiruchirappalli Tiruchirappalli () ( formerly Trichinopoly in English), also called Tiruchi or Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with bein ...

and Tiruppur and the sixth largest city in Tamil Nadu by area covering .

History

Early period

During the third century BCE, there was period of Bogar – a notable Tamil Siddhar and at that time

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

arrived. Around the beginning of the

common era Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

, the existence of a culturally and economically advanced society in Salem two thousand years ago is evident from the discovery of silver coins of the Roman Emperor Tiberices Claudices Nero (37–68 CE) in Koneripatti of Salem in 1987. Later Pandya dynasty started ruling the region around Salem. Later

Pallava dynasty The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as fe ...

rises in Salem. After that Mahendra Varma Pallava came to Salem and

Saivite Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangin ...

principles rise. After Mahednra Varma Pallava, Narasimha Varma Pallava came. Soon Pandya dynasty came to Salem. The Hoysala rule established in Salem and parts of few Salem remained under Pandya dynasty.

Medieval period

The city has been a part of Chola Dynasty. A mosque in the city is believed to be built by Tipu Sultan the ruler of Mysore Kingdom in the present day of Karnataka. The town and the surrounding hilly regions were part of the

Chola dynasty The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...

and was part of the trade route with the

Roman empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

. It was later governed by

Poligars Palaiyakkarars, or Poligar, (as the British referred to them) in Tamil Nadu refers to the holder of a small kingdom as a feudatory to a greater sovereign. Under this system, ''palayam'' was given for valuable military services rendered by any in ...

, who built temples and forts in and around the city. It was part of the

Vijayanagara empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...

before being captured by

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the att ...

during the early 18th century, after the Mysore-Madurai war. It was ceded to the British in 1768 and the area became part of the struggle between

Kongu Nadu Kongu Nadu, also known by various names as Kongu Mandalam and Kongu belt, is a geographical region comprising present day parts of western Tamil Nadu, southeastern Karnataka and eastern Kerala. In the ancient Tamilakam, it was the seat of th ...

led by Dheeran Chinnamalai and the British.

Modern period

Salem became part of Salem district since independence in 1947. Salem district was the first district to be formed in India on 4 April 1792 that spread over 7,530 sq km comprising the present-day Namakkal,

Dharmapuri Dharmapuri is a special grade town in the north western part of Tamil Nadu, India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Dharmapuri district which is the first district created in Tamil Nadu after the independence of India by splitti ...

Krishnagiri Krishnagiri () is a city in the state of Tamil Nadu, India, and it serves as the administrative headquarters of Krishnagiri District formed in 2004. It is located at the bottom of Krishnadevaraya Hills, and the town is fully surrounded by hill ...

. Alexander Reed was the collector of the Salem district from 1792 to 1799. Until 2008, the city was part of the Salem I and Salem II assembly constituencies.

Geography and climate

Salem is located at , at an average elevation of 278 m (912 ft.). The city is surrounded by hills: Nagaramalai on the north, Jarugumalai on the south, Kanjamalai on the west,

Godumalai Godumalai is a reserve forest and is located on the east side of Salem District of Tamil Nadu, India. The estimated terrain elevation is 553 meters above sea level. It located 20 km away from Salem town. Godumalai is also known as Godham ...

on the east and the Shevaroy Hills on the northeast. Kariyaperumal Hill is in southwestern Salem. The

Thirumanimutharu River The Thirumanimutharu River originates form Manjavadi village in the Shevaroy Mountain Range and flows through the Salem and Namakkal districts of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It rises in the Yercaud hills. Thirumanimutharu River joins the C ...

flows through the city, dividing it in two. The fort area is the oldest part of Salem.

Location

Salem lies in the foothills of Shevaroy hills which houses the famous hill Station ' Yercaud'. It is located about northwest of

, northeast of

, southeast of

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

and about southwest of the state capital,

Water bodies

Mettur Dam is the main water resource for Salem District.

Climate

Salem has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry winter) and ''As'' (for a dry summer). The driest month has less than of p ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Aw''). January and February are generally pleasant; the hot summer begins in March, with the year's highest temperatures during April. Pre-monsoon thunderstorms occur during April and May. The Southwest monsoon season lasts from June to September. The northeast monsoon occurs from October to December.

Administration and politics

Municipal corporation

Salem is the headquarters of Salem district. The town was constituted as a municipality in 1867, and was upgraded to a special-grade municipality in 1979 and to a municipal corporation on 1 April 1994. The Salem municipal corporation has 72 wards, each with an elected councillor. The functions of the municipal corporation are divided into six departments: general administration and personnel, engineering, revenue, public health, city planning and information technology (IT). All six departments are governed by a municipal commissioner. Legislative power is vested in the 60-member council, headed by an elected chairperson and assisted by a deputy chairperson.

State Assembly

In 2008, the constituencies of Salem were redrawn as

Salem North Salem North or 'Salem (North)' is one of the 234 assembly constituencies in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India. Its State Assembly Constituency number is 89. It was created in 2008 when the previous constituencies Salem I and Salem II ...

, Salem South and

Salem West Salem West or 'Salem (West)' is a state assembly constituency in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu that was formed after the constituency delimitations of 2007. Its State Assembly Constituency number is 88. The previous constituencies— Salem I ...

. The city elects the three members to the

Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members of whom are democratically elected using the First-past-the-post voting, First-past-the-post system. The pres ...

once every five years. Present MLAs are

R. Rajendhran R. or r. may refer to: * ''Reign'', the period of time during which an Emperor, king, queen, etc., is ruler. * '' Rex'', abbreviated as R., the Latin word meaning King * ''Regina'', abbreviated as R., the Latin word meaning Queen * or , abbreviat ...

(Salem North) from Desiya Murpokku Dravidar Kazhagam,

Arul Ramadoss Arul Ramadas is a politician from Salem, Tamil Nadu. He started his political career as a cadre and held various offices in Pattali Makkal Katchi. He is currently serving as Salem district secretary of PMK. He was elected as a Member of the S ...

(Salem West) from Paattali Makkal Katchi and Balasubramanian (Salem South) from All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

Parliament

The city is part of the

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

constituency. The current Member of Parliament from the constituency is S. R. Parthiban from the DMK.

Law enforcement

Law and order is maintained by the Salem city subdivision of the

Tamil Nadu Police Tamil Nadu Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is over 150 years old and is the fifth largest state police force in India.

, headed by a Police commissioner. Special units include prohibition enforcement, district crime, social justice and human rights, district crime records and a district-level special branch headed by a superintendent of police. Salem district have

central prison Central Prison is a prison operated by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety in Raleigh, North Carolina. The prison, west of Downtown Raleigh, is on of land and is bounded by a double wire fence with a razor ribbon on top. The Departm ...

Hastampatti Hasthampatti is a locality in Salem, Tamil Nadu, Salem city in Tamil Nadu state, India. Hastampatti is one of the zones in Salem City Municipal Corporation, And part of Salem metropolitan area (India), Salem Metropolitan Area . Hasthampatti Pi ...

. It's one of the oldest jail and can able to host 1431 in house prisoners.

Economy

Salem is a major textile centre in Tamil Nadu, with more than 125 spinning mills, weaving units and garment units. Until the 1960s, it had fewer spinning mills. Private handloom weaving began to increase in the region after the 1960s and during the 1980s, the textile industry expanded with major spinning mills and dyeing units established supporting the industry. The area also houses a number of sago factories for the production starch. In Salem district, of land are devoted to

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively ...

and 650 industrial units are engaged in tapioca processing. In 1981, the Salem Starch and Sago Manufacturers Service Industrial Co-operative Society (SAGOSERVE) was established to promote the sago industry and nearly 80 percent of the national demand for sago and starch is met by SAGOSERVE. In and around Salem cassava yields are 25–30 tons per hectare, one of the highest in the world; the national average is 19 tons per hectare, and the world average is 10 tons. The Salem Steel Plant, a unit of the

Steel Authority of India Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) is a central public sector undertaking based in New Delhi, India. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Steel, Government of India with an annual turnover of INR 1,03,480 Crore (US$13 billion) for fisc ...

, produces cold-rolled

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

and a hot-rolled stainless-carbon steel alloy. The plant is being expanded and modernized, with plans for steel-melting and continuous-casting facilities. The Southern Iron and Steel Company (part of

JSW Steel JSW Steel Limited is an Indian multinational steel producer based in Mumbai and is a flagship company of the JSW Group. After the merger of ISPAT Steel and Jindal Vijayanagar Steel Limited, JSW Steel became India's second largest private secto ...

) have their first integrated steel plant in Salem for the production of TMT corrosion-resistant bars and alloy steels. The Salem region is rich in mineral ores, with some of the largest

magnesite Magnesite is a mineral with the chemical formula (magnesium carbonate). Iron, manganese, cobalt, and nickel may occur as admixtures, but only in small amounts. Occurrence Magnesite occurs as veins in and an alteration product of ultramafic ro ...

and

bauxite Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO(O ...

deposits in India. Public and private magnesite factories include Burn Standard and Company, Dalmia Magnesites and Tata Refractories. Salem Mango belt contributes the economy in large scale by exporting mangoes to foreign countries and supplying mangoes all over India. The Leigh Bazaar is the region's largest market for agricultural products. The Tamil Nadu government and the Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu are planning a IT park in the city. The Steel Authority of India is planning a steel special economic zone in its Salem plant, and an electrical and electronics industrial estate is in the Suramangalam area of the city. Salem is also famous for its silver jewelry. Shevapet, Sivathapuram and Panangadu are the areas where the Silver Products are made in cottage industries. Salem produces World Class Artistic Silver Anklets, Toe Rings, Neck Chains, Pendents and Silverware. Salem has the presence of Multi-National Corporations, including Capgemini, First American (India) Financial Corporation (FAI), Whirlpool Warehouse, Vee Technologies, and SourceHOV LLC. The Tamil Nadu government is trying to get Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on board to set up a manufacturing unit at Salem as the state has been chosen for establishing the center's ambitious defense corridor project with Salem being one of the nodes.

Demographics

Salem had a population of 826,267 in the 2011 census. There were 987 females for every 1,000 males, significantly higher than the national average of 929. The main language spoken is Tamil. Kannada is spoken among Devayanga community. A total of 79,067 were under age six: 40,570 males and 38,497 females. The city's literacy rate was 76.37 percent, higher than the national average of 72.99 percent. Salem had 215,747 households and a total of 332,147 workers: 1,599 farmers, 3,040 agricultural laborers, 32,597 in household industries, 278,892 other workers, 16,019 part-time workers, 165 part-time farmers, 544 part-time agricultural workers, 1,937 part-time workers in household industries and 13,373 other part-time workers. As per the religious census of 2011, Salem had 89.79%

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

, 7.48%

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

, 2.36%

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, 0.11%

Jains Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

, 0.02%

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

, 0.01%

Buddhists Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, 0.2% following other religions and 0.02% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.

Religious landmarks

Salem has several

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

temples. The Kottai Mariamman Temple, dedicated to the goddess

Mariamman Mariamman, often abbreviated to Amman, is a Hindu goddess of rain, predominantly venerated in the rural areas of South India. Her festivals are held during the late summer/early autumn season of Ādi throughout Tamil Nadu and the Deccan region, ...

, has an annual five-day festival during the Tamizh month of Aadi (mid-July to mid-August). The temple's

gopuram A ''gopuram'' or ''gopura'' ( Tamil: கோபுரம், Malayalam: ഗോപുരം, Kannada: ಗೋಪುರ, Telugu: గోపురం) is a monumental entrance tower, usually ornate, at the entrance of a Hindu temple, in the South I ...

is made up of seven tiers. Sugavaneshwarar Temple is dedicated to

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

, and according to mythology the sage Sugha Brahmarishi is worshiped there. Arunagirinadhar sang a song about

Muruga Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...

in the temple, which was built during the 13th century by Mamannan Sundara Pandiyan. Kottai Perumal Temple, Skandhashram, Jamia Masjid is Salem's oldest

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

and lies on the southern bank of the Thirumanimutharu River in the heart of the city. It was reportedly built by the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

ruler

Tipu Sultan Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...

, who is said to have prayed here. The ''Masjid Inam'' granted to the mosque in 1862 was confirmed by the British with a special resolution in 1880. Christ Church is located on Fort Road and the church was consecrated in 1875. The other popular churches in and around the city include the Lechler Memorial Church, which is the oldest church in Salem, was built in 1856 by a German missionary in Fort Salem.

Shopping and recreation

Salem's traditional shopping areas are in the Town area, with major retailers in Bazaar Street, Car Street, First Agraharam and Chinna Kadai Street. Shevapet and the Fort area are noted for hardware and furniture, and Leigh Bazaar in Shevapet is the main wholesale market. Reliance Shopping Mall, the city's largest shopping complex is situated near Five Roads. Other malls in the city are Nirmal Skywin mall and Kandaswarna Mega mall.

Kurumbapatti Zoological Park The Kurumbapatti Zoological Park is a mini zoo, situated in the foothills of the Shervaroyan Hills, 10 km from Salem, Tamil Nadu, India. It was set up in 1981 as a small museum and was later extended to 31.73 Ha. The zoo houses many species ...

and Anna Park are government-run parks. Paravasa Ulagam and Dream Land are amusement parks in the city. Mookaneri (Kannankurichi) within the city limits is a popular tourist place and bird watching destination. Yercaud, a major hill station in Tamil Nadu is about from Salem City. The ghat road starts at the end of the Salem City limits. The ghat road is a picturesque spot and attracts a lot of early morning walkers and joggers. Yercaud is also a famous weekend getaway for the people of Salem and nearby districts and states.

Cuisine

Thattu vadai Set (or simply called as settu) is a savory snack and popular street food, which originated in Salem and is now available in other cities in Tamil Nadu like Chennai. It is a very famous street snack available at almost every small stall set up on the streets of Salem. The sandwich consists of two crunchy thattai discs with fillings such as crispy beetroot, carrot and other vegetables smeared with green and red chutneys. Norukkal Mix, another popular snack is smashed murukku mixed with chutney, groundnut, coconut, sliced tomatoes and Chillipowder (Molagapodi). Egg Settu, Murukku Settu and Maanga Settu are the different varieties of Thattu vadai Set .

Transport

Road

Salem has six arterial roads: Omalur Road, Cherry Road, Saradha College Road, Junction Main Road, Trichy Road and Attur Road. Three National Highways originate from or pass through Salem: NH 44 (

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

via

and

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...

Kanyakumari),

NH 544 National Highway 544, commonly referred to as NH 544, (''old number'' NH 47) is a National Highway in South India connecting Salem city in Tamil Nadu to the city of Kochi in Kerala. It is also called the Salem-Kochi Highway. The highway runs ...

(Salem –

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

via Erode and

and Tiruppur )and

NH 79 National Highway 8 (NH 8) is a 4-lane (6-lane in most parts) National Highway in India. According to estimates, it is the busiest highway in the subcontinent, as it connects the national capital Delhi to the financial capital Mumbai, as well ...

(Salem –

Ulundurpet Ulundurpettai or Ulundurpet (உளுந்தூர்பேட் / உளுந்தூர்பேட்டை) is a Municipality in Ulundurpet taluk of kallakurichi district of Tamil Nadu, India. It is at the intersection of NH 68 an ...

). Salem is the headquarters of the Salem division of TNSTC. The city has two major bus stations: the MGR Integrated Bus Terminus in Meyyanoor and the Town Bus Station (Old Bus Stand) in the town area. Intercity and interstate routes and private buses originate at the Central Bus Stand (New Bus Stand), and local buses originate at the Old Bus Stand. The Anna Flyover is the oldest in the city, and the Trumpet Interchange was built in the realignment of NH 544 to ease traffic towards

. A new double-decker flyover runs within main city centres like New bus stand, 5 roads, saratha college road, 4 roads to ease congestion on these roads. It is the longest double-decker flyover in Tamil Nadu covering a length of 7.87 km. The Town Bus terminus is being upgraded into a double decker bus terminus, the first of this kind in the state under the smart City scheme . The terminal building of the New Bus terminus is also reconstructed under the smart City scheme. A new bus port has also been proposed for the city at Jagirammapalayam near IT park with an area of about 61 acres. This includes a bypass road to connect the

Ayothiapattinam Ayothiapattinam is a panchayat town located in Vazhapadi taluk of Salem district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. This village is called Ayothyapatinam because of famous Kodandaramaswamy Temple, and is called as the (Ayodhya of South India). ...

area of the city with the bus port. Other bus stands include the

Omalur Omalur is a panchayat town and headquarters of Omalur taluk in the Salem District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is situated on the National Highway 7 between 11° 73333" latitude and 78° 06667" longitude. It has a population of about 13, ...

bus station and

Attayampatti Attayampatti is a panchayat town located southwest to the Salem City in Salem district, Tamil Nadu, India. Demographics Population India census, Attayampatti had a population of 12,867. Males constitute 52% of the population and females ...

bus station in the outskirts of the city.

Rail

Salem Junction Salem Junction railway station (station code: SA) is an A1 category ISO 14001 certified junction railway station situated in the city of Salem in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Salem Railway Junction has been rated as the cleanest station am ...

is an A-1 category ISO-14001 certified railway junction located in Suramangalam area, west of the city. In 2005, the

Railway Board The Ministry of Railways is a ministry in the Government of India, responsible for the country's rail transport. The ministry operates the statutory body Indian Railways, an organisation that operates as a monopoly in rail transport and is h ...

approved the creation of a

Salem railway division Salem division is one of the six divisions of Southern Railway zone. Its headquarters is at Salem, Tamil Nadu. History Salem Railway Division is the newest division of the Southern Railway Zone of Indian Railways. It was carved out of the ...

from

Palakkad Palakkad (), formerly known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of the Palakkad District. Palakkad is most densely populated municipal ...

and Tiruchirapalli divisions. It is the fourth-largest of the six Southern Railway zone divisions. Salem Railway Junction has been rated as the cleanest station among the divisional headquarters railway stations and also the ninth cleanest railway station in the entire country, according to a survey report published in June 2017. Other major railway stations catering to the city include

Salem Town Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, Salem Market, Omalur Junction, Karuppur railway station and

railway station.

Air

Salem Airport (

IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is a trade association of the world's airlines founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff ...

''SXV'',

ICAO The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international a ...

''VOSM'') is located on the Salem-Bengaluru Highway (NH44) in Kaamalapuram about from the city.

Airports Authority of India The Airports Authority of India, or AAI, is a public sector enterprise under the ownership of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It is responsible for creating, upgrading, maintaining, and managing civil aviation infrastruct ...

(AAI) opened the airport in 1993 for commercial operations.

Kingfisher Airlines Kingfisher Airlines Limited was an airline group based in India. It was established in 2003 and started its commercial operations in 2005. Through its parent company United Breweries Group, it had a 50% stake in low-cost carrier Kingfisher Red. ...

flew from

but ended its service in October 2011 due to low occupancy. Trujet started services to Chennai in March 2018 as a part of the Udaan scheme by

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

as well as

Air Odisha Air Odisha wasch-aviation.com – Air Odisha
retrieved 14 April 2019 ...

gives connectivity to

Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

and Pondicherry from June 2018. The nearest major airports are

(152 km) and

(148 km).

Sports

Gandhi Stadium Gandhi Stadium or Burlton Park or BS Bedi Stadium is located in the city of Jalandhar, Punjab and is used for cricket matches. As of 19 August 2017 it has hosted 1 Test and 3 ODIs. The stadium should not be confused with the 10,000-capacity Gand ...

, built originally for cricket, also hosts athletic meets, football, Volleyball and basketball. Salem District Cricket Association (SDCA) has 47 teams in league cricket. The city has 2 international standard turf grounds. The Green Valley Sports club Cricket ground is on the outskirts of Salem city. The state

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

Edappadi K. Palaniswami Edappadi K. Palaniswami (born 12 May 1954), also known as E.P.S., is an Indian politician and the leader of opposition in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. He served as the 7th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, from 2017 to 2021. He has been th ...

inaugurated the

Salem Cricket Foundation Stadium Salem Cricket Foundation Stadium is a cricket stadium located in Salem district of Tamil Nadu, India. It was established in 2020 by Salem Cricket Foundation with assistance from Salem District Cricket Association and Tamil Nadu Cricket Associati ...

with international standards on 10 February 2020 in the presence of former cricketer

Rahul Dravid Rahul Sharad Dravid (; born 11 January 1973) is an Indian cricket coach and former captain of the Indian national team, currently serving as its head coach. Prior to his appointment to the senior men's national team, Dravid was the Head of ...

and former ICC and

BCCI The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body for cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at Cricket centre, Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The BCCI is the richest governing body of cricket in the worl ...

president

N. Srinivasan Narayanaswami Srinivasan (born 3 January 1945) is an Indian industrialist. He is a former Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and former President of the BCCI, the governing body for cricket in India. He is also the managing ...

built at a cost of in Karivepilapatti near

Vazhapadi Vazhapadi (Valapady, or Valappadi) is a town panchayat in Salem district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of Vazhapadi taluk, one of the 13 taluks of Salem district. Geography Vazhapadi is within Vazhapadi taluk, which i ...

. This newly inaugurated ground is the home ground for

Salem Spartans The Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) is a professional Twenty20 cricket league contested in the state of Tamil Nadu in India and was formed in 2016 by the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA). It is played during July and August of every year ...

, a TNPL team and also the second home ground for the Indian Premier League team of

Chennai Super Kings Chennai Super Kings (CSK) is an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Founded in 2008, the team plays its home matches at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The team is owned by India ...

T. Natarajan Thangarasu Natarajan (born 4 April 1991) is an Indian international cricketer. He made his debut for the India cricket team in December 2020. Currently he plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and for Tamil Nadu in ...

, who hails from Salem, made his international debut for the India cricket team in December 2020 He plays in the Indian Premier League for Sunrisers Hyderabad and is nicknamed as "Yorker King" for his accurate Yorkers at death overs in T20 games. In the 2020 IPL season, delivered a whopping 96 yorkers in 16 IPL matches this year. He played a major role for India to win the Dettol T20 Series 2020 in Australia.

Mariyappan Thangavelu Mariyappan Thangavelu (born 28 June 1995) is an Indian Paralympic high jumper. He represented India in the 2016 Summer Paralympics games held in Rio de Janeiro in the men's high jump T-42 category and the 2020 Summer Paralympic games held ...

from Salem is an Indian Paralympic high jumper. He represented India in the 2016 Summer Paralympic games held in Rio de Janeiro in the men's high jump T-42 category, winning the gold medal in the finals.

City-based teams

Education

Salem has several educational institutions with Arts and Science colleges affiliated to

Periyar University Periyar University is a university in Salem, Tamil Nadu, India. It was established by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1997. It is named after social reformer Thanthai Periyar E. V. Ramasamy. The University Grants Commissions, New Delhi bestow ...

founded in 1997. *The Government College of Engineering was founded in 1966. *The Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College was established in 1986. *The Institute of Handloom Technology (IIHT), Salem was established in 1960 by

Ministry of Textiles The Ministry of Textiles is an Indian government national agency responsible for the formulation of policy, planning, development, export promotion and regulation of the textile industry in India. This includes all natural, artificial, and ce ...

. *The Government Law College was opened in August 2019. *

Sona College of Technology Sona College of Technology (Autonomous) is a private college in India located in Salem, Tamilnadu, India. It was established in 1997 by Thiru. M.S. Chockalingam (Founder Chairman) and gained autonomous status in 2012. It is National Board of ...

founded 1997 *Vinayaka Mission's Kirupananda Variyar Engineering College founded 1987 *Thiagarajar Polytechnic College founded 1958

Sister cities

Salem has one

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

: *

Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County, Oregon, Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river ...

, USA As of 2014, there was talk of reviving the now-stagnant Sister City project launched in 1964 with Salem in Oregon, USA.

Notable people

Politics

, Former

Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu The chief minister of Tamil Nadu is the chief executive of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with th ...

(Feb 2017 to May 2021). * Veerapandy S. Arumugam, served as the Minister for Rural Development and Local Administration and the Minister for

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

. *

P. Dhanapal P. Dhanapal (born 16 May 1951) is an Indian politician and incumbent Member of the Legislative Assembly (India), Member of the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu. He is a former Speaker (politics), Speaker of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. P. ...

, Ex-

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

for the

. *

Rangarajan Kumaramangalam Phanindranath Rangarajan Kumaramangalam (12 May 1952 – 23 August 2000) was a prominent politician of the Indian National Congress and later the Bharatiya Janata Party and a Member of parliament, Lok Sabha from the Salem constituency from 1 ...

, served as the Minister of State for Law, Justice and Company Affairs in the

P. V. Narasimha Rao Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao (28 June 1921 – 23 December 2004) was an Indian lawyer, statesman and politician who served as the 9th prime minister of India from 1991 to 1996. He is known for introducing various liberal reforms to Indi ...

government from July 1991 to December 1993 and as the Union Minister for Power in the Vajpayee Government from 1998 to 2000. *

K. Rajaram K. Rajaram (26 August 1926 – 8 February 2008) was an Indian politician of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and later, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu. He served as the ...

, served as the

of the

from 1980 to 1985. *

T. V. Rajeswar T. V. Rajeswar (28 August 1926 in Salem, Tamil Nadu – 14 January 2018 in New Delhi) was an Indian Police Service officer, an Intelligence Bureau chief and a Governor of Sikkim, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. He was awarded the Padma Vibhusha ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

(1983-1985),

Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...

(1985-1989),

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

(1989-1990),

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

(2004-2009). * Vazhappady K. Ramamurthy, served as minister of state for Labour with independent charge in the Congress government led by

for a brief period in 1991. *

T. M. Selvaganapathy T. M. Selvaganapathy is an Indian politician. He was a member of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, elected from Tiruchengode constituency in 1991. He was also minister of Local Administration in Jayalalitha Government between 1991 and 1996. In 1 ...

, Minister of Local Administration in J.Jayalalitha Government between 1991 and 1996. *

P. Subbarayan Paramasiva Subbarayan (11 September 1889 – 6 October 1962) was an Indian politician, freedom fighter and diplomat and was the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency, India's ambassador to Indonesia and Union Minister of Transport and Communic ...

, was the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency, India's ambassador to Indonesia and Union Minister of Transport and Communications in

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

's government.

Media

P. Varadarajulu Naidu Perumal Varadarajulu Naidu (4 June 1887 – 23 July 1957) was an Indian physician, politician, journalist and Indian independence activist. He was also the founder of The Indian Express, a major English-language daily, in 1932 in Madras. He was ...

, the founder of

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...

Sports

* Thangarasu Natarajan, an Indian

cricketer Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

. * M. R. Srinivasaprasad,

, represented Young India in Zimbabwe (1983/84). *

, an Indian Paralympic high jumper, India's first Paralympian gold medalist since 2004. * P. V. Nandhidhaa, Indian Chess player, India's 17th Woman Grandmaster. Refer List of Indian chess players.

Arts, entertainment and television

* Sasi (director), Sasi, film director * S. D. Sundharam, Indian Tamils, Tamil playwright, dialogue writer and lyricist. * Arivazhagan Venkatachalam, Tamils, Tamil film director * Arthur A. Wilson, cinematographer * Taj Noor, music director * Satish, actor

Mathematics, science and technology

* A. R. Rao, Indian mathematician. * Tiruvadi Sambasiva Venkataraman, an Indian people, Indian botanist, agronomist and plant geneticist.

Salem Day

The Salem city was formed on 1 November 1866. Salem City Municipal Council celebrated its Centenary in 1966. Fittingly the Municipality was upgraded into a special grade Municipality on 1 April 1979. The Centurion Municipality was declared as the Salem City Municipal Corporation The date of formation of Salem city is recognised as Salem day and it is celebrated by the people all over the city. Salem city celebrates its birthday every year on the first of November.

References

External links

*
NIC website for Salem, Tamil Nadu

* {{Authority control Salem, Tamil Nadu, Cities and towns in Salem district Smart cities in India

History

Early period

Medieval period

Modern period

Geography and climate

Location

Water bodies

Climate

Administration and politics

Municipal corporation

State Assembly

Parliament

Law enforcement

Economy

Demographics

Religious landmarks

Shopping and recreation

Cuisine

Transport

Road

Rail

Air

Sports

City-based teams

Education

Sister cities

Notable people

Politics

Media

Sports

Arts, entertainment and television

Mathematics, science and technology

Salem Day

See also

References

External links