Tiruvaikuntam is a panchayat town in

Thoothukudi district Thoothukudi District is one of the 38 districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The district was formed by bifurcation of Tirunelveli district on 20 October 1986. Thoothukudi is the district headquarters and largest city of the distric ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n state of

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 ...

. It is located on the banks of the river

Thamirabarani The Thamirabarani or Tamraparni or Porunai is a perennial river that originates from the Agastyarkoodam peak of Pothigai hills of the Western Ghats, above Papanasam in the Ambasamudram taluk. It flows through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi distr ...

. Tiruvaikuntam has a temple dedicated to

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

, known as Tiruvaikuntapathi Swami, with a lofty gopuram. The Thiruvengada Mudaiyar Mandapam is rich with sculptures of Yallis, elephants and warriors. The Ekadasi Mandapam, which is opened on Vaikunta Ekadasi days, contains sculptures. During the period of conflict between the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

forces and Veera Pandiya Kattabomman, the temple served as a fort. The Kailasanathaswamy temple is another important temple and contains six inscriptions of the times of Kattabomman.

Geography

Tiruvaikuntam is located at . It has an average elevation of 17

metre The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...

s (55

feet The foot ( : feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg made ...

). The town is located on the north bank of the

Tamirabarani The Thamirabarani or Tamraparni or Porunai is a perennial river that originates from the Agastyarkoodam peak of Pothigai hills of the Western Ghats, above Papanasam in the Ambasamudram taluk. It flows through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi distr ...

river. It is 30 km east of

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 ...

, 30 km west of Tiruchendur and 39 km from Tuticorin.

Demographics

India

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

, Tiruvaikuntam had a population of 16,214. Males constituted 48% of the population and females 52%. Tiruvaikuntam had an average literacy rate of 77%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy was 81%, and female literacy was 72%. In Tiruvaikuntam, 11% of the population was under 6 years of age. Tiruvaikuntam has a considerable population of Appanad

Maravars The Mukkulathor people, who are also collectively known as Thevar, are a community or group of communities native to the central and southern districts of Tamil Nadu, India. They comprise the Agamudayar, Kallar and Maravar communities that sha ...

and Brahmins in that region

Landmarks

* Tiruvaikuntanathan Perumal Temple * Kailasanathar Temple, Tiruvaikuntam (Sivan temple, one of the Navakailayam temples) SrivaikundamSivanTempleFrontView

Festivals

*Fifth day festival every year April mid (சித்திரை மாதம் Tamil month Sithirai) *Ninth day Car festival every year April mid (சித்திரை மாதம் Tamil month Sithirai) *Vaikunta Ekadashi (Tamil: வைகுண்ட ஏகாதசி) Dec/Jan *Kuruz Kovil (RC Church) Festival from 16 July to 25 July

Transport

Bus services are conducted from

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 ...

, Tiruchendur and Thoothukudi through Tiruvaikuntam. There is a railway station at Tiruvaikuntam. Nearest air services are 24.6 km away at Thoothukudi.

Education

*Arulmighu Kumara Gurupara Swamigal Arts College, Tiruvaikuntam *Arulmighu Kumara Gurupara Swamigal Public Library, Tiruvaikuntam *Sri Kumara Gurupara Swamikal Hr Sec School, Tiruvaikuntam *Arulmigu Kumara Gurupara Swamikal Government Girls Hr. Sec. School, Tiruvaikuntam *TV RamaSubbier Krishnammal Hindu Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Tiruvaikuntam *Hajji Miyan Abdul Cader Middle School, Tiruvaikuntam *SDA Mat Hr Sec School, Tiruvaikuntam *Sri Kumara Gurupara swamigal primary school, Tiruvaikuntam *St James Matriculation School, Tiruvaikuntam *ulagammalanni Niyabahartha Middle School, Tiruvaikuntam

References

{{Reflist Cities and towns in Thoothukudi district