Guindy
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Guindy is one of the most important neighborhoods of
Chennai, Tamil Nadu 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 ...
, and is nicknamed as ''The Gateway to Chennai''. The Kathipara junction where
Anna Salai Anna Salai (), formerly known as St. Thomas Mount Road or simply Mount Road, is an arterial road in Chennai, India. It starts at the Cooum Creek, south of Fort St George, leading in a south-westerly direction towards St. Thomas Mount, and e ...
,
Mount-Poonamallee Road St. Thomas Mount-Poonamallee Road, popularly known as the Mount-Poonamallee Road (SH-55), is an arterial road in the city of Chennai, India. It runs for 11 kilometres from Kathipara Junction to the NH 4 highway connecting St. Thomas Mount wit ...
, Inner Ring Road, 100 Feet Road or Jawaharlal Nehru Road, and
GST Road Grand Southern Trunk Road (or) National Highways 45 is an arterial road in Tamil Nadu. It is also known as Chennai–Trichy Highway. The Road starts from Kathipara Junction in St Thomas Mount, Chennai towards Tiruchirappalli. It branches out from A ...
meet here. It is one of the important nodal points of road traffic in the metropolitan area. It is also a commercial hub. Here is headquarters of Ashok Leyland This junction serves as the entry point to the city limits from the suburbs. It is surrounded by
Saidapet Saidapet, also known as Saidai, is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India, situated in the northern banks of the Adyar River and serves as an entry point to Central Chennai. It is surrounded by West Mambalam in the North, C.I.T Nagar in the North ...
in the North,
Kotturpuram Kotturpuram, also known as Kottur, is a neighbourhood in Chennai (Madras), Tamil Nadu, India and is situated in the Southern banks of the Adyar River. It is surrounded by Nandanam in the North and North-West, Adyar in the South-East, IIT Che ...
and Adyar towards the East, Velachery in the South,
Adambakkam Adambakkam is a neighbourhood of Chennai, India. It is primarily a residential locality situated in South Chennai . Adambakkam area comes under Velachery taluk and Alandur taluk, Chennai District of Chennai Corporation. Adambakkam is surrounded ...
and
Alandur Alandur is a zone of Chennai corporation, and an urban node in Chennai district in Guindy division in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is Surrounded by Guindy in the North and East, Adambakkam in the South, Pazhavanthangal in the South-We ...
in the South-West,
Parangimalai Parangimalai (known in English as St. Thomas Mount) is a small hillock in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, near the neighbourhood of Guindy and very close to Chennai International Airport. The ancient Syrian Christian community of India trace the ...
in the West and Ekkatutthangal in the North-West. Guindy is home to many important landmarks in the city, the most famous amongst them being the
Guindy National Park Guindy National Park is a protected area of Tamil Nadu, located in Chennai, India, is the 8th-smallest National Park of India and one of the very few national parks situated inside a city. The park is an extension of the grounds surrounding R ...
. It also serves as a main hub for several small and medium scale industries (
Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Industrial Estate is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India. This was an active small scale industrial estate in the 1960s and 1970s but is gradually turning to new economy companies. Its central location makes it an attractive pr ...
). Transportation to/from the neighborhood is catered by
Guindy railway station Guindy railway station is one of the railway stations of the Chennai Beach–Chengalpattu section of the Chennai Suburban Railway Network. It serves the neighbourhood of Guindy, a suburb of Chennai. It is located at about 14 km from Chennai ...
and
Guindy metro station Guindy metro station is a Metro railway station on the Blue Line of the Chennai Metro, which opened on 21 September 2016 along with the elevated section on the Blue Line. The station is among the elevated stations coming up along corridor I of ...
.


Etymology

The precise origin of the word is unclear. According to
legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...
s in
Tamil Saivism Shaiva Siddhanta () (Tamil: சைவ சித்தாந்தம் "Caiva cittāntam") is a form of Shaivism that propounds a dualistic philosophy where the ultimate and ideal goal of a being is to become an enlightened soul through Shiv ...
, sage Bringi is said to have performed penance on the
Parangimalai Parangimalai (known in English as St. Thomas Mount) is a small hillock in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, near the neighbourhood of Guindy and very close to Chennai International Airport. The ancient Syrian Christian community of India trace the ...
hill (called ''St.Thomas Mount'' by Britishers), before which he had to circumambulate the regions surrounding the hillock (as hills were considered abode of god Siva). The place where he completed the
circumambulation Circumambulation (from Latin ''circum'' around and ''ambulātus ''to walk) is the act of moving around a sacred object or idol. Circumambulation of temples or deity images is an integral part of Hindu and Buddhist devotional practice (known in S ...
and left his
kindi (vessel) Kindi is a type of a pitcher usually found in old houses in Kerala and other parts of India. Early examples of ''Kindi'' first appears in Chalcolithic period cultures of South Asia, notably in Savalda Culture and two well-preserved examples fro ...
before starting the journey to the hilltop is said to have been named as ''kiṇḍi'', and later the region's name was anglicized as ''Guindy'' during the
British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
.


Transportation

Guindy is well connected by road and train services. Many buses ply through Guindy and connect it to the rest of Chennai. It is also well connected by the trains with Chennai Suburban Railway and
Chennai Metro The Chennai Metro is a rapid transit system serving the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is the 4th longest metro system In india. The system commenced service in 2015 after partially opening the first phase of the project. The network c ...
. Guindy is also located 10 km away from the airport.


Government House and Guindy under the British Raj

The governor lived in Government House, Fort St. George, a palatial residence with numerous servants, and had an official Daimler car at his disposal. There was a head butler called Muniswami, who ruled with a rod of iron. For the governor's ceremonial use, there was a glittering coach with prancing horses, accompanied by a bodyguard of Indian troopers with red uniforms, glittering steel accoutrements and pennoned lances.Southern India painted by Lady Lawley described by F.E.Penny. A & C Black, prem London. 1914 There was also Guindy, a spacious and elegant country home on the outskirts of Madras, surrounded by an extensive park. Nearby were a golf course, hockey pitches, riding stables and the Guindy Horse Racing Track."Sir Arthur Lawley, Eloquent Knight Errant, David J, Hogg". Chapter 5 Ruler of the Raj. Lady Lawley Cottage (Western Australian Red Cross) 2008, iBooks From May to October each year during the hot season, the Madras Government and its officials, the governor and his family went to Government House in the hill station of Ooty or Ootacamund in the Nilgiri Hills.The Times Obituary for Lord Wenlock, 15 June 1932


Location in context


Important landmarks

*
Guindy Race Course The Guindy Race Course is a horse racing course set up in 1777 in Chennai, India. It is the oldest race course in India. It hosts events in the winter season. History In 1777, 81 cawnies (1 cawni = 57,499 sq. ft.) of land were granted by th ...
*
Guindy National Park Guindy National Park is a protected area of Tamil Nadu, located in Chennai, India, is the 8th-smallest National Park of India and one of the very few national parks situated inside a city. The park is an extension of the grounds surrounding R ...
*
Raj Bhavan, Chennai Raj Bhavan (Tamil Nadu), literally the "Governor's Residence," is the official residence of the governor of Tamil Nadu. It is located in Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu. History The earliest official residence of the Governors of Madra ...
*
College of Engineering, Guindy The College of Engineering, Guindy (CEG) is a public engineering college in Chennai, India and is Asia's oldest technical institution, founded in 1794. It is also the oldest technical institution to be established outside Europe. History Due ...
* Anna University Chennai *
Indian Institute of Technology, Madras Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) is a public technical university located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. As one of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), it is recognized as an Institute of National Importance and has be ...
* Snake Park *
Cancer Research Institute The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) is a US non-profit organization funding cancer research and based in New York City. They were founded in 1953 to develop immunologically-based treatments for cancer, and despite their name are a funding body fo ...
*
Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Industrial Estate is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India. This was an active small scale industrial estate in the 1960s and 1970s but is gradually turning to new economy companies. Its central location makes it an attractive pr ...
*
Guindy Links The Guindy Links is one of the three 18-hole golf courses in Chennai, 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 ...


References

{{Chennai Topics Neighbourhoods in Chennai Cities and towns in Chennai district