Madurantakam () is the southernmost suburb of Chennai city and a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

Chengalpattu district Chengalpattu District is one of the 38 List of districts of Tamil Nadu, districts of Tamil Nadu, in India. The district headquarters is located at Chengalpattu. Chengalpattu district came into existence on 29 November 2019 when it was carved o ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

. The town is known for the artificial and second largest lake in Tamil Nadu, the Maduranthakam lake. It is said to have been built by the

Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic 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 to the 3rd century BCE d ...

King Uttama Chola, also called as Maduranthaka, during his reign. It is also home to the

Eri-Katha Ramar Temple Eri-Katha Raamar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Rama located in the town of Maduranthakam, Tamil Nadu, India.Dubey 1992, p. 52 This is the ''sthalam'' (place) where Udayavar (the presiding deity) was named Ramanuja. The temple is ...

. As of 2011, the town had a population of 30,796.

History

Madurantakam was ruled by Uttama chola Madurantaka (Chola King) 971–985 CE so, it is named as Madurantakam by the memory of the king .202.21.43.112 (talk) 17:27, 24 September 2022 (UTC) Madurantakam is one of the holy places visited by

Ramanuja Ramanuja (Middle Tamil: Rāmāṉujam; Classical Sanskrit: Rāmanuja; 1017 CE – 1137 CE; ; ), also known as Ramanujacharya, was an Indian Hindu philosopher, guru and a social reformer. He is noted to be one of the most important exponents ...

though it has not been sung by the

Alvars The Alvars ( ta, ஆழ்வார், Āḻvār, translit-std=ISO, lit=The Immersed) were the Tamil poet-saints of South India who espoused '' bhakti'' (devotion) to the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, in their songs of longing, ecstasy, an ...

. The place is also unique in that Ramanuja's statue is found dressed in white on all days while in almost all temples the saint is dressed in ochre. In two of his poems, Manavala Mamunigal asks everyone who wants to cast away his past sins to worship the Lord at this place. There are separate shrines for Lakshmi Narasimhar, Periya Nambi and

Andal Andal ( ta, ஆண்டாள்), also known as Kothai, Nachiyar, and Godadevi, was the only female Alvar among the twelve Hindu poet-saints of South India. She was posthumously considered an avatar of the goddess Bhudevi. As with the A ...

, Sudarsana and

Vedanta Desika Vedanta Desikan (1268–1369), also rendered Vedanta Desikar, Swami Vedanta Desikan, and Thoopul Nigamaantha Desikan, was an Indian polymath who wrote philosophical as well as religious and poetical works in several languages, including Sa ...

. The holy tank is opposite the temple with a separate shrine for

Anjaneya Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine ''vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and one ...

on its banks.

Geography

The main town of Madurantakam is situated from its district headquarters Chengalpattu about 25 kilometres and state capital Chennai about 82 kilometres. It serves as the headquarters for Madurantakam taluk. The reservoir near Madurantakam irrigates more than 1000 small villages in and around the town. Kiliyar is a small river that originates from the Madurantakam reservoir which will be flooded when the reservoir is full. The Kiliyar river joins Palar before entering the Bay of Bengal. Madurantakam almost lies in

Coromandel coast The Coromandel Coast is the southeastern coastal region of the Indian subcontinent, bounded by the Utkal Plains to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the Kaveri delta to the south, and the Eastern Ghats to the west, extending over an ...

and gets rains in north-east monsoon season. In the south-west monsoon season, little showers may occur during evenings. Small hills found in Madurantakam taluk such as Vaiyavoor hill, Malaipalayam hill, Chitravadi hill, Perumberkandigai hill etc. The soil is black in nature. Also, red soil is found near coastal areas.

Transportation

Madurantakam is served by town bus service, which provides connectivity within the town and the nearby villages. All buses are operating from the Bus stand which is located in the heart of the town. The State Express Transport Corporation operates buses connecting the town to other places like Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram, Uthiramerur, Thirukazhukundram and the places like Cuddalore, Cheyyur, Chithamur, Chunampet on the ECR routes.

Madurantakam railway station Madurantakam railway station is a railway station in Maduranthakam, a municipal town and a taluk headquarters in the Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu, India. It belongs to the Chennai railway division and is officially coded as MMK. T ...

belongs to the

Chennai railway division Chennai railway division is a railway division of the Southern Railway (SR), India covering the districts of Northern Tamil Nadu and southern Andhra Pradesh. Currently it has a route length of over 697.42 km. Its administrative headquart ...

and is officially coded as MMK. All passenger and local trains in Chennai–Villupuram route have a halt here and only a few express trains halt. MEMU services proceed in the southern direction from Chengalpet on the line towards Villupuram. The Chennai Beach to Melmaruvahtur MEMU halts at Maduranthakam. The Comprehensive Transportation Study proposed to extend some Chengalpattu bound EMUs to Maduranthakam.

Economy

The major occupation of the inhabitants of the town and surrounding regions is agriculture. There are number of Rice mills available.

Education

A number of educational institutions are available inside the town and surrounding.

Arts and Science

* Sri Malolan College of Arts and Science * Aksheyaa College of Arts And Science

Dental

* Karpaga Vinayaga Institute of Dental Science

Nursing

* Karpaga Vinayaga Institute of Nursing * Om Sakthi Paramedical & Nursing College

Engineering

* Shri Andal Alagar College of Engineering * Karpaga Vinayaga College of Engineering and Technology * A.C.T. College of Engineering and Technology

Teacher Training College

* Subham College of Education

Schools

* Hindu Higher Secondary School * St Joseph's Matric Hr Sec School * Vivekananda Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School * Vivekananda Vidyalaya CBSE School * DR. V. Genguswamy Naidu Matric School * Vm Vidya Kendra Matriculation School * Janakavalli International Montessori school * CSI High School * R.C Primary School * Subham Vidhyalayaa CBSE School

Religious Sites

Temples

* Sri Kodanda Rama, also known in this region as ''Eri Katha Rama'' (the one who saved the village from flooding from Madurantakam lake), is enshrined in the

. The temple is about 1300 years old. Sita resides in the temple as ''Sri Janaki Valli''. The other deities enshrined are ''Sri Chakrathalwar'', Sri

, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha and Sri

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

. The Kodandaramaswamy temple has two sets of ''utsavar'' idols of the presiding deity and His consort, and

Lakshmana Lakshmana ( sa, लक्ष्मण, lit=the fortunate one, translit=Lakṣmaṇa), also spelled as Laxmana, is the younger brother of Rama and his loyalist in the Hindu epic '' Ramayana''. He bears the epithets of Saumitra () and Ramanuja ( ...

. While one deity is named Rama, the other is known as Karunakaran. There is also a separate shrine for Goddess

Sita Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She ...

, known as Janakavalli Thayar, which is claimed to be very rare. This shrine was built by an English Collector, Colonel Lionel Blaze who assured the people that he would build a shrine for Devi if the newly built surplus water

weirs A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

withstood the fury of monsoon rains. The huge tank with immense storage capacity would breach every year after the monsoon rains and wash away the rough stone-built outlet of the tank. While camping at Madurantakam during a monsoon night, the tank was full and almost overflowing. The Collector visited the tank bund and is said to have seen Rama and Lakshmana keeping guard at the tank. The construction of the shrine for the Goddess began the very next morning and the Lord is known as ''Eri Katha Ramar'' as he saved the tank bund from collapsing. * Thiru-Venkateswarar Temple near Madurantakam railway station, too a renowned temples in the town. It was built by a king whose skin disease was relieved when he bathed in the tank; then he realized his wonder and built this temple during British Raj; * Pidari Sri Setrukal Chelliamman Temple near the bye-pass entrance (from Chennai) is an old temple that has been renovated. * Aruaaleeswarar Temple, AE Koil street * Murugar Temple, Murugar Koil street * Sri Purani Pushkala Iyyanarappan Temple, GST Road * Narasimha Perumal Temple, near Power station Road * Renukapara-meswari Temple, Chunampet Road * Northern-thiru-nallar and Sri Ragavendrar temple and a Vishnu cum Anjaneya temple on the Karunguzhi mountain; then Prasana Venkateswarar temple in Malai Vaiyavoor near Padalam were in the perimeter of Madurantakam.

Churches

* St. Antony's Church, Mandabam Street * Global Blessing Centre, GST Road * CSI Simpson Memorial Church, GST Road * The Pentecostal Mission, AE Koil Street * Our Lady of Lourdes Gandhi Nagar

Mosques

* Masjid-E-Walajah Railway station Road * Masjid E Darus Salam, GST Road * Town Jamiya Masjid, GST Road * Masjide Noorul Uloom, Rajagopal Street

Theatres

* Alankar * RK * Anand (previously SR) * Gayathri (GK) * C3 cinemas Laurel Mall Mamandur

Places of interest

Bird Sanctuary

About north-west of Madurantakam lies the Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary and Karikili Bird Sanctuary, home to many rare and endangered species of migratory birds.

Demographics

According to 2011 census, Madurantakam had a population of 30,796 with a sex-ratio of 1,019 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 3,184 were under the age of six, constituting 1,615 males and 1,569 females. The average literacy of the town was 75.4%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The town had a total of 7,699 households. There were a total of 12,135 workers, comprising 158 cultivators, 1,040 main agricultural labourers, 283 in house hold industries, 8,066 other workers, 2,588 marginal workers, 21 marginal cultivators, 1,031 marginal agricultural labourers, 106 marginal workers in household industries and 1,430 other marginal workers. As per the religious census of 2011, Madurantakam had 89.2%

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 ...

, 6.69%

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 Abrah ...

, 2.87%

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'' (Χρ� ...

, 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 ter ...

, 0.07%

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 ...

, 0.79%

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 ...

, 0.36% following other religions and 0.0% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.

Politics

Madurantakam (SC) is a state assembly constituency in

newly formed after constituency delimitation. It is included in the Kancheepuram parliamentary constituency. K. Maragatham from

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; AIADMK) is an Indian regional political party with great influence in the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. It is a Dravidian party founded by the former chief mi ...

is the current MLA.

Other attractions

Weekly Market (வாராந்திர சந்தை) - There is a weekly market every Monday near Govt Hospital and which sells vegetables, groceries, fruits and fish.

References

External links

*
www.madurantakam.info
{{Municipalities of Tamil Nadu Cities and towns in Chengalpattu district