Nagamalai ("naga"=snake, "malai"=hill) is a suburb of

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 ...

situated about 10 km west of Madurai City,

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 ...

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 ...

, along the Madurai-

Theni Theni is a valley town situated in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu at the foothills of Western Ghats. It is the headquarters of the Theni district, located in a distance of 70km from Madurai. It is known for the large-scale trading of garlic, c ...

highway.

Environment

Hills

Nagamalai-puthukkottai-Pillar-rock-Madurai-TamilNadu

Madurai is surrounded by eight hillocks that once served to guard the city from invading forces. Of these hills, three small but prominent hills ( Yanaimalai, Pasumalai and Nagamalai —

Elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae ...

Cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

, and

Snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...

Hill respectively) have several interesting legends associated with them. Samanar Hills, which is opposite to Nagamalai, is of historical importance. Samanars (

Tamil Jain Tamil Jains (Tamil Samaṇar, from Prakrit '' samaṇa'' "wandering renunciate") are Tamils from Tamil Nadu, India, who practice Jainism (Tamil ). The Tamil Jain is a microcommunity of around 85,000 (around 0.13% of the population of Tamil Nad ...

) were said to have stayed on the hill, fearing persecution from the then rulers of Madurai. Many stone statues and other artifacts are present in Nagamalai.

Biodiversity

Nagamalai is also known for its snake biodiversity, and a government proposal is in the works for creating an

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...

snake park in the area.

Water

The top of the hill consists of naturally formed rocks which resemble the form of a crocodile. Even though there is no water source at the top of the hill, it has an permanent flow of water on one side at Puluthu, which is a herbal water which can be directly drunk.

Education

Nagamalai is a notable educational hub in the outskirts of the

city. The

Madurai Kamaraj University Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) is a public state university located in Madurai city, in southern Tamil Nadu, India, established in 1966. MKU is one of the 15 universities in India with the University with Potential for Excellence status, wh ...

is located in close proximity to Nagamalai. It accommodates a number of other educational institutions such as: * Palkalai Nagar Middle School *

Nadar Mahajana Sangam S. Vellaichamy Nadar College Nadar Mahajana Sangam S. Vellaichamy Nadar College (also known as SVN College) is an educational institution located at Nagamalai, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was started in 1965 by Nadar Mahajana Sangam and offers Bachelor's degree, bachelors ...

* M.N.U. Jayaraj Nadar Higher Secondary School * S.B.O.A. Matriculation Higher Secondary School * Sirumalar Girls Higher Secondary School * Akshara Matriculation Higher Secondary School * M.N.U.J. Annapakiyam Matriculation Higher Secondary School * KMR International School

References