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About the place
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Vellore, the head quarter
town of Vellore district is located 145 kms away from Chennai, the
state capital. The town is surrounded by a deep artificial moat; the
16th century Vellore Fort dominates this town. Vellore had the
privilege of being the capital of Pallava, Chola, Nayak, Maratha,
Arcot Nawabs and Bijapur Sultan Kingdoms.
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Today, Vellore is a
sparkling town of Tamil Nadu attracting people from all over the country
owing to its various health and educational institutions, notable
among them are Christian medical College and Vellore Institute of Technology.
The Christian medical College was set up in 1900 by the American Dr
Ida Scudder. This institution specializes in research on tropical
diseases. The town’s temples and monuments are also worth visiting.
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Muthu Mandapam
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Muthu Mandapam is also
called the 'Pearl Palace'. This is a memorial, which is built around the
tombstone of the last Kandy Tamil ruler, Vikramraja Singh. It is
situated just steps away from Vellore town towards north and is built on
the bed of River Palar. The memorial is on a major alteration plan and
is said that it will be added with a Children park, an aquarium and a
lot more.
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Government Museum
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The Government Museum is
situated besides the main bus stand in Lakshmanaswamy Town Hall. The
museum is under the watch of Department of Museums. This might be the
most unusual museum that you will ever see. It has in its collection,
artifacts from many fields like anthropology, art, archeology,
pre-history, botany, geology. Except for government holidays, the museum
is open on all days from 9a.m to 12 noon and from 2 p.m. to 5p.m.
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Amirthi Zoological Park
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Amirthi zoological
park is situated under the Javadu Hills of Tellaiacross Amirthi river
which is 25 kms away from vellore. It also is atourism spot. This zoo
logical park was started in the year 1967October. The area of the park
is 25 hectares and one can findbeautiful water falls. There are also
different kinds of birds andanimals. Swings, Seesaw etc., are there for
children to play.Numerous kinds of herbal plants and trees and sandal
wood treesalso grow here. There are 2 rest houses and five members can
stayis one dormitory. There is a meditating hall where one can have
fullconcentration and be in serenity. The inflow of tourists is more
only during the holidays. This zoological park has been recognized
recently and so the state Government has taken initiative to develop
this area. The entrance fees is only Rs 2/- per head, for cycles Rs.3/-
for van Rs.5/- for motor cyclesRs.2/- . The Government earns Rs.6000/-
per month and Rs.72,000/- per year by this entrance fees. The tribal
people reside in this area. There is a range office at Amirthi headed by
the forest ranger, Mr.Deendayalan at present 2001.) There is also a
hill tribe society at Nimmiyambattu near Amirthi. The main aim is to
give employment opportunities to the hill tribals in that area.
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| Animals and Birds in Amirthi Zoological Park |
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| 1. SPOTTED DEER - 22 |
10. WILD CAT - 1 |
| 2. HEDGEHOG - 1 |
11. EAGLE - 2 |
| 3. FOX - 4 |
12. DUCK - 3 |
| 4. REASON MONKEY - 2 |
13. PIGEON - 14 |
| 5. RED HEADED PARROT - 13 |
14. WILD PARROT - 3 |
| 6. LOVE BIRDS - 18 |
15. RABBIT - 2 |
| 7. TORTOISE - 15 |
16. PYTHON - 2 |
| 8. PEACOCK - 5 |
17. MONGOOSE - 1 |
| 9. CROCODILE - 3 |
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Javadu Hills
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Jamanamarathur, 40 Km
from Polur, is the main village in Javadu hills, which is famous for its
sandalwood and fruit bearing trees. Its altitude varies from 300 to
1,000 m
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Jalagampaari Falls
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Jalagampaari waterfalls
situated 17-km from Tirupattur in Vellore district is a fine picnic
spot. There is a Murugan temple beside the waterfalls, where the deity
is in the form of VEL (a kind of spear). The Murugan temple attracts
tourists throughout the year.
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Elagiri Hills
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An isolated, attractive
picnic spot in the Eastern Ghats is the Elagiri Hills, at an elevation
of about 1000 meters. A salubrious climate; scenic surroundings and a
quaint Murugan temple are some of the attractions of this place. These
hills are an ideal location for a weekend where one could organize one
day or two days' trekking
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Virinjipuram
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This magnificent temple
dedicated to Lord Shiva is famous for its devotees who throng here with
ardent belief that a dream on the last Sunday of Karthigai month will
reveal of their fortune of being blessed with an offspring. The
Lion-faced Simmakulam tank is considered to be very sacred.
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Thiruvannamalai
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The temple town of
Thiruvannamalai, 85 Km south of Vellore, is an important Shaivite town.
Though Hindus seek god in the form idol, it is also their strong belief
that god is also in the form of Light or Flame. These symbolic ideals
are represented in Thiruvannamalai. The sculptures in the pillars and
the idol lingam are very huge and enticing that they make one wonder at
the artistic spirit of those artisans. The Deepam Festival in the month
of Karthigai (November) is very popular and it attracts devotees in
large numbers.
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| NEAR BY CITIES |
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Chennai - 122-km
Bangalore - 206-km
Kanchipuram - 61-km (Temples City, Kamakshi and Eswar Temples)
Thiruttani - 31-km
Thiruvannamalai - 76-km (Well known Eswar Temple and Girivalam )
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| Getting There |
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| By Air |
Banglore in the state of
Karnataka is the nearest airport around 103 km away. Flights from all
over the country come to Banglore everyday.
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| By Rail |
Katpadi railway junction is the nearest station to Vellore, most of the trains passing through here, have a 2-minute halt.
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| By Road |
It takes around 2.5 hrs from
Chennai and around 3.5 hrs from Banglore to reach here. There are
regular transport buses that come here from Chennai and Banglore apart
from other main cities of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
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| Local Transport |
Buses are the main mode of transport. You will also find taxis and auto rickshaws in good number.
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