Introduction
The study of one’s own region is the first step to become a global citizen. The purpose of studying our local territory is to understand
life in our environment. In the last five lessons, you have learnt about various geographical characterstics of our country. In this lesson and those that follow, we shall learn about the geography of Tamil Nadu. You will get to know
about the etymology, history of formation,location, size, physical divisions, rivers, climate,soil and natural vegetation of Tamil Nadu in this chapter.Its exquisite physiography and climate makes our state unique in India. It has long
and sunny beaches, waterfalls, hills, forests and varied flora and fauna.
Location and Size
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India, located in the southern most part
of the country. It extends from 8°4'N to13°35'N latitudes and from 76°18'E to 80°20'Elongitudes. Its extremities are
*in eastern - Point Calimere
* in western - hills of Anaimalai
* in northern - Pulicat lake
* in southern - Cape Comorin
It covers an area of 1,30,058 sq.km and is the 11 th largest state in India. It covers 4% of the area of our country.
Cardamom Hills
These hills are also known as Yela Mala hills located in the southwestern part of
Tamil Nadu. It acquires its name from the cardamom spice, which is commonly grownhere. Pepper and coffee are the other crops cultivated over the hills. They meet the Anaimalai hills in the northwest, the Palani hills in the northeast and Varusanadu and Andipatti hills in the southeast.
Varusanadu and Andipatti Hills
Another eastward extension of Western Ghats is Varusanadu and Andipatti hills.
Megamalai (the highway mountain),Kalugumalai, Kurangani hill station, and Suruli
and Kumbakarai waterfalls are found on these hills. Srivilliputhur Grizzled Squirrel Wild life Sanctuary is located in the southern slope of these hills in Virudhunagar district. Vaigai river and its tributaries originate in this region.
Palani Hills
Palani hills are the eastward extension of the Western Ghats. These hills are located in Dindigul district. Vandaravu (2,533 metres) is the highest peak in the Palani hills. Vembadi Shola (2,505 metres) is its second highest peak.The hill station of Kodaikanal (2,150 metres) lies in the south central portion of the range
cauvery
The plains of Tamil Nadu may be dividedinto two, namely The river Cauvery originates at Talacauvery in the Brahmagiri hills of Kodagu(coorg) district of Karnataka in the Western Ghats. Total length of Cauvery river
is 805 km. About 416 km of its course falls in Tamil Nadu. It serves as the boundary between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for a distance of 64 km. It forms Hogenakkal waterfalls in Dharmapuri district. Mettur Dam, also calledas the Stanley Reservoir, is located across this river in Salem district. A tributary called
Bhavani joins Cauvery on the right bank about 45 km from the Mettur Reservoir. Thereafter,it takes easterly course to enter into the plainsof Tamil Nadu. Two more tributaries, Noyyal and Amaravathi, confluence the river on the
right bank at Thirumukkudal 10 km from Karur. The river is wider in this region, where it is called as ‘Agandra Cauvery’.It originates from the eastern slope of
Nandi Durga hills in eastern Karnataka. It drains an area of 16,019 sq.km, of which nearly 77% lies in Tamil Nadu. It flows for a distance of 247 km in the southeasterly direction in the districts of Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Vellore,Tiruvannamalai, Cuddalore and Villupuram. It branches into two, viz. Gadilam and the Ponnaiyar
near Tirukoilur Anaicut. Gadilam joins the Bay of Bengal near Cuddalore and Ponnaiyar near the Union Territory of Puducherry. Chinnar, Markandanadhi, Vaniar and Pambar are its tributaries. Heavy rain at the river’s source cause sudden but short-lived floods. The river is extensively dammed for irrigation, especially in
Tamil Nadu. There are reservoirs at Krishnagiri and Sathanur across this river. The Ponnaiyar is considered sacred by Hindus and festivals are
held during the Tamil month of Thai (January–February).In Tiruchirappalli district, the river branches into two parts. The northernbranch is called Coleroon or Kollidam and the southern branch remains Cauvery. From here, the Cauvery delta begins. After flowing for about 16 km, the two branches join again to form the ‘Srirangam Island’. The Grand Anaicut, also called as Kallanai was built across
the river Cauvery. After Kallanai, the river breaks into a large number of distributaries and forms a network all over the delta. The network of distributaries within the delta of Cauvery in the coast is called as the ‘Garden of Southern India’. It merges into Bay of Bengal to the south of Cuddalore
0 கருத்துகள்