Tirupathur

Overview

Tirupathur is a district in northern Tamil Nadu that was carved out of the erstwhile Vellore district and formally inaugurated on 28 November 2019, when Vellore was trifurcated into Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupathur. Spread over about 1,797.92 sq km with the town of Tirupathur as its headquarters, it lies in the state's north near the Krishnagiri and Vellore districts, not far from the borders with Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The district is best known for the leather-tanning towns of Vaniyambadi and Ambur, the Yelagiri hill station and its sandalwood-rich forests, and comprises four taluks - Tirupattur, Vaniyambadi, Ambur and Natrampalli. Because it did not exist as a separate district during the 2011 Census, no official 2011 population figure applies to it; a back-computed estimate for the present boundaries is roughly 1.1 million.

Tourism

Yelagiri, one of Tamil Nadu's popular hill stations, lies within the district at an altitude of about 1,050 metres and is reached by a ghat road with 14 hairpin bends. Visitors are drawn to Punganur (Yelagiri) Lake, the annual summer festival, paragliding and trekking, and the nearby Jalagamparai waterfalls. The Vainu Bappu Observatory at Kavalur, run by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, houses one of Asia's largest optical telescopes, while the Arma Malai cave paintings attract those interested in prehistory.

Temples & heritage

Tirupathur and Vaniyambadi are dotted with old Shiva and Vishnu temples, several with tanks dating to the Hoysala period. In Vaniyambadi the Sundara Varadaraja Perumal and Athitheeswarar temples are prominent pilgrim draws, while the Brahmapureeswarar temple - associated with worship by Lord Brahma - is also revered. Alongside the temples, the historic Masjid-e-Azam mosque in Ambur and several dargahs reflect the district's long tradition of multi-faith coexistence.

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