Salem (District)

Salem District ; சேலம் மாவட்டம்
State	Tamil Nadu
Administrative headquarters :	Salem
Area :	5,237 km²
Residents :	3,482,056 (2011)
Population density :	665 inhabitants / km²
Website :	salem.tn.nic.in

The Salem District ( Tamil : சேலம் மாவட்டம் ) is a district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu . The administrative center is the eponymous city of Salem . The Salem district has an area of 5,237 square kilometers and around 3.5 million inhabitants (2011 census).

geography

View of the Shevaroy Mountains

The Salem district is located in the northern interior of Tamil Nadu. Neighboring districts are Dharmapuri in the north, Viluppuram in the east, Perambalur and Tiruchirappalli in the southeast, Namakkal in the south and Erode in the west.

The area of the Salem district is 5,237 square kilometers. The district capital Salem , the fifth largest city in Tamil Nadu, is located in the center of the district. The area west of Salem is rather flat and is traversed by the Kaveri River, Tamil Nadu's largest river. At Mettur , the Kaveri is dammed by a dam leading to the Stanley reservoir . The eastern part of the district, on the other hand, is mountainous with the foothills of the Eastern Ghats : the Shevaroy Mountains with the mountain village of Yercaud rise directly to the northeast of Salem , and the Kalrayan Mountains join to the east on the border with the Viluppuram district . Other smaller foothills are located southeast of Salem.

In the Salem district there is an alternately humid tropical climate . In Mettur the annual mean temperature is 27.9 ° C, the annual mean precipitation is 815 mm. Most of the rainfall occurs during the northeast monsoon in October and November. It also rains during the southwest monsoons in August and September.

Administrative division

Taluks

The Salem district is divided into 9 taluks :

Municipal Corporations and Municipalities

There is one municipal corporation in the Salem district : Salem .

There are also 4 municipalities :

history

The area of the Salem district has been under the influence of changing ruling dynasties throughout its history. It was last controlled by the Kingdom of Mysore before the ruler Tipu Sultan ceded the area to the British in 1792 . The British incorporated the area as a district of Salem in the province of Madras . After Indian independence in 1947, the district became part of the state of Madras, which in 1956 was reorganized according to the language borders of Tamil and renamed Tamil Nadu in 1969 . The district initially covered a much larger area than it is today. In 1965, the district of Dharmapuri was formed from the northern part of the Salem district , to which the area of today's Krishnagiri district also belonged. The remaining Salem district was divided again in 1997 into the Salem and Namakkal districts.

population

Construction workers in the Salem district

According to the 2011 Indian census, the Salem district has 3,482,056 inhabitants. This makes it one of the most populous districts in Tamil Nadu. The population density of 665 people per square kilometer is above the state average (555 people per square kilometer). 51 percent of the residents of the Salem district live in cities. The degree of urbanization thus corresponds to the mean value in Tamil Nadu (48 percent). At 73 percent, the literacy rate is well below the Tamil Nadu average (80 percent).

According to the 2011 census, Hindus make up the vast majority of the residents of the district with 95.5 percent. There are also smaller minorities of Muslims (2.7 percent) and Christians (1.5 percent).

As in all of Tamil Nadu, the main language in Salem District is Tamil . According to the 2001 census, 88.0 percent of the district's residents speak it as their mother tongue. There are also minorities of speakers of Telugu (6.6 percent) and Kannada (2.5 percent). Urdu (1.6 percent) is common among part of the Muslim population . Other languages account for 1.3 percent.

According to the 2011 census, 16.7 percent of the district's residents are scheduled castes and 3.4 percent are scheduled tribes . The latter include the Malayali who live in the Shevaroy and Kalrayan Mountains .

economy

The Salem district is quite industrialized: the city of Salem is a center of the steel and textile industry, in Mettur there is a large chemical factory. The most important branch of business is still agriculture, which according to the 2001 census employs 47.4% of the district's population. The Salem area is known for high quality mangoes . Coffee is also grown in the Shevaroy Mountains . At Stanley Reservoir, fishing also plays a certain role as an economic factor.

Attractions

Lake with pedal boats in Yercaud

The Salem district is off the tourist routes and has hardly any attractions of cultural and historical significance. The mountain village of Yercaud , located at around 1,500 meters above sea level in the Shevaroy Mountains, is of tourist importance . Because of its pleasant high altitude climate and the beautiful natural mountain landscape, Yercaud is particularly popular with inland tourists in the summer months. After Kodaikanal and Udagamandalam , Yercaud is the third largest mountain town in Tamil Nadu. In 2011 the place was visited by 3.9 million tourists.

In the village of Sankari, around 40 kilometers southwest of the district capital Salem, there is a fortress built in the 15th century on the summit of the steep Sankagiri mountain.

Cities

There are 615 villages and the following 38 cities in the Salem district:

city	Population (2011)
Arasiramani	14,834
Attayampatti	13,852
Attur	61,793
Ayothiapattinam	11,517
Belur	8,736
Edaganasalai	33,245
Edappadi	54,823
Ethapur	1,968
Gangavalli	12,015
Ilampillai	11,797
Jalakandapuram	16,184
Kadayampatti	11,390
Kannankurichi	19,765
Karuppur	13,967
Keeripatti	10,208
Kolathur	12,748
Konganapuram	9,286
Mallur	10,331
Mecheri	25,676
Mettur	52,813
Nangavalli	10,809
Narasingapuram	23,084
Omalur	16,279
PN Patti	25.133
Panaimarathupatti	9,368
Pethanaickenpalayam	17,678
Poolampatti	9,477
Salem	829.267
Sentharapatti	14.308
Sankari	29,467
Thammampatti	21,503
Tharamangalam	30,222
Thedavur	8,230
Thevur	8,548
Vanavasi	7.130
Vazhapadi	17,559
Veeraganur	11,624
Veerakkalpudur	16,665

literature

The Imperial Gazetteer of India. Volume 21: Pushkar to Salween. New Edition. Clarendon Press, Oxford 1908, pp. 395-407 , keyword: Salem District .