Facts About Chennai

Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu is sited on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. It has played a very crucial role in the traditional, historical and academic growth of the country, representing the different elements of the highest variety of the Dravidian civilization. Today, Chennai, the capital city is the 4th largest city of India and is also the leading commercial centre of South India. The credit of the booming economy of the city goes to the leading industries including automobile, software services, petrochemicals, financial services, textiles and hardware manufacturing. Also, Chennai, being an important metropolitan city is very well-connected to all the major cities of India as well as with the countries overseas. And, it is also considered as the cultural hub of South India which is famous for its affluent heritage in classical dance, music, architecture, sculpture, crafts, etc. Given below are some of the very interesting facts and figures about Chennai.

State: Tamil Nadu
Official Language: Tamil
Other Languages Spoken: English, Hindi, Urdu, Malayalam
Demonym: Chennaite
Population: 6.4 Million
Area: 178.20 sq. km
Latitudinal parallels: 13 Deg. North
Longitudinal meridians: 80 Deg. East
Temperature in Summers: 37 °C (Max) 21.10 °C (Min)
Temperature in Winter: 32 °C (Max) 19.81 °C (Min)
Rainfall: 1,272 mm
Monsoon: June to September (South-West Monsoon), October to December (North-East Monsoon)
Season: Tropical throughout the year.
Altitude: 60 m above sea level
Religions: Hindu, Islam, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis, Buddhists, Jains
Educational Institutes: Dr. Ambedkar Law University, SRMC Chennai, IIT Madras, LIBA Chennai etc.
Main Attractions: Marina Beach, Snake Park, St. George Fort, Kapaleeshwar Temple, Santhome Cathedral, National Art Gallery, etc.
Best Time to visit: November to February

Interesting Facts & Trivia About Chennai

• The earlier name of the city, Madras is believed to be originated from Madrasapattinam, a fishing village located north of the St. George Fort.
• Chennai is also known as the ‘Gateway to South India’.
• The Tidel Park of the capital city is the largest IT Park in Asia; it also houses the head offices of leading software companies.
• Cricket is the famous sport in Chennai and was started as a result of the foundation of the Madras Cricket Club in 1846.
• The M.A. Chidambaram Stadium sited in Chepauk was set up in 1916 and is among the oldest stadiums of the country.
• It is also known as the Detroit of India because of its automobile industry which produces more than 40% of the auto parts and motor vehicles in India.
• The Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus (CBMT) at Koyambedu is the leading bus terminal in Asia.
• The Cancer Institute established in 1920 is one of the oldest cancer hospitals in India.
• The Anna Centenary Library in the capital city of Tamil Nadu is the largest library in Asia.
• Viswanathan Anand, the world chess champion, grew up in Chennai.
• This city is renowned for Bharatnatyam, the famous and one of the oldest classical dance forms in India, which originated in Tamil Nadu.
• It houses some of the leading foreign banks including Bank of America, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Citibank, Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India Ltd., Ryan Services and Standard Chartered Bank.
• The Vandalur Zoo sited in Chennai was set up in 1855 and it is the first public zoo in India and also the largest one in the country.
• Chennai is the second leading exporter of information technology (IT) and business process outsourcing (BPO) services in India.