KARUR is one of the oldest towns in Tamil Nadu and has played a very significant role in the history and culture of the Tamils. The history dates back to the Sangam period when it was a flourishing trade centre. Karur was built on the banks of river Amaravathi which was called Aanporunai during the Sangam days. According to Hinduism, Brahma began the work of creation here, which is referred to as the place of the sacred cow. The names of the early Chera kings who ruled from Karur, have been found in the rock inscriptions in Aaru Nattar Malai close to Karur. The Tamil epic Silapathikaram mentions that the famous Chera King Senguttuvan ruled from Karur. Epigraphical, archaeological and literary evidence indicate that Karur was the capital of early Chera kings of Sangam age. It was called Karuvoor or Vanji during Sangam days. The archaeological excavations undertaken in Karur resulted in the excavation of mat-designed pottery, bricks, mud-toys, Roman coins, Chera coins, Pallava coins, Roman Amphorae, Rasset coated ware and rare rings. Karur might have been the center for old jewellery-making and gem setting (with the gold imported mainly from Rome), as seen from various excavations. In 150 CE, Greek scholar Ptolemy mentioned “Korevora” (Karur) as a very famous inland trading center in Tamil Nadu. It was ruled by the Cheras, Gangas, Cholas, the Vijayanagara Nayaks, Tipu Sultan and the British successively The town formed a part of the traditional Chera and Chola empires and has a number of exquisitely sculpted temples. Verappur, a place of pilgrimage connected with the history of Ponner-Sankar and temples dedicated to them is situated in Karur district. Karuvurar born in medieval Karur, is one among the nine devotees who sung the divine Music Thiruvichaippa, which is the ninth Thirumurai. He is the single largest composer among the nine authors of Thiruvichaippa. He lived during the reign of the Chola king Raja Raja Chola I In addition to the Pasupatheeswarar Siva temple, there is a Vishnu temple at Thiruvithuvakkodu suburb of Karur, sung by famous Kulasekaraazhvaar (7th-8th century). The same temple is presumably mentioned in epic Silappadikaram as Adaha maadam Ranganathar whose blessings Cheran Senguttuvan sought before his north Indian expedition. Pongal, Tamil New Year, Aadi Perukku, Vaikunta Ekadasi, Annual festival at Veerapur, Annual festival for Karur Mariamman are some of the important festivals celebrated in Karur. Some of the most prominent mosques in the town are Thowheeth mosque, Big Palli, Ahle hadees Pallivasal, TNTJ Mosque, Jamia Pallivasal and Bajar Mosque. Karur is a major textile centre and has five major product groups — bed linens, kitchen linens, toilet linens, table linens and wall hangings. The town generates around 6000 crores in foreign exchange through direct and indirect exports. Allied industries like ginning and spinning mills, dyeing factories and weaving employ around 300,000 people in and around Karur. Hand-loom Exports from Karur began on a modest scale with just 15 exporters in 1975. Set up under the scheme for Integrated Textile Parks, the 130 crore Karur Textile Park Limited (KTPL) is rated the premier facility of its kind in the country for its technical and ancillary facilities. Bharat Petroleum Corporation in a joint venture with Petronet CCK has installed a pipeline facility from Cochin BPCL to Karur BPCL to transport petroleum products. The petroleum products received at the BPCL-Karur terminal is supplied to more than 20 districts of Tamil Nadu through container trucks. TNPL is promoted by the Government of Tamil Nadu with loan assistance from the World Bank. TNPL is the largest producer of bagasse (sugarcane waste from Sugar mills) based paper in the world and the second largest paper producer in Asia. The firm produces 230,000 tonnes of printing and writing paper and consumes 1 million tonnes of bagasse every year. Karur is a hub for bus body building industries. Most of the South Indian private bus bodies are built in Karur. The total business turnover from building bus coaches is estimated to be around 1000 crore per annum. There are more than 50 companies that build coaches in Karur. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) mono filament yarn and associated products are manufactured in Karur. More than 2,000 units in around the town manufacture mosquito fabrics and fishing nets. More than 60% mosquito nets in India are manufactured in Karur and the places around it. Around 50,000 people are employed in these units. Karur is also home to Chettinad Cements that has an installed production capacity of 600,000 tonnes per annum. Karur is the home city of Indias Oldest Private Scheduled Commercial Banks, Karur Vysya Bank and Lakshmi Vilas Bank. Apart from these two banks, Karur also has Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Union Bank, IndusInd Bank, Corporation Bank and above 40 other bank branches. The gem factories in Karur produce gems like cats eye, feldspar, moonstone, aquamarine, quartz, elastical quartz, sapphire, jasper and beryl. There are 2 national highways namely the NH 7 (Varanasi - Kanyakumari road (now called NSC North-South corridor road) and NH 67 Nagapattinam - Gudalur road that pass via Karur. The other major district roads connect Karur to Erode, Dharapuram, Velliani and Vangal. The Karur bus stand is a B-grade bus stand located in the centre of the town. The State Express Transport Corporation operates long distance buses connecting the city to important cities like Chennai, Tiruppur and Thoothukudi. As of 2011, there were 24 government schools: 22 elementary schools, one middle school and one higher secondary school. There were 17 other private schools: ten elementary schools, three middle schools, one higher school and three higher secondary school. There were six engineering colleges, three arts and science colleges, three polytechnic colleges and one industrial training institute (ITI) in the town.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Jul 2014 11:32:15 +0000
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