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Tirupati తిరుపతి | |
|---|---|
City | |
 | |
.svg)  Tirupati Location in Andhra Pradesh, India | |
| Coordinates:13°39′N79°25′E / 13.65°N 79.42°E /13.65; 79.42 | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Andhra Pradesh |
| District | Chittoor |
| Government | |
| • MLA | Konidala Chiranjeevi |
| Elevation | 161 m (528 ft) |
| Population | |
• Total | 1,236,569 (MCT) |
| • Rank | Fourth |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Telugu |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Telephone code | 0877 |
| Vehicle registration | AP-03 |
Tirupati is a major pilgrimage city located in theChittoor district ofAndhra Pradesh,India. It is located at thefoothills ofEastern Ghats at a distance of 550 kms south ofHyderabad, thecapital of thestate and 100 kms north ofChennai.
Tirupati is famous for theVenkateswara Swamy temple dedicated toLord Venkateswara, located about 10 km north west of Tirupati in the hallowedTirumala hills at an elevation of 853 m. One of the most important pilgrimage centers in India, the temple draws millions of pilgrims and is one of the busiest pilgrimage centres in the world. Tirupati town itself has several temples and is famous for its red wooden toys, copper and brass idols. Also, the town is a major economical and educational hub in the southern region of the state.
InTamil Tirupati/Thirupathi stands for Thiru/Tiru + Pathi/Pati; means Husband (Pathi) of goddess Lakshmi (Thiru). Whereas,Tirumala is otherwise known as Seven Hills (Edu-kondalu inTelugu and Elu-Mala in Tamil). Tirumala is located atop the hill which comprises seven peaks, representing the seven hoods ofAdisesha, thus earning the name, Seshachalam. The seven peaks are called Seshadri, Neeladri, Garudadri, Anjanadri, Vrishabhadri, Narayanadri and Venkatadri.
TheTirumala hills are the world's second oldest rock mountains. TheSangam literature of Tamil such asSilapadikaram andSattanar'sManimekalai, dated between 500 BC to 300 AD, mentions Tiruvengadam (now named Tirupati).
There is no clear history on the origin of the temple of Lord Venkateshwara, but it was maintained and upgraded by various kingdoms. These include thePallava Kingdom around 4th Century AD,Chola Kingdom over a discrete set of periods from 2nd Century BC to 10th century AD and the latest one beingVijayanagara Empire around 17th century BCE.Krishna Deva Raya the greatest of[Vijayanagara Empire led the temple to great popularity by donating gold and other ornaments for the temple and constructing extended shrines. The place ofChandragiri, presently a village few km south west of Tirupati, was used as the secondary capital of Vijayanagara emperor.
The site was an established center of Vaishnavism around 5th century A.D. during which Tirupati was praised byAlvars (Vaishnavasaints); belonging to theBhakti movement in Dravidian Land, who were known for their poems and literary works on Lord Venkateswara. Tirupati's significance in Southern Vaishnava tradition is next only toSrirangam, and the temple rites were formalized by the Vaishnavite saintRamanujacharya himself, in the 11th century AD.
Tirupati survived theMuslim invasions of South India, unlike other temples such as theMeenakshi temple inMadurai andRanganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. It is believed that during the invasions the deity ofSriranganatha from Srirangam was brought to Tirupati for safekeeping. To commemorate this event, a hall in Tirupati is still known as the RanganathaMandapam.
In 1843, with the coming of theEast India Company, the administration of the Sri Venkateshwara temple and a number of shrines was entrusted to Seva Dossji of the Hathiramji Mutt at Tirumala as Vicaranakarta for nearly a century until 1933, when the temple was under the administrative charge of the mahants[citation needed].
The Madras legislature passed a special act in 1933 whereby theTirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) committee was invested with powers of administration and control through a commissioner appointed by the Government of Madras. A Ryot Advisory Council was formed for the management of the estates of the TTD, and was assisted by a Religious Advisory Council with regard to religious matters.
The first establishment of the town was near Kotturu, today's K.T. Road area. Later it was shifted near the temple of Govindaraja Swamy with the temple as the center of the city. It is today's railway station area. Now the city is expanded to nearby areas. Tirupati town now includesSrinivasamangapuram,Thiruchanoor,Renigunta,Chandragiri,Avilala.
Tirupati is located in the southern part of Andhra Pradesh.[1] It has an average elevation of 162 metres (531 feet).
The Tirumala hill is 3,200 ft (980 m) above sea level, and is about 10.33 square miles (26.8 km2) in area.
Tirupati has an extreme type of climate. Monsoon remains moderate and summer experiences temperatures ranging from 42 to 45 degrees Celsius (107.6 F & 113 F). In winter the minimum temperatures will be between 10 and 18 degrees Celsius ( 50 F to 64.4 F). Usually summer lasts from March to June, with the advent of rainy season in July, followed by winter which lasts till the end of February.
Tirupati has a population of about 2,50,821 (with urban agglomeration, 3,03,521).[2][3] TUDA (Tirupati Urban Development Authority) further expanded its urban area limit to about 1380 km2 with a total population of about 10,00,000[citation needed]. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. It has an average literacy rate of 81%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 82%, and female literacy is 72%. 16% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Tirupati is a melting pot of two ancient, brethrenDravidian culture – Telugu and Tamil. Tirupati is an example of extreme linguistic harmony in the entire country.[citation needed] Telugu is the official and principal language of the town, whereas Tamil is understood.English is a part of education system; widely understood among educated class.[citation needed] Most of the temples in Tirupati have been built usingDravidian architecture.Hinduism is the major religion here.Dhoti (Pancha/Veshti) andSaree are traditional attire of people here. Dresses likechuridar andpants-shirt have become common in recent decades. Practices oftonsure and usingtilaka are very popular among devotees ofLord Venkateswara. Songs and prayers ofLord Venkateswara are generally heard all over the town. Near the bus stand, stands the statue ofBharatharatnaM.S. Subbulakshmi, a legendaryCarnatic singer.
Tirupati was recognised as aMunicipal Corporation in 2002. AlthoughChittoor is the headquarters of the district, much of the business activities and major government establishments (and operations) take place in Tirupati. With improved infrastructure and due to various efforts by the state government, Tirupati is well turning into a business hub of southernAndhra Pradesh. Notable large and medium scale industries along side a lot of small scale industries that call Tirupati as their home base, include the government owned Railway Carriage Repair Shop, Amararaja Power Systems, Lanco Industries. There are plans to improve the infrastructure to set up IT service based organizations in Tirupati. Financial institutions like HDFC are setting their back office operations in Tirupati.[4] Tirupati is becoming the education hub for the nearby areas because of the strong presence of Educational Institutions and Universities. Being a pilgrimage center, the floating population is a major source of income. Considerable revenue is generated by travel sector. Strong expatriate/town's non-residents' money inflow and an emerging industrial scenario triggered a major real estate boom in the town in recent years and marched steadily, until before2008-2009 Global Recession.
Tirupati has direct bus services to nearby towns and major cities acrossSouth India. There is a dedicated Bus Stand at Alipiri for buses (once in every 2 minutes) toTirumala. The town has a well planned network of roads with synchronized traffic control system.
A number of buses are operated by the government-runAPSRTC and private operators connecting Tirupati to other major cities and towns directly. Private bus operators also ply buses to Tirupati fromChennai,Hyderabad,Vizag andBangalore.
Tirupati has a major railway station which is well equipped and has ten platforms but only five are used; and presently undergoing modernization, including three escalators.Renigunta junction which lies on the busy Chennai andMumbai rail route, is just 20 minutes drive from Tirupati town. There are many trains travelling across the country with Tirupati as the starting point. Tirupati is well connected to major cities across India, esp. Chennai,Bangalore and Hyderabad. TheAndhra Pradesh Sampark Kranti Express is the only train from Tirupati that connects toBhopal,Gwalior andNew Delhi. It is connected by Chennai sub-urban railways in North-western line.
However, the town lacks direct connectivity with important and religious places such asIndore,Ujjain,Jabalpur,Jaipur andDehradun.
Tirupati Airport is a domestic airport that has direct flights toHyderabad,Vizag,Chennai,New Delhi andBangalore. The airport is located 15 km from the city centre. Closest international airport is located in Chennai] (Chennai International Airport) which is 130 km from Tirupati. The Tirupati airport has been upgraded to an International Airport and the upgrade process is underway.[5]
Tirupati is a major municipal corporation inAndhra Pradesh state. It contributes a member in central parliament and a member in state legislature in Indian politics. Chinta Mohan is the current MP fromIndian National Congress (INC) and Konidala Chiranjeevi is the MLA fromPraja Rajyam Party (PRP). Chandragiri is a suburb accounting to one more seat for the state assembly. Tirupati Urban Development Authority (TUDA) was established long back to develop the city. It is involved in the construction of second fly-over in the city and extending all two lane roads to four lane.Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) also contributes a maximum of funds for the development of the city. Major roads like the traffic-loaded Tirumala bypass and the rail underpass near the railway station was taken up by TTD along with TUDA.
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List of elected members:[6]
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Telugu newspapers -Eenadu,Vaartha,Andhra Jyothi,Andhra Prabha,Andhra Bhoomi,Saakshi andPrajashakthi and English newspapers -The Hindu,Deccan Chronicle,Indian Express are also available in the town. Most of the Telugu, Hindi and English television channels and the local city cable are available.
The town celebrates most Vaishnava festivals includingVaikunta Ekadasi,Rama Navami andJanmashtami with great splendor, while theBrahmotsavam celebrated every year during September is the most important festival in Tirumala when it receives millions of devotees over a short span of a week. Rathasapthami (Magha Shuddha Saptami) is another festival, celebrated during February, when Lord Venkateswara's idol is taken in a procession around the temple chariots.[7]
Gangamma Jathra is also celebrated as a major local festival. The Goddess Gangamma is offered animal sacrifices and also pongal and other offerings by the devotees. She is considered as the sister of Lord Govinda.
There are many temples in Tirupati and Tirumala. Some of them are:
There is also another small temple for Lord Vishnu. The place is on the foothills of Tirumala. Giant Nandikeshwara statue is seen at the entrance of the temple. There is a rock garden in Tirumala called as Shilatoranam.
Tirupati is a major educational hub in South eastern region of Andhra Pradesh. It is home to several universities, including
Apart from these universities, it hasstate government andTirumala Tirupati Devasthanam sponsored medical, pharmacy, agricultural colleges and also engineering colleges.
Around 22 engineering colleges and 5 pharmacy colleges exist in and around Tirupathi, including:
Tirupati also has several academic institutions offering degree programmes in Science, Arts, Commerce and Agricultural Sciences. Some of these colleges have been established more than 50 years ago. Some of them are:
The Dairy Technology Programme under SV Veterinary University offering B. Tech (Dairy Technology) degree since 1983 has been elevated during the year 2009 to College of Dairy Technology, first of its kind in Andhra Pradesh.
Tirupati has nearly 25 cinema halls including aMultiplex, which screen Telugu, English and Hindi movies.Cricket is the most watched and played sport in Tirupati.Volleyball is a major sport mainly in the rural areas surrounding the town.Tennis,Volley Ball, andBadminton are played in colleges.Chess is also quite popular in Tirupati. Sports complex in S.V.Arts college campus is another special attraction.
Category:Hindu holy citiesCategory:Tirumala Venkateswara TempleCategory:Railway stations in Chittoor district
