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POSITION, AREA AND BOUNDARIES
The original princely state of Pudukkottai was a land-locked territory, with
Tiruchirappalli (திருச்சிராப்பள்ளி), Thanjavur (தஞ்சாவூர்) and Ramanathapuram
(இராமநாதபுரம்) as its neighbours.
At the time of being made as a separate district in 1974 the coastal strip
of Aranthangi (அறந்தாங்கி) was added to it.
Presently, the boundaries of the Pudukkottai District are the Bay-of-Bengal
in the east, Thanjavur and Tiruchirappalli in the north, Tiruchirappalli in
the west and Sivaganga (சிவகங்கை) and Ramanathapuram in the south. It is having
a 36 km. of seashore in the east.
Area: 4661 square kilometers
GEOGRAPHY
Terrain
The terrain of the district is generally flat. Dry open lands with cultivation
as well as semi-barren wastelands form the basic Pudukkottai (புதுக்கோட்டை) country. On the
western surface of the plain emerge rocks of low and middle elevation. The scrub
jungle, once plentiful, is to be met with now in a few pockets only. The terrain
is divisible into two broad portions with distinctive physical aspects, eastern
and western. The dividing line may be taken as a north-south line passing through
the town of Pudukkottai. The lands west of this line comprise the greater portion
of Kolattur (குளத்தூர்) and Thirumayam (திருமயம்) taluk-s and are rocky. In
the east are Alangudi (ஆலங்குடி), Pudukkottai, Aranthangi and part of Thirumayam
taluk-s, and are bereft of hard rocks. Alluvia and soft rock are found here.
Hills
Though the Tamil word used for the hills of Pudukkottai is malai (மலை) ,
that is mountain, none of the outcrops would meet the requirement of the definition.
There are numerous hills and lofty rocks are to be found in Pudukkottai. The
important among them are the Narttamalai hills (நார்த்தாமலை மலைகள்), Sevalur
hills (செவலூர் மலைகள்) and Annavasal hills (அன்னவாசல் மலைகள்). Fine quality
granite is available in plenty. Names of a number of places bear malai as suffix
or prefix like Narttamalai (நார்த்தாமலை), Viralimalai (விராலிமலை), Malayadippatti
(மலையடிப்பட்டி), Malaiyakkoil (மலையக்கோயில்), etc.
Plains
The Pudukkottai terrain studded with hills and knolls in the west of the
district, gently slopes towards the flatland, estuaries and seacoast in the
east. The plains of east Pudukkottai consist of miles of open country, ploughed
fields and tidal mudflats. The presence of alluvial soil on the east Pudukkottai
surface makes it fertile and suitable for agriculture.
Tanks
The district s tanks are ubiquitous. Irrespective of the geology, tanks,
called kanmai (கண்மாய்) in Tamil, can be seen distributed over the entire district.
These tanks irrigate the district s agricultural fields.
Rivers
Rivers in Pudukkottai are only jungle streams that themselves take their
rise from tanks. Since the tanks have surplus only for a short period around
the monsoon time, most rivers are dry for most part of the year. The most significant
stream is Vellaru (வெள்ளாறு). The other streams or rivers are the Pambaru (பாம்பாறு, 'Snake-river'),
the Agniyaru (அக்னியாறு, Fire-river ), the Ambuliyaru (அம்புலியாறு), etc.
Seacoast
The length of seacoast in the district is about 36 kilometers. Where the
rivers of the district enter the sea, estuarine islets have been formed. The
point off Mimisal (மீமிசல்), where Kolavanaru (கொலவனாறு) joins the sea, is
one such islet. The Pudukkottai seaboard, like the rest of the Coromandal coast,
has a simple structure.
ENVIRONMENT
Climate
The district has a hot tropical climate, humid near the coast. The summer
season is from March to May, May being the hottest (Temperature about 37 deg
C). South-west monsoon lasts from June to September. October and November constitute
the retreating monsoon season. The north-east monsoon is over by the second-half
of December.
The relative humidity is between 50 and 80 per cent, but during February-July
the air is drier. The annual rainfall is in the vicinity of 950 mm.
The sky is generally cloudy during the monsoon. In the rest of the year it
is mostly clear.
Recorded history of Pudukkottai lists a succession of years that have witnessed
drought and the consequent famine.
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