Vellore district

Vellore district

Muthu Mandapam

Muthu Mandapam is also called the 'Pearl Palace'. This is a memorial, which is built around the tombstone of the last Kandy Tamil ruler, Vikramraja Singh. It is situated just steps away from Vellore town towards north and is built on the bed of River Palar. The memorial is on a major alteration plan and is said that it will be added with a Children park, an aquarium and a lot more.

 

Government Museum

The Government Museum is situated besides the main bus stand in Lakshmanaswamy Town Hall. The museum is under the watch of Department of Museums. This might be the most unusual museum that you will ever see. It has in its collection, artifacts from many fields like anthropology, art, archeology, pre-history, botany, geology. Except for government holidays, the museum is open on all days from 9a.m to 12 noon and from 2 p.m. to 5p.m.

 

Amirthi Zoological Park

Amirthi zoological park is situated under the Javadu Hills of Tellaiacross Amirthi river which is 25 kms away from vellore. It also is atourism spot. This zoo logical park was started in the year 1967October. The area of the park is 25 hectares and one can findbeautiful water falls. There are also different kinds of birds andanimals. Swings, Seesaw etc., are there for children to play.Numerous kinds of herbal plants and trees and sandal wood treesalso grow here. There are 2 rest houses and five members can stayis one dormitory. There is a meditating hall where one can have fullconcentration and be in serenity. The inflow of tourists is more only during the holidays. This zoological park has been recognized recently and so the state Government has taken initiative to develop this area. The entrance fees is only Rs 2/- per head, for cycles Rs.3/- for van Rs.5/- for motor cyclesRs.2/- . The Government earns Rs.6000/- per month and Rs.72,000/- per year by this entrance fees. The tribal people reside in this area. There is a range office at Amirthi headed by the forest ranger, Mr.Deendayalan at present 2001.) There is also a hill tribe society at Nimmiyambattu near Amirthi. The main aim is to give employment opportunities to the hill tribals in that area.
Animals and Birds in Amirthi Zoological Park
1. SPOTTED DEER - 22	10. WILD CAT - 1
2. HEDGEHOG - 1	11. EAGLE - 2
3. FOX - 4	12. DUCK - 3
4. REASON MONKEY - 2	13. PIGEON - 14
5. RED HEADED PARROT - 13	14. WILD PARROT - 3
6. LOVE BIRDS - 18	15. RABBIT - 2
7. TORTOISE - 15	16. PYTHON - 2
8. PEACOCK - 5	17. MONGOOSE - 1
9. CROCODILE - 3

 

Javadu Hills

Jamanamarathur, 40 Km from Polur, is the main village in Javadu hills, which is famous for its sandalwood and fruit bearing trees. Its altitude varies from 300 to 1,000 m

 

Jalagampaari Falls

Jalagampaari waterfalls situated 17-km from Tirupattur in Vellore district is a fine picnic spot. There is a Murugan temple beside the waterfalls, where the deity is in the form of VEL (a kind of spear). The Murugan temple attracts tourists throughout the year.

 

Elagiri Hills

An isolated, attractive picnic spot in the Eastern Ghats is the Elagiri Hills, at an elevation of about 1000 meters. A salubrious climate; scenic surroundings and a quaint Murugan temple are some of the attractions of this place. These hills are an ideal location for a weekend where one could organize one day or two days' trekking

 

Virinjipuram

This magnificent temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is famous for its devotees who throng here with ardent belief that a dream on the last Sunday of Karthigai month will reveal of their fortune of being blessed with an offspring. The Lion-faced Simmakulam tank is considered to be very sacred.

 

Thiruvannamalai

 

The temple town of Thiruvannamalai, 85 Km south of Vellore, is an important Shaivite town. Though Hindus seek god in the form idol, it is also their strong belief that god is also in the form of Light or Flame. These symbolic ideals are represented in Thiruvannamalai. The sculptures in the pillars and the idol lingam are very huge and enticing that they make one wonder at the artistic spirit of those artisans. The Deepam Festival in the month of Karthigai (November) is very popular and it attracts devotees in large numbers.

NEAR BY CITIES

Chennai - 122-km Bangalore - 206-km Kanchipuram - 61-km (Temples City, Kamakshi and Eswar Temples) Thiruttani - 31-km Thiruvannamalai - 76-km (Well known Eswar Temple and Girivalam )

 

  Getting There

By Air

Banglore in the state of Karnataka is the nearest airport around 103 km away. Flights from all over the country come to Banglore everyday.

By Rail

Katpadi railway junction is the nearest station to Vellore, most of the trains passing through here, have a 2-minute halt.

By Road

It takes around 2.5 hrs from Chennai and around 3.5 hrs from Banglore to reach here. There are regular transport buses that come here from Chennai and Banglore apart from other main cities of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.