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204-484: Anuppampattu spans a total geographical area of 961.57 hectares. According to the 2011 Census of India, Anuppampattu has a total population of 8,719 individuals. The population is almost evenly split between men and women, with 4,370 men and 4,349 women. The village has a literacy rate of 77.69%, with male literacy at 85.44% and female literacy at 70.00%. There are around 2,350 houses in Anuppampattu. Ponneri, being

408-783: A banana leaf , and using clean fingers of the right hand to take the food into the mouth. After the meal, the fingers are washed; the easily degradable banana leaf is discarded or becomes fodder for cattle. Eating on banana leaves is a custom thousands of years old, imparts a unique flavor to the food, and is considered healthy. Idli , dosa , uthappam , pongal , and paniyaram are popular breakfast dishes in Tamil Nadu. Palani Panchamirtham , Ooty varkey , Kovilpatti Kadalai Mittai , Manapparai Murukku and Srivilliputhur Palkova are unique foods that have been recognised as Geographical Indications . Tamil Nadu has an independent literary tradition dating back over 2500 years from

612-526: A tank called the kalyani or pushkarni . The gopuram is a monumental tower, usually ornate at the entrance of the temple forms a prominent feature of koils and Hindu temples of the Dravidian style. They are topped by the kalasam , a bulbous stone finial and function as gateways through the walls that surround the temple complex. The gopuram's origins can be traced back to the Pallavas who built

816-547: A European woman, and ordinarily more problematic to imprison, was arrested in 1917. Now, as constitutional reform began to be discussed in earnest, the British began to consider how new moderate Indians could be brought into the fold of constitutional politics and, simultaneously, how the hand of established constitutionalists could be strengthened. However, since the Government of India wanted to ensure against any sabotage of

1020-631: A Railway Board; irrigation reform; reduction of peasant debts; lowering the cost of telegrams; archaeological research and the preservation of antiquities; improvements in the universities; police reforms; upgrading the roles of the Native States; a new Commerce and Industry Department; promotion of industry; revised land revenue policies; lowering taxes; setting up agricultural banks; creating an Agricultural Department; sponsoring agricultural research; establishing an Imperial Library; creating an Imperial Cadet Corps; new famine codes; and, indeed, reducing

1224-564: A book on ethics by Thiruvalluvar , is amongst the most popular works of Tamil literature. In the early medieval period, Vaishnava and Shaiva literature became prominent following the Bhakti movement in the sixth century CE with hymns composed by the Alvars and the Nayanars . In the following years, Tamil literature again flourished with notable works including Ramavataram , written in

1428-607: A champion of the emancipation of Indian women, took up the cause of widow remarriage, especially of Brahmin widows, later converted to Christianity. By 1900 reform movements had taken root within the Indian National Congress. Congress member Gopal Krishna Gokhale founded the Servants of India Society , which lobbied for legislative reform (for example, for a law to permit the remarriage of Hindu child widows), and whose members took vows of poverty, and worked among

1632-470: A committee chaired by a British judge, Sidney Rowlatt , and was tasked with investigating "revolutionary conspiracies", with the unstated goal of extending the government's wartime powers. The Rowlatt Committee comprised four British and two Indian members, including Sir Basil Scott and Diwan Bahadur Sir C. V. Kumaraswami Sastri , the present and future Chief Justices of the High Court of Bombay and

1836-654: A confederacy of Deccan sultanates . Later, the Nayaks , who were the military governors in the Vijaynagara Empire, took control of the region amongst whom the Nayaks of Madurai and Nayaks of Thanjavur were the most prominent. They introduced the palayakkararar system and re-constructed some of the well-known temples in Tamil Nadu including the Meenakshi Temple in Madurai. In the 18th century,

2040-564: A demand for Purna Swaraj ( Hindustani language : "complete independence"), or Purna Swarajya. The declaration was drafted by the Congress Working Committee , which included Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, and Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari . Gandhi subsequently led an expanded movement of civil disobedience, culminating in 1930 with the Salt Satyagraha , in which thousands of Indians defied the tax on salt, by marching to

2244-612: A large urban settlement, with the earliest artefact dated to 580 BCE, during the time of urbanization in the Indo-Gangetic plain . Further epigraphical inscriptions found at Adichanallur use Tamil Brahmi , a rudimentary script dated to 5th century BCE. Potsherds uncovered from Keeladi indicate a script which might be a transition between the Indus Valley script and Tamil Brahmi script used later. The Sangam period lasted for about eight centuries, from 500 BCE to 300 CE with

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2448-629: A loyal supporter of Gandhi and go on to play a prominent role in the Indian independence movement. When Gandhi was ordered to leave by the local British authorities, he refused on moral grounds, setting up his refusal as a form of individual Satyagraha . Soon, under pressure from the Viceroy in Delhi who was anxious to maintain domestic peace during wartime, the provincial government rescinded Gandhi's expulsion order, and later agreed to an official enquiry into

2652-802: A marine national park and Guindy , an urban national park within Chennai. Tamil Nadu has 18 wildlife sanctuaries . Tamil Nadu is home to one of the largest populations of endangered Bengal tigers and Indian elephants in India. There are five declared elephant sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu as per Project Elephant –Agasthyamalai, Anamalai , Coimbatore , Nilgiris and Srivilliputtur . Tamil Nadu participates in Project Tiger and has five declared tiger reserves –Anamalai, Kalakkad-Mundanthurai , Mudumalai , Sathyamangalam and Megamalai. There are seventeen declared bird sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu. There

2856-484: A more radical resolution which asked for the British to declare that it was their "aim and intention ... to confer self-government on India at an early date". Soon, other such rumblings began to appear in public pronouncements: in 1917, in the Imperial Legislative Council , Madan Mohan Malaviya spoke of the expectations the war had generated in India, "I venture to say that the war has put

3060-527: A number of temples including the Meenakshi Amman Temple at Madurai. In the 13th and 14th centuries, there were repeated attacks from Delhi Sultanate . The Vijayanagara kingdom was founded in 1336  CE . The Vijayanagara empire eventually conquered the entire Tamil country by c.  1370 and ruled for almost two centuries until its defeat in the Battle of Talikota in 1565 by

3264-460: A part of a Tamil meal. Coconut and spices are used extensively in Tamil cuisine. The region has a rich cuisine involving both traditional non-vegetarian and vegetarian dishes made of rice, legumes , and lentils with its distinct aroma and flavour achieved by the blending of flavourings and spices. The traditional way of eating a meal involves being seated on the floor, having the food served on

3468-874: A port named São Tomé near present-day Mylapore in Madras. In 1609, the Dutch established a settlement in Pulicat and the Danes had their establishment in Tharangambadi . On 20 August 1639, Francis Day of the British East India Company met with the Vijayanager emperor Peda Venkata Raya and obtained a grant for land on the Coromandel coast for their trading activities. A year later,

3672-544: A practical level, it was felt that there needed to be more communication and camaraderie between the British and Indians—not just between British army officers and their Indian staff but in civilian life as well. The Indian army was completely reorganised: units composed of the Muslims and Brahmins of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh , who had formed the core of the rebellion, were disbanded. New regiments, like

3876-402: A practical strategy adopted by the weak in the face of superior force; Satyagraha , on the other hand, was for him the "last resort of those strong enough in their commitment to truth to undergo suffering in its cause". Ahimsa or "non-violence", which formed the underpinning of Satyagraha , came to represent the twin pillar, with Truth, of Gandhi's unorthodox religious outlook on life. During

4080-599: A region of low seismic hazard with the exception of the western border areas that lie in a low to moderate hazard zone; as per the 2002 Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) map, Tamil Nadu falls in Zones II and III. The volcanic basalt beds of the Deccan plateau were laid down in the massive Deccan Traps eruption, which occurred towards the end of the Cretaceous period, between 67 and 66 million years ago. Layer after layer

4284-572: A result of his civil liberties protests on behalf of the Indians in South Africa, Gandhi followed the advice of his mentor Gopal Krishna Gokhale and chose not to make any public pronouncements during the first year of his return, but instead spent the year travelling, observing the country at first hand, and writing. Earlier, during his South Africa sojourn, Gandhi, a lawyer by profession, had represented an Indian community, which, although small,

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4488-658: A result of the reunification of Bengal in 1911, a decision that was seen as ill-disposed to Muslims. In the Lucknow Pact , the League joined the Congress in the proposal for greater self-government that was campaigned for by Tilak and his supporters; in return, the Congress accepted separate electorates for Muslims in the provincial legislatures as well as the Imperial Legislative Council. In 1916,

4692-404: A significant expatriate population. As of 2011 , the state had 3.49 million immigrants. Distribution of languages in Tamil Nadu (2011) Tamil is the official language of Tamil Nadu, while English serves as the additional official language. Tamil is one of the oldest languages and was the first to be recognized as a classical language of India . As per the 2011 census, Tamil is spoken as

4896-606: A term of three years and consisted of 132 Members of which 34 were nominated by the Governor and the rest were elected. The Government of India Act 1935 established a bicameral legislature with the creation of a new legislative council with 54 to 56 members in July 1937. The first legislature of Madras state under the Constitution of India was constituted on 1 March 1952 after the 1952 elections . The number of seats post

5100-592: A type of silk sari made in the Kanchipuram region in Tamil Nadu and these saris are worn as bridal and special occasion saris by most women in South India. It has been recognized as a Geographical indication by the Government of India in 2005–2006. Kovai Cora is a type of cotton sari made in the Coimbatore. Rice is the diet staple and is served with sambar , rasam , and poriyal as

5304-598: A watershed in the imperial relationship between Britain and India. Shortly before the outbreak of war, the Government of India had indicated that they could furnish two divisions plus a cavalry brigade, with a further division in case of emergency. Some 1.4   million Indian and British soldiers of the British Indian Army took part in the war, primarily in Iraq and the Middle East . Their participation had

5508-545: A wider cultural fallout as news spread of how bravely soldiers fought and died alongside British soldiers, as well as soldiers from dominions like Canada and Australia. India's international profile rose during the 1920s, as it became a founding member of the League of Nations in 1920 and participated, under the name "Les Indes Anglaises" (British India), in the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. Back in India, especially among

5712-490: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu ( / ˌ t æ m ɪ l ˈ n ɑː d uː / ; Tamil: [ˈtamiɻ ˈnaːɽɯ] , abbr. TN ) is the southernmost state of India . The tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population , Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people , who speak the Tamil language —the state's official language and one of

5916-552: Is a classical dance form that originated in Tamil Nadu and is one of the oldest dances of India. Other regional folk dances include Karakattam , Kavadi , Koodiyattam , Oyilattam , Paraiattam and Puravaiattam . The dance, clothing, and sculptures of Tamil Nadu exemplify the beauty of the body and motherhood. Koothu is an ancient folk art, where artists tell stories from the epics accompanied by dance and music. The ancient Tamil country had its own system of music called Tamil Pannisai described by Sangam literature such as

6120-533: Is a group of Maddalams and other similar percussion instruments from the ancient Tamilakam which are played during events. The traditional music of Tamil Nadu is known as Carnatic music , which includes rhythmic and structured music by composers such as Muthuswami Dikshitar . Gaana , a combination of various folk musics, is sung mainly in the working-class area of North Chennai. British Raj The British Raj ( / r ɑː dʒ / RAHJ ; from Hindustani rāj , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government')

6324-780: Is at Kanyakumari where the Indian Ocean meets the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats run south along the western boundary with the highest peak at Doddabetta (2,636 m (8,648 ft)) in the Nilgiri Hills . The Eastern Ghats run parallel to the Bay of Bengal along the eastern coast and the strip of land between them forms the Coromandel region. They are a discontinuous range of mountains intersected by Kaveri river . Both mountain ranges meet at

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6528-500: Is bound by the Indian states of Kerala , Karnataka , and Andhra Pradesh , and the union territory of Puducherry . It shares an international maritime border with the Northern Province of Sri Lanka at Pamban Island . The Palk Strait and the chain of low sandbars and islands known as Rama's Bridge separate the region from Sri Lanka , which lies off the southeastern coast. The southernmost tip of mainland India

6732-507: Is found in western Tamil Nadu and parts of the southern coast. Alluvial soil is found in the fertile Kaveri delta region, with laterite soil found in pockets, and saline soil across the coast where the evaporation is high. The region has a tropical climate and depends on monsoons for rainfall. Tamil Nadu is divided into seven agro-climatic zones: northeast, northwest, west, southern, high rainfall, high altitude hilly, and Kaveri delta. A tropical wet and dry climate prevails over most of

6936-578: Is not suitable for agriculture. The southwest monsoon from June to September accounts for most of the rainfall in the region. The Arabian Sea branch of the southwest monsoon hits the Western Ghats from Kerala and moves northward along the Konkan coast , with precipitation on the western region of the state. The lofty Western Ghats prevent the winds from reaching the Deccan Plateau; hence,

7140-1466: Is one conservation reserve at Tiruvidaimarudur in Thanjavur district . There are two zoos recognised by the Central Zoo Authority of India namely Arignar Anna Zoological Park and Madras Crocodile Bank Trust , both located in Chennai . The state has other smaller zoos run by local administrative bodies such as Coimbatore Zoo in Coimbatore , Amirthi Zoological Park in Vellore , Kurumpampatti Wildlife Park in Salem , Yercaud Deer Park in Yercaud , Mukkombu Deer Park in Tiruchirapalli and Ooty Deer Park in Nilgiris . There are five crocodile farms located at Amaravati in Coimbatore district , Hogenakkal in Dharmapuri district , Kurumbapatti in Salem district , Madras Crocodile Bank Trust in Chennai and Sathanur in Tiruvannamalai district . Threatened and endangered species found in

7344-451: Is one of the most urbanized states in the country with more than 48.4 per cent of the population living in urban areas. As per the 2011 census, the sex ratio was 996 females per 1000 males, higher than the national average of 943. The sex ratio at birth was recorded as 954 during the fourth National Family Health Survey (NFHS) in 2015–16 which reduced further to 878 in the fifth NFHS in 2019–21, ranking third worst amongst states. As per

7548-516: Is responsible for maintaining law and order in the state. As of 2023 , it consists of more than 132,000 police personnel, headed by a Director General of Police . Women form 17.6% of the police force and specifically handle violence against women through 222 special all-women police stations. As of 2023 , the state has 1854 police stations, the highest in the country, including 47 railway and 243 traffic police stations. The traffic police under different district administrations are responsible for

7752-420: Is the distinct style of rock architecture in Tamil Nadu. In Dravidian architecture, the temples consisted of porches or mantapas preceding the door leading to the sanctum, gate-pyramids or gopurams in quadrangular enclosures that surround the temple, and pillared halls used for many purposes. These features are the invariable accompaniments of these temples. Besides these, a South Indian temple usually has

7956-904: Is the tenth-largest state in India. Located on the south-eastern coast of the Indian peninsula , Tamil Nadu is straddled by the Western Ghats and Deccan Plateau in the west, the Eastern Ghats in the north, the Eastern Coastal Plains lining the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait to the south-east, and the Laccadive Sea at the southern cape of the peninsula. Politically, Tamil Nadu

8160-586: Is typically wrapped around the waist, with one end draped over the shoulder, baring the midriff, as according to Indian philosophy, the navel is considered as the source of life and creativity. Ancient Tamil poetry such as the Cilappadhikaram , describes women in exquisite drapery or sari. Women wear colourful silk saris on special occasions such as marriages. The men wear a dhoti , a 4.5 metres (15 ft) long, white rectangular piece of non-stitched cloth often bordered in brightly coloured stripes. It

8364-400: Is usually wrapped around the waist and the legs and knotted at the waist. A colourful lungi with typical batik patterns is the most common form of male attire in the countryside. People in urban areas generally wear tailored clothing, and western dress is popular. Western-style school uniforms are worn by both boys and girls in schools, even in rural areas. The Kanchipuram silk sari is

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8568-691: Is very diverse, containing the Himalayan mountains, fertile floodplains, the Indo-Gangetic Plain , a long coastline, tropical dry forests, arid uplands, and the Thar Desert . In addition, at various times, it included Aden (from 1858 to 1937), Lower Burma (from 1858 to 1937), Upper Burma (from 1886 to 1937), British Somaliland (briefly from 1884 to 1898), and the Straits Settlements (briefly from 1858 to 1867). Burma

8772-653: The Velir chiefs. The rulers patronized multiple religions including vedic religion , Buddhism and Jainism and sponsored some of the earliest Tamil literature with the oldest surviving work being Tolkāppiyam , a book of Tamil grammar. The kingdoms had significant diplomatic and trade contacts with other kingdoms to the north and with the Romans . Much of the commerce from the Romans and Han China were facilitated via seaports including Muziris and Korkai with spices being

8976-654: The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 added to the general jitters; the former among the population already experiencing economic woes, and the latter among government officials, fearing a similar revolution in India. To combat what it saw as a coming crisis, the government now drafted the Rowlatt committee's recommendations into two Rowlatt Bills . Although the bills were authorised for legislative consideration by Edwin Montagu, they were done so unwillingly, with

9180-404: The Census of British India in 1871, which had for the first time estimated the populations in regions of the Muslim majority (for his part, Curzon's desire to court the Muslims of East Bengal had arisen from British anxieties ever since the 1871 census—and in light of the history of Muslims fighting them in the 1857 Mutiny and the Second Anglo-Afghan War —about Indian Muslims rebelling against

9384-434: The Dravidian languages and preserves many features of Proto-Dravidian , though modern-day spoken Tamil in Tamil Nadu freely uses loanwords from other languages such as Sanskrit and English. Korean , Japanese , French , Mandarin Chinese , German and Spanish are spoken by foreign expatriates in the state. The LGBT rights in Tamil Nadu are among the most progressive in India . In 2008, Tamil Nadu set up

9588-576: The Government of India Act 1935 , which authorised the establishment of independent legislative assemblies in all provinces of British India, the creation of a central government incorporating both the British provinces and the princely states, and the protection of Muslim minorities. The future Constitution of independent India was based on this act. However, it divided the electorate into 19 religious and social categories, e.g., Muslims, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Depressed Classes, Landholders, Commerce and Industry, Europeans, Anglo-Indians, etc., each of which

9792-524: The High Court of Madras . It presented its report in July 1918 and identified three regions of conspiratorial insurgency: Bengal , the Bombay presidency , and the Punjab . To combat subversive acts in these regions, the committee unanimously recommended that the government use emergency powers akin to its wartime authority, which included the ability to try cases of sedition by a panel of three judges and without juries, exaction of securities from suspects, governmental overseeing of residences of suspects, and

9996-449: The Independence of India in 1947, the Madras Presidency became Madras state , comprising present-day Tamil Nadu and parts of Andhra Pradesh , Karnataka and Kerala . Andhra state was split from the state in 1953 and the state was further re-organized when states were redrawn linguistically in 1956 into the current shape. On 14 January 1969, Madras state was renamed Tamil Nadu, meaning "Tamil country". In 1965, agitations against

10200-425: The Indian Ocean . Rajaraja brought in administrative reforms including the reorganisation of Tamil country into individual administrative units. Under his son Rajendra Chola I , the Chola empire reached its zenith and stretched as far as Bengal in the north and across the Indian Ocean. The Cholas built many temples in the Dravidian style with the most notable being the Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur, one of

10404-415: The Indian Parliament . The Madras High Court was established on 26 June 1862 and is the highest judicial authority of the state with control over all the civil and criminal courts in the state. It is headed by a Chief Justice and has a bench at Madurai since 2004. The Tamil Nadu Police , established as Madras state police in 1859, operates under the Home ministry of the Government of Tamil Nadu and

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10608-605: The Laccadive Sea at the southern cape of the peninsula, with the river Kaveri bisecting the state. Politically, Tamil Nadu is bound by the Indian states of Kerala , Karnataka , and Andhra Pradesh , and encloses a part of the union territory of Puducherry . It shares an international maritime border with the Northern Province of Sri Lanka at Pamban Island . Archaeological evidence points to Tamil Nadu being inhabited for more than 400 millennia, first by hominids and then by modern humans . The state has more than 5,500 years of continuous cultural history. Historically ,

10812-403: The Minto–Morley Reforms , and more recently of the Congress-Muslim League Lucknow Pact, was reaffirmed, with seats being reserved for Muslims, Sikhs , Indian Christians , Anglo-Indians , and domiciled Europeans, in both provincial and Imperial legislative councils. The Montagu–Chelmsford reforms offered Indians the most significant opportunity yet for exercising legislative power, especially at

11016-445: The Mughal empire administered the region through the Nawab of the Carnatic with his seat at Arcot , who defeated the Madurai Nayaks. The Marathas attacked several times and defeated the Nawab after the Siege of Trichinopoly (1751–1752) . This led to a short-lived Thanjavur Maratha kingdom . Europeans started to establish trade centres from the 16th century along the eastern coast. The Portuguese arrived in 1522 and built

11220-417: The Nilgiri mountains which run in a crescent approximately along the borders of Tamil Nadu with northern Kerala and Karnataka, extending to the relatively low-lying hills of the Eastern Ghats on the western portion of the Tamil Nadu–Andhra Pradesh border. The Deccan plateau is the elevated region bound by the mountain ranges and the plateau slopes gently from west to east resulting in major rivers arising in

11424-750: The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve in the Nilgiri Hills , the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve in the Agastya Mala - Cardamom Hills and Gulf of Mannar coral reefs. The Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve covers an area of 10,500 km (4,100 sq mi) of ocean, islands and the adjoining coastline including coral reefs , salt marshes and mangroves. It is home to endangered aquatic species, including dolphins , dugongs , whales and sea cucumbers . Bird sanctuaries, including Thattekad , Kadalundi , Vedanthangal , Ranganathittu , Kumarakom , Neelapattu , and Pulicat , are home to numerous migratory and local birds. Protected areas cover an area of 3,305 km (1,276 sq mi), constituting 2.54% of

11628-409: The Partition of Bengal , which was a strategy set out by Lord Curzon to weaken the nationalist movement, Tilak encouraged the Swadeshi movement and the Boycott movement. The movement consisted of the boycott of foreign goods and also the social boycott of any Indian who used foreign goods. The Swadeshi movement consisted of the usage of natively produced goods. Once foreign goods were boycotted, there

11832-433: The Ryotwari system resulted in two severe famines in the Madras Presidency, the Great Famine of 1876–78 and the Indian famine of 1896–97 which killed millions and the migration of many Tamils as bonded laborers to other British countries eventually forming the present Tamil diaspora . The Indian Independence movement gathered momentum in the early 20th century with the formation of the Indian National Congress , which

12036-492: The Second Anglo-Afghan War ) and the attempts to control the vernacular press (e.g. in the Vernacular Press Act of 1878 ). It was, however, Viceroy Lord Ripon 's partial reversal of the Ilbert Bill (1883), a legislative measure that had proposed putting Indian judges in the Bengal Presidency on equal footing with British ones, that transformed the discontent into political action. On 28 December 1885, professionals and intellectuals from this middle-class — many educated at

12240-463: The Silappatikaram . A Pallava inscription dated to the 7th century CE has one of the earliest surviving examples of Indian music in notation. There are many traditional instruments from the region dating back to the Sangam period such as parai , tharai , yazh and murasu . Nadaswaram , a reed instrument that is often accompanied by the thavil , a type of drum instrument , are the major musical instruments used in temples and weddings. Melam

12444-420: The Tamilakam region was inhabited by Tamil-speaking Dravidian people , who were ruled by several regimes over centuries such as the Sangam era triumvirate of the Cheras , Cholas and Pandyas , the Pallavas (3rd–9th century CE), and the later Vijayanagara Empire (14th–17th century CE). European colonization began with establishing trade ports in the 17th century, with the British controlling much of

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12648-536: The University of Madras , is the first among the dictionaries published in any Indian language. The 19th century gave rise to the Tamil Renaissance and writings and poems by authors such as Meenakshi Sundaram Pillai , U.V. Swaminatha Iyer , Ramalinga Swamigal , Maraimalai Adigal , and Bharathidasan . During the Indian Independence Movement , many Tamil poets and writers sought to provoke national spirit, social equity and secularist thoughts, notably Subramania Bharati and Bharathidasan. Dravidian architecture

12852-462: The Vellar estuary in the north and Coleroon estuary in the south with mangrove forests. The Pichavaram mangrove forests is one of the largest mangrove forests in India covering 45 km (17 sq mi) and supports the existence of rare varieties of economically important shells, fishes and migrant birds. The state has five National Parks covering 307.84 km (118.86 sq mi)– Anamalai , Mudumalai, Mukurthi , Gulf of Mannar ,

13056-436: The Viceroy and the central government in New Delhi, other departments like public health, education, land-revenue, local self-government were transferred to the provinces. The provinces themselves were now to be administered under a new diarchical system, whereby some areas like education, agriculture, infrastructure development, and local self-government became the preserve of Indian ministers and legislatures, and ultimately

13260-405: The chief minister who has the de facto executive authority. The Indian Councils Act 1861 established the Madras Presidency legislative council with four to eight members but was a mere advisory body to the governor of the presidency. The strength was increased to twenty in 1892 and fifty in 1909 . Madras legislative council was set-up in 1921 by the Government of India Act 1919 with

13464-434: The imposition of Hindi and in support of continuing English as a medium of communication arose which eventually led to English being retained as an official language of India alongside Hindi. After independence, the economy of Tamil Nadu conformed to a socialist framework, with strict governmental control over private sector participation, foreign trade , and foreign direct investment . After experiencing fluctuations in

13668-403: The poverty line as per the Multidimensional Poverty Index , one of the lowest rates amongst Indian states. The capital of Chennai is the most populous urban agglomeration in the state with more than 8.6 million residents, followed by Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirappalli and Tiruppur , respectively. The state is home to a diverse population of ethno-religious communities. According to

13872-402: The princely states . The region was sometimes called the Indian Empire , though not officially. The area of British India contained much of the present-day states of Pakistan , India , Bangladesh , and Myanmar (Burma) . This system of governance was instituted on 28 June 1858, when, after the Indian Rebellion of 1857 , the rule of the East India Company was transferred to the Crown in

14076-447: The untouchable community . By 1905, a deep gulf opened between the moderates, led by Gokhale, who downplayed public agitation, and the new "extremists" who not only advocated agitation, but also regarded the pursuit of social reform as a distraction from nationalism. Prominent among the extremists was Bal Gangadhar Tilak , who attempted to mobilise Indians by appealing to an explicitly Hindu political identity, displayed, for example, in

14280-437: The 12th century CE by Kambar . After a lull in the intermediate years due to various invasions and instability, the Tamil literature recovered in the 14th century CE, with the notable work being Tiruppukal by Arunagirinathar . In 1578, the Portuguese published a Tamil book in old Tamil script named Thambiraan Vanakkam , thus making Tamil the first Indian language to be printed and published. Tamil Lexicon , published by

14484-406: The 18th century, the British had conquered most of the region and established the Madras Presidency with Madras as the capital. After the defeat of Mysore in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799 and the British victory in the second Polygar war in 1801, the British consolidated most of southern India into what was later known as the Madras Presidency . On 10 July 1806, the Vellore mutiny , which

14688-440: The 2011 census, Hinduism is followed by 87.6% of the population. Christians form the largest religious minority in the state with 6.1% of the population; Muslims form 5.9% of the population. Tamils form a majority of the population with minorities including Telugus , Marwaris , Gujaratis , Parsis , Sindhis , Odias , Kannadigas , Anglo-Indians , Bengalis , Punjabis , and Malayalees . The state also has

14892-432: The 2011 census, Literacy rate was 80.1%, higher than the national average of 73%. The literacy rate was estimated to be 82.9% as per the 2017 National Statistical Commission (NSC) survey. As of 2011 , there were about 23.17 million households with 7.42 million children under the age of six. A total of 14.4 million (20%) belonged to Scheduled Castes (SC) and 0.8 million (1.1%) to Scheduled tribes (ST). As of 2017 ,

15096-771: The 3rd century BCE. The available literature from the Sangam period was categorised and compiled into two categories based roughly on chronology: the Patiṉeṇmēlkaṇakku consisting of Eṭṭuttokai and the Pattupattu , and the Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku . The existent Tamil grammar is largely based on the 13th-century grammar book Naṉṉūl based on the Tolkāppiyam. Tamil grammar consists of five parts, namely eḻuttu , sol , poruḷ , yāppu , aṇi . Tirukkural ,

15300-431: The British enterprise in India, it had not derailed it. Until 1857, the British, especially under Lord Dalhousie , had been hurriedly building an India which they envisaged to be on par with Britain itself in the quality and strength of its economic and social institutions. After the rebellion, they became more circumspect. Much thought was devoted to the causes of the rebellion and three main lessons were drawn. First, at

15504-571: The British era followed the style. By the early 20th century, art deco made its entry in the urban landscape. After Indian Independence, Tamil architecture witnessed a rise in Modernism with the transition from lime-and-brick construction to concrete columns. Tamil Nadu is a major centre for music, art and dance in India. Chennai is called the cultural capital of South India. In the Sangam era, art forms were classified into: iyal (poetry), isai (music) and nadakam (drama). Bharatanatyam

15708-422: The British felt disenchanted with Indian reaction to social change. Until the rebellion, they had enthusiastically pushed through social reform, like the ban on sati by Lord William Bentinck . It was now felt that traditions and customs in India were too strong and too rigid to be changed easily; consequently, no more British social interventions were made, especially in matters dealing with religion, even when

15912-494: The British felt very strongly about the issue (as in the instance of the remarriage of Hindu child widows). This was exemplified further in Queen Victoria's Proclamation released immediately after the rebellion. The proclamation stated that 'We disclaim alike our Right and Desire to impose Our Convictions on any of Our Subjects'; demonstrating official British commitment to abstaining from social intervention in India. In

16116-550: The British subsequently widened participation in legislative councils with the Indian Councils Act of 1892 . Municipal Corporations and District Boards were created for local administration; they included elected Indian members. The Indian Councils Act 1909 , known as the Morley-Minto Reforms ( John Morley was the secretary of state for India, and Minto was viceroy)—gave Indians limited roles in

16320-565: The British, subsequently signed treaties with them and were recognised by the British as independent states. The Kingdom of Sikkim was established as a princely state after the Anglo-Sikkimese Treaty of 1861; however, the issue of sovereignty was left undefined. The Maldive Islands were a British protectorate from 1887 to 1965, but not part of British India. Although the Indian Rebellion of 1857 had shaken

16524-497: The Congress primarily debated British policy toward India. Its debates created a new Indian outlook that held Great Britain responsible for draining India of its wealth. Britain did this, the nationalists claimed, by unfair trade, by the restraint on indigenous Indian industry, and by the use of Indian taxes to pay the high salaries of the British civil servants in India. Thomas Baring served as Viceroy of India 1872–1876. Baring's major accomplishments came as an energetic reformer who

16728-467: The Crown). In the three decades since, Muslim leaders across northern India had intermittently experienced public animosity from some of the new Hindu political and social groups. The Arya Samaj , for example, had not only supported Cow Protection Societies in their agitation, but also—distraught at the 1871 Census's Muslim numbers—organized "reconversion" events for the purpose of welcoming Muslims back to

16932-649: The Government of India reporting 379   dead, with 1,100   wounded. The Indian National Congress estimated three times the number of dead. Dyer was removed from duty but he became a celebrated hero in Britain among people with connections to the Raj. Historians consider the episode was a decisive step towards the end of British rule in India. In 1920, after the British government refused to back down, Gandhi began his campaign of non-cooperation , prompting many Indians to return British awards and honours, to resign from

17136-575: The Hindu fold. In 1905, when Tilak and Lajpat Rai attempted to rise to leadership positions in the Congress, and the Congress itself rallied around the symbolism of Kali, Muslim fears increased. It was not lost on many Muslims, for example, that the rallying cry, "Bande Mataram", had first appeared in the novel Anand Math in which Hindus had battled their Muslim oppressors. Lastly, the Muslim elite, and among it Dacca Nawab , Khwaja Salimullah , who hosted

17340-463: The Indian National Congress surprised Raj officials, who previously had seen the Congress as a small elitist body. The British separated Burma Province from British India in 1937 and granted the colony a new constitution calling for a fully elected assembly, with many powers given to the Burmese, but this proved to be a divisive issue as a ploy to exclude Burmese from any further Indian reforms. With

17544-422: The Indian electorates, while others like irrigation, land-revenue, police, prisons, and control of media remained within the purview of the British governor and his executive council. The new Act also made it easier for Indians to be admitted into the civil services and the army officer corps. A greater number of Indians were now enfranchised, although, for voting at the national level, they constituted only 10% of

17748-519: The League's first meeting in his mansion in Shahbag , was aware that a new province with a Muslim majority would directly benefit Muslims aspiring to political power. The first steps were taken toward self-government in British India in the late 19th century with the appointment of Indian counsellors to advise the British viceroy and the establishment of provincial councils with Indian members;

17952-464: The Muslim League had anywhere between 500 and 800   members and did not yet have the wider following among Indian Muslims that it enjoyed in later years; in the League itself, the pact did not have unanimous backing, having largely been negotiated by a group of "Young Party" Muslims from the United Provinces (UP), most prominently, two brothers Mohammad and Shaukat Ali , who had embraced

18156-632: The Mutiny. Since Dalhousie had embraced the technological change then rampant in Great Britain, India too saw the rapid development of all those technologies. Railways, roads, canals, and bridges were rapidly built in India, and telegraph links were equally rapidly established so that raw materials, such as cotton, from India's hinterland, could be transported more efficiently to ports, such as Bombay , for subsequent export to England. Likewise, finished goods from England, were transported back for sale in

18360-489: The Pan-Islamic cause; however, it did have the support of a young lawyer from Bombay, Muhammad Ali Jinnah , who was later to rise to leadership roles in both the League and the Indian independence movement. In later years, as the full ramifications of the pact unfolded, it was seen as benefiting the Muslim minority élites of provinces like UP and Bihar more than the Muslim majorities of Punjab and Bengal; nonetheless, at

18564-505: The Sangam era. Early Tamil literature was composed in three successive poetic assemblies known as the Tamil Sangams , the earliest of which, according to legend, were held on a now vanished continent far to the south of India. This includes the oldest grammatical treatise, Tolkappiyam , and the epics Cilappatikaram and Manimekalai . The earliest epigraphic records found on rock edicts and hero stones date from around

18768-561: The Sikhs and Baluchis, composed of Indians who, in British estimation, had demonstrated steadfastness, were formed. From then on, the Indian army was to remain unchanged in its organisation until 1947. The 1861 Census had revealed that the English population in India was 125,945. Of these only about 41,862 were civilians as compared with about 84,083 European officers and men of the Army. In 1880,

18972-695: The Tamil country was divided between the Pallavas and the Pandyas. The Pallavas were finally defeated by Chola prince Aditya I in the 9th century CE. The Cholas became the dominant kingdom in the 9th century under Vijayalaya Chola , who established Thanjavur as Chola's new capital with further expansions by subsequent rulers. In the 11th century CE, Rajaraja I expanded the Chola empire with conquests of entire Southern India and parts of present-day Sri Lanka and Maldives , and increased Chola influence across

19176-460: The Transgender welfare board and was the first to introduce a transgender welfare policy, wherein transgender people can avail free sex reassignment surgery in government hospitals. Chennai Rainbow Pride has been held in Chennai annually since 2009. In 2021, Tamil Nadu became the first Indian state to ban conversion therapy and forced sex-selective surgeries on intersex infants , following

19380-518: The United Nations and the Food and Agricultural Organisation well into the 1970s. By 1880, a new middle class had arisen in India and spread thinly across the country. Moreover, there was a growing solidarity among its members, created by the "joint stimuli of encouragement and irritation". The encouragement felt by this class came from its success in education and its ability to avail itself of

19584-514: The Western Ghats and flowing east into the Bay of Bengal. The coastline of Tamil Nadu is 1,076 km (669 mi) long, and is the second longest state coastline in the country after Gujarat . There are coral reefs located in the Gulf of Mannar and Lakshadweep islands. Tamil Nadu's coastline was permanently altered by the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004. Tamil Nadu falls mostly in

19788-898: The Western Ghats while tropical dry forests and scrub lands are common in the interior. The southern Western Ghats have rain forests located at high altitudes called the South Western Ghats montane rain forests . The Western Ghats eco-region is one of the eight hottest biodiversity hotspots in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site . There are about 2,000 species of wildlife that are native to Tamil Nadu, 5640 species of angiosperms (including 1,559 species of medicinal plants , 533 endemic species, 260 species of wild relatives of cultivated plants, 230 red-listed species), 64 species of gymnosperms (including four indigenous species and 60 introduced species) and 184 species of pteridophytes apart from bryophytes , lichen , fungi , algae , and bacteria . Common plant species include

19992-466: The accompanying declaration, "I loathe the suggestion at first sight of preserving the Defence of India Act in peacetime to such an extent as Rowlatt and his friends think necessary." In the ensuing discussion and vote in the Imperial Legislative Council, all Indian members voiced opposition to the bills. The Government of India was, nevertheless, able to use of its "official majority" to ensure passage of

20196-487: The annual public Ganapati festivals that he inaugurated in western India. The viceroy, Lord Curzon (1899–1905), was unusually energetic in pursuit of efficiency and reform. His agenda included the creation of the North-West Frontier Province ; small changes in the civil services; speeding up the operations of the secretariat; setting up a gold standard to ensure a stable currency; creation of

20400-522: The benefits of that education such as employment in the Indian Civil Service . It came too from Queen Victoria's proclamation of 1858 in which she had declared, "We hold ourselves bound to the natives of our Indian territories by the same obligation of duty which bind us to all our other subjects." Indians were especially encouraged when Canada was granted dominion status in 1867 and established an autonomous democratic constitution. Lastly,

20604-557: The bills early in 1919. However, what it passed, in deference to the Indian opposition, was a lesser version of the first bill, which now allowed extrajudicial powers, but for a period of exactly three years and for the prosecution solely of "anarchical and revolutionary movements", dropping entirely the second bill involving modification the Indian Penal Code . Even so, when it was passed, the new Rowlatt Act aroused widespread indignation throughout India, and brought Gandhi to

20808-410: The burgeoning Indian markets. Unlike Britain, where the market risks for the infrastructure development were borne by private investors, in India, it was the taxpayers—primarily farmers and farm-labourers—who endured the risks, which, in the end, amounted to £50 million. Despite these costs, very little skilled employment was created for Indians. By 1920, with the fourth largest railway network in

21012-525: The case. Although the British planters eventually gave in, they were not won over to the farmers' cause, and thereby did not produce the optimal outcome of a Satyagraha that Gandhi had hoped for; similarly, the farmers themselves, although pleased at the resolution, responded less than enthusiastically to the concurrent projects of rural empowerment and education that Gandhi had inaugurated in keeping with his ideal of swaraj . The following year Gandhi launched two more Satyagrahas—both in his native Gujarat —one in

21216-462: The central and provincial legislatures. Upper-class Indians, rich landowners and businessmen were favoured. The Muslim community was made a separate electorate and granted double representation. The goals were quite conservative but they did advance the elective principle. The partition of Bengal was rescinded in 1911 and announced at the Delhi Durbar at which King George V came in person and

21420-544: The chief minister of the Madras Presidency. In 1944, Periyar transformed the Justice party into a social organisation, renaming the party Dravidar Kazhagam , and withdrew from electoral politics. After independence, the Indian National Congress dominated the political scene in Tamil Nadu in the 1950s and 1960s under the leadership of K. Kamaraj , who led the party after the death of Jawaharlal Nehru and ensured

21624-581: The civil services, and to again boycott British goods. In addition, Gandhi reorganised the Congress, transforming it into a mass movement and opening its membership to even the poorest Indians. Although Gandhi halted the non-cooperation movement in 1922 after the violent incident at Chauri Chaura , the movement revived again, in the mid-1920s. The visit, in 1928, of the British Simon Commission , charged with instituting constitutional reform in India, resulted in widespread protests throughout

21828-412: The clock ... fifty years forward ... (The) reforms after the war will have to be such, ... as will satisfy the aspirations of her (India's) people to take their legitimate part in the administration of their own country." The 1916 Lucknow Session of the Congress was also the venue of an unanticipated mutual effort by the Congress and the Muslim League, the occasion for which was provided by

22032-681: The company built Fort St. George , the first major English settlement in India, which became the nucleus of the British Raj in the region. By 1693, the French established trading posts at Pondichéry . In September 1746, the French captured Madras during the Battle of Madras . The British regained control of Madras in 1749 through the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle and resisted a French siege attempt in 1759. The British and French competed to expand

22236-579: The continuing distrust of Indians resulted in a declining base in terms of quality and quantity. By 1945 Indians were numerically dominant in the ICS and at issue was divided loyalty between the Empire and independence. The finances of the Raj depended on land taxes, and these became problematic in the 1930s. Epstein argues that after 1919 it became harder and harder to collect the land revenue. The Raj's suppression of civil disobedience after 1934 temporarily increased

22440-729: The country, but especially in the Madras Presidency and in regions like Sind and Gujarat that had hitherto been considered politically dormant by the Congress. Both leagues rapidly acquired new members—approximately thirty   thousand each in a little over a year—and began to publish inexpensive newspapers. Their propaganda also turned to posters, pamphlets, and political-religious songs, and later to mass meetings, which not only attracted greater numbers than in earlier Congress sessions, but also entirely new social groups such as non- Brahmins , traders, farmers, students, and lower-level government workers. Although they did not achieve

22644-593: The country. Earlier, in 1925, non-violent protests of the Congress had resumed too, this time in Gujarat, and led by Patel, who organised farmers to refuse payment of increased land taxes; the success of this protest, the Bardoli Satyagraha , brought Gandhi back into the fold of active politics. At its annual session in Lahore , the Indian National Congress, under the presidency of Jawaharlal Nehru , issued

22848-420: The decades immediately after Indian independence, the economy of Tamil Nadu consistently exceeded national average growth rates from the 1970s, due to reform-oriented economic policies. In the 2000s, the state has become one of the most urbanized states in the country with a higher Human Development Index compared to national average. Tamil Nadu covers an area of 130,058 km (50,216 sq mi) and

23052-627: The directions of the Madras High ;Court. In 2019, the Madras High Court ruled that the term "bride" under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 includes trans-women, thereby legalizing marriage between a man and a transgender woman. Tamil women traditionally wear a sari , a garment that consists of a drape varying from 5 to 9 yards (4.6 to 8.2 m) in length and 2 to 4 feet (0.61 to 1.22 m) in breadth that

23256-523: The effect of approximately doubling the index of overall prices in India between 1914 and 1920. Returning war veterans, especially in the Punjab, created a growing unemployment crisis, and post-war inflation led to food riots in Bombay, Madras, and Bengal provinces, a situation that was made only worse by the failure of the 1918–19 monsoon and by profiteering and speculation. The global influenza epidemic and

23460-418: The encouragement came from the work of contemporaneous Oriental scholars like Monier Monier-Williams and Max Müller , who in their works had been presenting ancient India as a great civilisation. Irritation, on the other hand, came not just from incidents of racial discrimination at the hands of the British in India, but also from governmental actions like the use of Indian troops in imperial campaigns (e.g. in

23664-628: The era. Tamil classic Tirukkural by Valluvar , a collection of couplets is attributed to the same period. Around the 7th century CE, the Kalabhras were overthrown by the Pandyas and Cholas, who patronised Buddhism and Jainism before the revival of Saivism and Vaishnavism during the Bhakti movement . Though they existed previously, the period saw the rise of the Pallavas in the sixth century CE under Mahendravarman I , who ruled parts of South India with Kanchipuram as their capital. The Pallavas were noted for their patronage of architecture:

23868-544: The face of new strength demonstrated by the nationalists with the signing of the Lucknow Pact and the founding of the Home Rule leagues , and the realisation, after the disaster in the Mesopotamian campaign , that the war would likely last longer, the new viceroy, Lord Chelmsford , cautioned that the Government of India needed to be more responsive to Indian opinion. Towards the end of the year, after discussions with

24072-437: The first Indian Governor General of India post independence, was from Tamil Nadu. The state has produced three Indian presidents, namely, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan , R. Venkataraman , and APJ Abdul Kalam . As per the 2011 census , Tamil Nadu had a population of 72.1 million and is the seventh most populous state in India. The population is projected to be 76.8 million in 2023 and to grow to 78 million by 2036. Tamil Nadu

24276-550: The first language by 88.4% of the state's population, followed by Telugu (5.87%), Kannada (1.78%), Urdu (1.75%), Malayalam (1.01%) and other languages (1.24%) Various varieties of Tamil are spoken across regions such as Madras Bashai in northern Tamil Nadu, Kongu Tamil in Western Tamil Nadu , Madurai Tamil around Madurai and Nellai Tamil in South-eastern Tamil Nadu. It is part of

24480-549: The first series of Polygar wars. The Maruthu brothers along with Oomaithurai , the brother of Kattabomman, formed a coalition with Dheeran Chinnamalai and Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja , which fought the British in the Second Polygar War. In the later 18th century, the Mysore kingdom captured parts of the region and engaged in constant fighting with the British which culminated in the four Anglo-Mysore Wars . By

24684-572: The forefront of the nationalist movement. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre or "Amritsar massacre", took place in the Jallianwala Bagh public garden in the predominantly Sikh northern city of Amritsar . After days of unrest Brigadier-General Reginald E.H. Dyer forbade public meetings and on Sunday 13 April 1919 fifty British Indian Army soldiers commanded by Dyer began shooting at an unarmed gathering of thousands of men, women, and children without warning. Casualty estimates vary widely, with

24888-410: The foremost temples of the era built by Rajaraja, and Gangaikonda Cholapuram , built by Rajendra. The Pandyas again reigned supreme early in the 13th century under Maravarman Sundara I . They ruled from their capital of Madurai and expanded trade links with other maritime empires. During the 13th century, Marco Polo mentioned the Pandyas as the richest empire in existence. The Pandyas also built

25092-511: The form predominantly of the Swadeshi ("buy Indian") campaign led by two-time Congress president, Surendranath Banerjee , and involved boycott of British goods. The rallying cry for both types of protest was the slogan Bande Mataram ("Hail to the Mother"), which invoked a mother goddess, who stood variously for Bengal, India, and the Hindu goddess Kali . Sri Aurobindo never went beyond

25296-533: The founding of the All-India Muslim League in Dacca . Although Curzon, by now, had resigned his position over a dispute with his military chief Lord Kitchener and returned to England, the League was in favour of his partition plan. The Muslim elite's position, which was reflected in the League's position, had crystallized gradually over the previous three decades, beginning with the revelations of

25500-401: The full control of their hereditary rulers, with no popular government. To prepare for elections Congress built up its grass roots membership from 473,000 in 1935 to 4.5   million in 1939. In the 1937 elections Congress won victories in seven of the eleven provinces of British India. Congress governments, with wide powers, were formed in these provinces. The widespread voter support for

25704-567: The geographic area and 15% of the 22,643 km (8,743 sq mi) recorded forest area of the state. Mudumalai National Park was established in 1940 and was the first modern wildlife sanctuary in South India. The protected areas are administered by the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the government of India and the Tamil Nadu Forest Department . Pichavaram consists of a number of islands interspersing

25908-565: The government in London, he suggested that the British demonstrate their good faith—in light of the Indian war role—through a number of public actions, including awards of titles and honours to princes, granting of commissions in the army to Indians, and removal of the much-reviled cotton excise duty, but, most importantly, an announcement of Britain's future plans for India and an indication of some concrete steps. After more discussion, in August 1917,

26112-587: The group of monuments in Mahabalipuram and Kanchipuram . The Cholas later expanded the same and by the Pandya rule in twelfth century, these gateways became a dominant feature of a temple's outer appearance. The state emblem also features the Lion Capital of Ashoka with an image of a Gopuram on the background. Vimanam are similar structures built over the garbhagriha or inner sanctum of

26316-434: The inland peninsular region except for a semi-arid rain shadow east of the Western Ghats. Winter and early summer are long dry periods with temperatures averaging above 18 °C (64 °F); summer is exceedingly hot with temperatures in low-lying areas exceeding 50 °C (122 °F); and the rainy season lasts from June to September, with annual rainfall averaging between 750 and 1,500 mm (30 and 59 in) across

26520-437: The largest among the Indian states. The state has three biosphere reserves , mangrove forests, five National Parks , 18 wildlife sanctuaries and 17 bird sanctuaries . The Tamil film industry , nicknamed as Kollywood, plays an influential role in the state's popular culture. The name is derived from Tamil language with nadu meaning "land" and Tamil Nadu meaning "the land of Tamils". The origin and precise etymology of

26724-545: The law when he edited the Bande Mataram magazine; it preached independence but within the bounds of peace as far as possible. Its goal was Passive Resistance. The unrest spread from Calcutta to the surrounding regions of Bengal when students returned home to their villages and towns. Some joined local political youth clubs emerging in Bengal at the time, some engaged in robberies to fund arms, and even attempted to take

26928-548: The leaders of the Indian National Congress , the war led to calls for greater self-government for Indians. At the onset of World War I, the reassignment of most of the British army in India to Europe and Mesopotamia , had led the previous viceroy, Lord Harding , to worry about the "risks involved in denuding India of troops". Revolutionary violence had already been a concern in British India; consequently, in 1915, to strengthen its powers during what it saw

27132-464: The leeward region (the region deprived of winds) receives very little rainfall. The Bay of Bengal branch of the southwest monsoon heads toward northeast India, picking up moisture from the Bay of Bengal. The Coramandel coast does not receive much rainfall from the southwest monsoon, due to the shape of the land. Northern Tamil Nadu receives most of its rains from the northeast monsoon . The northeast monsoon takes place from November to early March, when

27336-412: The lives of Raj officials. However, the conspiracies generally failed in the face of intense police work. The Swadeshi boycott movement cut imports of British textiles by 25%. The swadeshi cloth, although more expensive and somewhat less comfortable than its Lancashire competitor, was worn as a mark of national pride by people all over India. The overwhelming, but predominantly Hindu, protest against

27540-410: The longest surviving classical languages of the world. The capital and largest city is Chennai . Located on the south-eastern coast of the Indian peninsula , Tamil Nadu is straddled by the Western Ghats and Deccan Plateau in the west, the Eastern Ghats in the north, the Eastern Coastal Plains lining the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait to the south-east,

27744-561: The magnitude or character of a nationwide mass movement, the Home Rule leagues both deepened and widened organised political agitation for self-rule in India. The British authorities reacted by imposing restrictions on the Leagues, including shutting out students from meetings and banning the two leaders from travelling to certain provinces. The year 1915 also saw the return of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi to India. Already known in India as

27948-519: The main source of history during the period coming from the Sangam literature. Ancient Tamilakam was ruled by a triumvirate of monarchical states, Cheras , Cholas and Pandyas . The Cheras controlled the western part of Tamilkam, the Pandyas controlled the south, and the Cholas had their base in the Kaveri delta. The kings called Vendhar ruled over several tribes of Velala (peasants), headed by

28152-531: The massive gopuram , ornate towers at the entrance of temples, originated with the Pallava architecture . They built the group of rock-cut monuments in Mahabalipuram and temples in Kanchipuram . Throughout their reign, the Pallavas remained in constant conflict with the Cholas and Pandyas. The Pandyas were revived by Kadungon towards the end of the 6th century CE and with the Cholas in obscurity in Uraiyur ,

28356-401: The most industrialised states, with the manufacturing sector accounting for nearly one-third of the state's GDP. With its diverse culture and architecture, long coastline, forests and mountains, Tamil Nadu is home to a number of ancient relics, historic buildings, religious sites, beaches , hill stations , forts , waterfalls and four World Heritage Sites . The state's tourism industry is

28560-638: The most prized goods along with pearls and silk . From 300 CE, the region was ruled by the Kalabhras , warriors belonging to the Vellalar community, who were once feudatories of the three ancient Tamil kingdoms. The Kalabhra era is referred to as the "dark period" of Tamil history, and information about it is generally inferred from any mentions in the literature and inscriptions that are dated many centuries after their era ended. The twin Tamil epics Silappatikaram and Manimekalai were written during

28764-702: The name Tamil Nadu to denote the region. Archaeological evidence points to the region being inhabited by hominids more than 400 millennia ago. Artifacts recovered in Adichanallur by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) indicate a continuous history from more than 3,800 years ago. Neolithic celts with the Indus script dated between 1500 and 2000 BCE indicate the use of the Harappan language . Excavations at Keezhadi have revealed

28968-467: The national parties usually aligning as junior partners to the major Dravidian parties, AIADMK and DMK. M. Karunanidhi became the leader of the DMK after Annadurai and J. Jayalalithaa succeeded as the leader of AIADMK after M. G. Ramachandran. Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa dominated the state politics from the 1980s to early 2010s, serving as chief ministers combined for over 32 years. C. Rajagopalachari,

29172-546: The nearest town to Anuppampattu (about 4km away), serves as the hub for major economic activities for the residents of the village. Its proximity to Ponneri facilitates easy access to markets, healthcare, and other essential services. As of 2011, out of the 4119 people working more than six months of the year, 1384 (37%) were either farm owners, co-owners, or agricultural laborers. 13°18′05″N 80°13′27″E  /  13.30139°N 80.22417°E  / 13.30139; 80.22417 This Tamil Nadu location article

29376-429: The new British-founded universities in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras, and familiar with the ideas of British political philosophers, especially the utilitarians assembled in Bombay — founded the Indian National Congress . The 70 men elected Womesh Chunder Bonerjee as the first president. The membership consisted of a westernised elite, and no effort was made at this time to broaden the base. During its first 20 years,

29580-482: The new Liberal secretary of state for India, Edwin Montagu , announced the British aim of "increasing association of Indians in every branch of the administration, and the gradual development of self-governing institutions, with a view to the progressive realisation of responsible government in India as an integral part of the British Empire". Although the plan envisioned limited self-government at first only in

29784-629: The newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption. The railway network provided critical famine relief, notably reduced the cost of moving goods, and helped nascent Indian-owned industry. After, the Great Famine of 1876–1878 , The Indian Famine Commission report was issued in 1880, and the Indian Famine Codes , the earliest famine scales and programmes for famine prevention, were instituted. In one form or other, they would be implemented worldwide by

29988-474: The partition of Bengal and the fear in its wake of reforms favouring the Hindu majority, led the Muslim elite in India to meet with the new viceroy, Lord Minto in 1906 and to ask for separate electorates for Muslims. In conjunction, they demanded proportional legislative representation reflecting both their status as former rulers and their record of cooperating with the British. This led, in December 1906, to

30192-707: The person of Queen Victoria (who, in 1876, was proclaimed Empress of India ). It lasted until 1947, when the British Raj was partitioned into two sovereign dominion states: the Union of India (later the Republic of India ) and Pakistan (later the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ). Later, the People's Republic of Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan. At the inception of the Raj in 1858, Lower Burma

30396-483: The power for provincial governments to arrest and detain suspects in short-term detention facilities and without trial. With the end of World War I, there was also a change in the economic climate. By the end of 1919, 1.5   million Indians had served in the armed services in either combatant or non-combatant roles, and India had provided £146   million in revenue for the war. The increased taxes coupled with disruptions in both domestic and international trade had

30600-443: The power of the revenue agents but after 1937 they were forced by the new Congress-controlled provincial governments to hand back confiscated land. Again the outbreak of war strengthened them, in the face of the Quit India movement the revenue collectors had to rely on military force and by 1946–47 direct British control was rapidly disappearing in much of the countryside. In 1935, after the Round Table Conferences, Parliament passed

30804-427: The provinces—with India emphatically within the British Empire—it represented the first British proposal for any form of representative government in a non-white colony. Montagu and Chelmsford presented their report in July 1918 after a long fact-finding trip through India the previous winter. After more discussion by the government and parliament in Britain, and another tour by the Franchise and Functions Committee for

31008-515: The provincial level; however, that opportunity was also restricted by the still limited number of eligible voters, by the small budgets available to provincial legislatures, and by the presence of rural and special interest seats that were seen as instruments of British control. Its scope was unsatisfactory to the Indian political leadership, famously expressed by Annie Besant as something "unworthy of England to offer and India to accept". In 1917, as Montagu and Chelmsford were compiling their report,

31212-494: The purpose of identifying who among the Indian population could vote in future elections, the Government of India Act 1919 (also known as the Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms ) was passed in December 1919. The new Act enlarged both the provincial and Imperial legislative councils and repealed the Government of India's recourse to the "official majority" in unfavourable votes. Although departments like defence, foreign affairs, criminal law, communications, and income-tax were retained by

31416-408: The re-organization in 1956 was 206, which was further increased to 234 in 1962. In 1986, the state moved to a unicameral legislature with the abolition of the Legislative Council by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Council (Abolition) act, 1986. The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is housed in the Fort St. George in Chennai. The state elects 39 members to the Lok Sabha and 18 to the Rajya Sabha of

31620-464: The reform process by extremists, and since its reform plan was devised during a time when extremist violence had ebbed as a result of increased governmental control, it also began to consider how some of its wartime powers could be extended into peacetime. After the 1906 split between the moderates and the extremists in the Indian National Congress , organised political activity by the Congress had remained fragmented until 1914, when Bal Gangadhar Tilak

31824-409: The region include the grizzled giant squirrel , grey slender loris , sloth bear , Nilgiri tahr , Nilgiri langur , lion-tailed macaque , and the Indian leopard . Chennai is the capital of the state and houses the state executive , legislative and head of judiciary . The administration of the state government functions through various secretariat departments. There are 43 departments of

32028-685: The region. Once the dry northeast monsoon begins in September, most precipitation in India falls in Tamil Nadu, leaving other states comparatively dry. A hot semi-arid climate predominates in the land east of the Western Ghats which includes inland south and south central parts of the state and gets between 400 and 750 millimetres (15.7 and 29.5 in) of rainfall annually, with hot summers and dry winters with temperatures around 20–24 °C (68–75 °F). The months between March and May are hot and dry, with mean monthly temperatures hovering around 32 °C (90 °F), with 320 millimetres (13 in) precipitation. Without artificial irrigation, this region

32232-414: The removal of untouchability from Indian society; and the exercise of swadeshi —the boycott of manufactured foreign goods and the revival of Indian cottage industry . The first two, he felt, were essential for India to be an egalitarian and tolerant society, one befitting the principles of Truth and Ahimsa , while the last, by making Indians more self-reliant, would break the cycle of dependence that

32436-450: The rural Kaira district where land-owning farmers were protesting increased land-revenue and the other in the city of Ahmedabad , where workers in an Indian-owned textile mill were distressed about their low wages. The satyagraha in Ahmedabad took the form of Gandhi fasting and supporting the workers in a strike, which eventually led to a settlement. In Kaira, in contrast, although the farmers' cause received publicity from Gandhi's presence,

32640-421: The same time, it was felt that the peasants, for whose benefit the large land reforms of the United Provinces had been undertaken, had shown disloyalty, by, in many cases, fighting for their former landlords against the British. Consequently, no more land reforms were implemented for the next 90 years: Bengal and Bihar were to remain the realms of large land holdings (unlike the Punjab and Uttar Pradesh ). Third,

32844-409: The satyagraha itself, which consisted of the farmers' collective decision to withhold payment, was not immediately successful, as the British authorities refused to back down. The agitation in Kaira gained for Gandhi another lifelong lieutenant in Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel , who had organised the farmers, and who too would go on to play a leadership role in the Indian independence movement. In 1916, in

33048-430: The sea and making their own salt by evaporating seawater. Although, many, including Gandhi, were arrested, the British government eventually gave in, and in 1931 Gandhi travelled to London to negotiate new reform at the Round Table Conferences . In local terms, British control rested on the Indian Civil Service (ICS), but it faced growing difficulties. Fewer and fewer young men in Britain were interested in joining, and

33252-401: The second half of the 19th century, both the direct administration of India by the British crown and the technological change ushered in by the industrial revolution, had the effect of closely intertwining the economies of India and Great Britain. In fact many of the major changes in transport and communications (that are typically associated with Crown Rule of India) had already begun before

33456-529: The selection of Prime Ministers Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi . C. N. Annadurai , a follower of Periyar, formed the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in 1949. The Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu led to the rise of Dravidian parties that formed Tamil Nadu's first government, in 1967 . In 1972, a split in the DMK resulted in the formation of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) led by M. G. Ramachandran . Dravidian parties continue to dominate Tamil Nadu electoral politics with

33660-442: The smoke nuisance in Calcutta. Trouble emerged for Curzon when he divided the largest administrative subdivision in British India, the Bengal Province , into the Muslim-majority province of Eastern Bengal and Assam and the Hindu-majority province of West Bengal (present-day Indian states of West Bengal , Bihar , and Odisha ). Curzon's act, the Partition of Bengal , had been contemplated by various colonial administrations since

33864-454: The standing Indian Army consisted of 66,000 British soldiers, 130,000 Natives, and 350,000 soldiers in the princely armies. Second, it was also felt that both the princes and the large land-holders, by not joining the rebellion, had proved to be, in Lord Canning's words, "breakwaters in a storm". They too were rewarded in the new British Raj by being integrated into the British-Indian political system and having their territories guaranteed. At

34068-755: The state and the departments have further sub-divisions which may govern various undertakings and boards. The state is divided into 38 districts , each of which is administered by a District Collector , who is an officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) appointed to the district by the Government of Tamil Nadu. For revenue administration, the districts are further subdivided into 87 revenue divisions administered by Revenue Divisional Officers (RDO) which comprise 310 taluks administered by Tahsildars . The taluks are divided into 1349 revenue blocks called Firkas which consist of 17,680 revenue villages. The local administration consists of 15 municipal corporations , 121 municipalities and 528 town panchayats in

34272-424: The state as a part of the Madras Presidency for two centuries. After the Indian Independence in 1947, the region became the Madras State of the Republic of India and was further re-organized when states were redrawn linguistically in 1956 into its current shape. The state was renamed as Tamil Nadu, meaning "Tamil Country", in 1969. Hence, culture , cuisine and architecture have seen multiple influences over

34476-419: The state had the lowest fertility rate in India with 1.6 children born for each woman, lower than required for sustaining the population. As of 2021 , the Human Development Index (HDI) for Tamil Nadu was 0.686, higher than that of India (0.633) but ranked medium. As of 2019 , the life expectancy at birth was 74 years, one of the highest amongst Indian states. As of 2023, 2.2% of the people live below

34680-510: The state tree: palmyra palm , eucalyptus , rubber, cinchona , clumping bamboos ( Bambusa arundinacea ), common teak , Anogeissus latifolia , Indian laurel , grewia , and blooming trees like Indian laburnum , ardisia , and solanaceae . Rare and unique plant life includes Combretum ovalifolium , ebony ( Diospyros nilagrica ), Habenaria rariflora (orchid), Alsophila , Impatiens elegans , Ranunculus reniformis , and royal fern . Important ecological regions of Tamil Nadu are

34884-399: The superiority of this new form of organised agitation, which had achieved some success in the Irish home rule movement , over the political violence that had intermittently plagued the subcontinent during the years 1907–1914. The two Leagues focused their attention on complementary geographical regions: Tilak's in western India, in the southern Bombay presidency , and Besant's in the rest of

35088-405: The surface high-pressure system is strongest. The North Indian Ocean tropical cyclones occur throughout the year in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, bringing devastating winds and heavy rainfall. The annual rainfall of the state is about 945 mm (37.2 in) of which 48 per cent is through the northeast monsoon, and 52 per cent through the southwest monsoon. The state has only 3% of

35292-411: The temple but are usually smaller than the gopurams in the Dravidian architecture with a few exceptions including the Brihadisvara Temple in Thanjavur . The Mugal influence in medieval times and the British influence later gave rise to a blend of Hindu , Islamic and Gothic revival styles, resulting in the distinct Indo-Saracenic architecture. Several buildings and institutions built during

35496-405: The time of Lord William Bentinck, but was never acted upon. Though some considered it administratively felicitous, it was communally charged. It sowed the seeds of division among Indians in Bengal, transforming nationalist politics as nothing else before it. The Hindu elite of Bengal, among them many who owned land in East Bengal that was leased out to Muslim peasants, protested fervidly. Following

35700-417: The time, the "Lucknow Pact" was an important milestone in nationalistic agitation and was seen as such by the British. During 1916, two Home Rule Leagues were founded within the Indian National Congress by Tilak and Annie Besant , respectively, to promote Home Rule among Indians, and also to elevate the stature of the founders within the Congress itself. Besant, for her part, was also keen to demonstrate

35904-541: The total adult male population, many of whom were still illiterate. In the provincial legislatures, the British continued to exercise some control by setting aside seats for special interests they considered cooperative or useful. In particular, rural candidates, generally sympathetic to British rule and less confrontational, were assigned more seats than their urban counterparts. Seats were also reserved for non-Brahmins, landowners, businessmen, and college graduates. The principal of "communal representation", an integral part of

36108-482: The trade which led to Battle of Wandiwash in 1760 as part of the Seven Years' War . The Nawabs of the Carnatic surrendered much of their territory to the British East India Company in the north and bestowed tax revenue collection rights in the South, which led to constant conflicts with the Palaiyakkarars known as the Polygar Wars . Puli Thevar was one of the earliest opponents, joined later by Rani Velu Nachiyar of Sivagangai and Kattabomman of Panchalakurichi in

36312-435: The traffic management in the respective regions. The state is consistently ranked as one of the safest for women with a crime rate of 22 per 100,000 in 2018. Elections in India are conducted by the Election Commission of India , an independent body established in 1950. Politics in Tamil Nadu was dominated by national parties till the 1960s. Regional parties have ruled ever since. The Justice Party and Swaraj Party were

36516-412: The two major parties in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. During the 1920s and 1930s, the Self-Respect Movement , spearheaded by Theagaroya Chetty and E. V. Ramaswamy (commonly known as Periyar), emerged in the Madras Presidency and led to the formation of the Justice party. The Justice Party eventually lost the 1937 elections to the Indian National Congress and Chakravarti Rajagopalachari became

36720-426: The urban areas, and 385 panchayat unions and 12,618 village panchayats , administered by Village Administrative Officers (VAO). Greater Chennai Corporation , established in 1688, is the second oldest in the world and Tamil Nadu was the first state to establish town panchayats as a new administrative unit. In accordance with the Constitution of India , the governor is a state's de jure head and appoints

36924-411: The wartime partnership between Germany and Turkey. Since the Turkish Sultan , or Khalifah , had also sporadically claimed guardianship of the Islamic holy sites of Mecca , Medina , and Jerusalem , and since the British and their allies were now in conflict with Turkey, doubts began to increase among some Indian Muslims about the "religious neutrality" of the British, doubts that had already surfaced as

37128-434: The water resources nationally and is entirely dependent on rains for recharging its water resources. Monsoon failures lead to acute water scarcity and severe drought . Forests occupy an area of 22,643 km (8,743 sq mi) constituting 17.4% of the geographic area. There is a wide diversity of plants and animals in Tamil Nadu, resulting from its varied climates and geography. Deciduous forests are found along

37332-494: The whims of those markets, lost land, animals, and equipment to money-lenders. The latter half of the 19th century also saw an increase in the number of large-scale famines in India . Although famines were not new to the subcontinent, these were particularly severe, with tens of millions dying, and with many critics, both British and Indian, laying the blame at the doorsteps of the lumbering colonial administrations. There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in

37536-559: The word Tamil is unclear with multiple theories attested to it. In the ancient Sangam literature , Tamilakam refers to the area of present-day Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh . Tolkāppiyam (2nd to 1st century BCE) indicates the borders of Tamilakam as Tirumala and Kanniyakumari . The name Tamilakam is used in other Sangam era literature such as Puṟanāṉūṟu , Patiṟṟuppattu , Cilappatikaram , and Manimekalai . Cilappatikaram (5th to 6th century CE) and Ramavataram (12th century CE) mention

37740-418: The world and a history of 60 years of its construction, only ten per cent of the "superior posts" in the Indian Railways were held by Indians. The rush of technology was also changing the agricultural economy in India: by the last decade of the 19th century, a large fraction of some raw materials—not only cotton, but also some food-grains—were being exported to faraway markets. Many small farmers, dependent on

37944-444: The years 1907–1914, Gandhi tested the technique of Satyagraha in a number of protests on behalf of the Indian community in South Africa against the unjust racial laws. Also, during his time in South Africa, in his essay, Hind Swaraj , (1909), Gandhi formulated his vision of Swaraj , or "self-rule" for India based on three vital ingredients: solidarity between Indians of different faiths, but most of all between Hindus and Muslims;

38148-409: The years and have developed diversely. As of December 2023 , Tamil Nadu had an economy with a gross state domestic product (GSDP) of ₹ 27.22 trillion (US$ 330 billion), making it the second-largest economy amongst the 28 states of India. It has the country's 9th-highest GSDP per capita of ₹ 315,220 (US$ 3,800) and ranks 11th in human development index . Tamil Nadu is also one of

38352-422: Was a founding member of the League of Nations , and a founding member of the United Nations in San Francisco in 1945 . India was a participating state in the Summer Olympics in 1900 , 1920 , 1928 , 1932 , and 1936 . The British Raj extended over almost all present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar, except for small holdings by other European nations such as Goa and Pondicherry . This area

38556-466: Was a gap which had to be filled by the production of those goods in India itself. Bal Gangadhar Tilak said that the Swadeshi and Boycott movements are two sides of the same coin. The large Bengali Hindu middle-class (the Bhadralok ), upset at the prospect of Bengalis being outnumbered in the new Bengal province by Biharis and Oriyas, felt that Curzon's act was punishment for their political assertiveness. The pervasive protests against Curzon's decision took

38760-427: Was a time of increased vulnerability, the Government of India passed the Defence of India Act 1915 , which allowed it to intern politically dangerous dissidents without due process, and added to the power it already had under the Indian Press Act of 1910 to imprison journalists without trial and to censor the press. It was under the Defence of India act that the Ali brothers were imprisoned in 1916, and Annie Besant ,

38964-472: Was already a part of British India; Upper Burma was added in 1886, and the resulting union, Burma , was administered as an autonomous province until 1937, when it became a separate British colony, gaining its own independence in 1948. It was renamed Myanmar in 1989. The Chief Commissioner's Province of Aden was also part of British India at the inception of the British Raj, and became a separate colony known as Aden Colony in 1937 as well. As India , it

39168-443: Was based on an idea propagated by the members of the Theosophical Society movement after a Theosophical convention held in Madras in December 1884. Tamil Nadu was the base of various contributors to the Independence movement including V. O. Chidambaram Pillai , Subramaniya Siva and Bharatiyar . The Tamils formed a significant percentage of the members of the Indian National Army (INA), founded by Subhas Chandra Bose . After

39372-455: Was crowned Emperor of India . He announced the capital would be moved from Calcutta to Delhi. This period saw an increase in the activities of revolutionary groups , which included Bengal's Anushilan Samiti and the Punjab's Ghadar Party . However, the British authorities were able to crush violent rebels swiftly, partly because the mainstream of educated Indian politicians opposed violent revolution. The First World War would prove to be

39576-461: Was dedicated to upgrading the quality of government in the British Raj. He began large scale famine relief, reduced taxes, and overcame bureaucratic obstacles in an effort to reduce both starvation and widespread social unrest. Although appointed by a Liberal government, his policies were much the same as viceroys appointed by Conservative governments. Social reform was in the air by the 1880s. For example, Pandita Ramabai , poet, Sanskrit scholar, and

39780-411: Was formed by the volcanic activity that lasted many years and when the volcanoes became extinct, they left a region of highlands with typically vast stretches of flat areas on top like a table. The predominant soils of Tamil Nadu are red loam , laterite , black , alluvial and saline . Red soil, with a higher iron content, occupies a larger portion of the state and all the inland districts. Black soil

39984-474: Was given separate representation in the Provincial Legislative Assemblies. A voter could cast a vote only for candidates in his own category. The 1935 Act provided for more autonomy for Indian provinces, with the goal of cooling off nationalist sentiment. The act provided for a national parliament and an executive branch under the purview of the British government, but the rulers of the princely states managed to block its implementation. These states remained under

40188-403: Was invited by a group of disgruntled tenant farmers who, for many years, had been forced into planting indigo (for dyes) on a portion of their land and then selling it at below-market prices to the British planters who had leased them the land. Upon his arrival in the district, Gandhi was joined by other agitators, including a young Congress leader, Rajendra Prasad , from Bihar, who would become

40392-420: Was perpetuating not only the direction and tenor of the British rule in India, but also the British commitment to it. At least until 1920, the British presence itself was not a stumbling block in Gandhi's conception of swaraj ; rather, it was the inability of Indians to create a modern society. Gandhi made his political debut in India in 1917 in Champaran district in Bihar , near the Nepal border, where he

40596-413: Was referred to coastal regions and northern part of the island at that time (now Sri Lanka ) was ceded to Britain in 1802 under the Treaty of Amiens . These coastal regions were temporarily administered under Madras Presidency between 1793 and 1798, but for later periods the British governors reported to London, and it was not part of the Raj. The kingdoms of Nepal and Bhutan , having fought wars with

40800-420: Was released from prison and began to sound out other Congress leaders about possible reunification. That, however, had to wait until the demise of Tilak's principal moderate opponents, Gopal Krishna Gokhale and Pherozeshah Mehta , in 1915, whereupon an agreement was reached for Tilak's ousted group to re-enter the Congress. In the 1916 Lucknow session of the Congress, Tilak's supporters were able to push through

41004-419: Was separated from India and directly administered by the British Crown from 1937 until its independence in 1948. The Trucial States of the Persian Gulf and the other states under the Persian Gulf Residency were theoretically princely states as well as presidencies and provinces of British India until 1947 and used the rupee as their unit of currency. Among other countries in the region, Ceylon , which

41208-425: Was sufficiently diverse to be a microcosm of India itself. In tackling the challenge of holding this community together and simultaneously confronting the colonial authority, he had created a technique of non-violent resistance, which he labelled Satyagraha (or Striving for Truth). For Gandhi, Satyagraha was different from " passive resistance ", by then a familiar technique of social protest, which he regarded as

41412-429: Was the first instance of a large-scale mutiny by Indian sepoys against the British East India Company, took place in Vellore Fort . After the Indian Rebellion of 1857 , the British Parliament passed the Government of India Act 1858 , which transferred the governance of India from the East India Company to the British crown, forming the British Raj . Failure of the summer monsoons and administrative shortcomings of

41616-444: Was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent , lasting from 1858 to 1947. It is also called Crown rule in India , or Direct rule in India . The region under British control was commonly called India in contemporaneous usage and included areas directly administered by the United Kingdom , which were collectively called British India , and areas ruled by indigenous rulers, but under British paramountcy , called

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