| Gobichettipalayam | |
| Native Name Lang: | ta |
| Other Name: | Gobi |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Nickname: | Chinna Kodambakkam (Mini Kollywood) |
| Pushpin Map: | India Tamil Nadu |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Gobichettipalayam, Tamil Nadu |
| Coordinates: | 11.4549°N 77.4365°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | India |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Tamil Nadu |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | Kongu Nadu |
| Subdivision Type3: | District |
| Subdivision Name3: | Erode District |
| Established Title: | Municipality |
| Established Date: | 1949[1] |
| Governing Body: | GMC |
| Leader Title1: | Chairman |
| Leader Name1: | N. R. Nagaraj[2] |
| Leader Title2: | Member of the Legislative Assembly |
| Leader Name2: | K. A. Sengottaiyan[3] |
| Leader Title3: | Member of Parliament |
| Leader Name3: | K. Subbarayan[4] |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Elevation M: | 241 |
| Population Total: | 59,523[5] |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Languages |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Official |
| Demographics1 Info1: | Tamil |
| Timezone1: | IST |
| Utc Offset1: | +5:30 |
| Postal Code Type: | PIN |
| Postal Code: | 638452, 638476 |
| Area Code Type: | Telephone code |
| Area Code: | 91(04285) |
| Registration Plate: | TN36 |
| Blank1 Name Sec1: | Literacy |
| Blank1 Info Sec1: | 74% |
| Blank2 Name Sec1: | Lok Sabha constituency |
| Blank2 Info Sec1: | Tiruppur |
| Blank3 Name Sec1: | Vidhan Sabha constituency |
| Blank3 Info Sec1: | Gobichettipalayam |
| Blank4 Name Sec1: | Planning agency |
| Blank4 Info Sec1: | GMC |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | Climate |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | Tropical climate (Köppen) |
| Blank2 Name Sec2: | Avg. annual temperature |
| Blank2 Info Sec2: | 28°C |
| Blank3 Name Sec2: | Avg. summer temperature |
| Blank3 Info Sec2: | 34.3°C |
| Blank4 Name Sec2: | Avg. winter temperature |
| Blank4 Info Sec2: | 24°C |
| Website: | Gobi Municipality |
Gobichettipalayam (in Tamil koːbitɕtɕeʈʈippaːɭaɪjam/) is a town and municipality in Erode district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Gobichettipalayam taluk. It is situated at the center of the South Indian Peninsula at above sea level, surrounded by Western Ghats. It is located 35km (22miles) from the district headquarters Erode, 44km (27miles) from Tiruppur and 80km (50miles) from Coimbatore. Agriculture and textile industries contribute majorly to the economy of the town.
The town is a part of Gobichettipalayam constituency that elects its member to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly and the Tirupur constituency that elects its member of parliament. The town is administered by Gobichettipalayam Municipality established in 1949 and has a population of 59,523 as per the 2011 census. It is known as "Mini Kollywood" because of the film shooting that takes place here and many films in Tamil and other languages have been shot here.
A major part of present day Gobichettipalayam was previously known as "Veerapandi Gramam", and documents and records still use that name.[6] The town was part of the country ruled by king Vēl Pāri, who is regarded as one of the Kadai ēzhu vallal (the last seven great patrons).[7] Pariyur, a temple town near Gobichettipalayam was named after him.[8] The region was later ruled by the Cheras and Vijayanagara empire with the town deriving its name after Gobi Chetti, a Vijayanagara Polygar.[9] It was captured by Tipu Sultan and after Tipu's defeat, British annexed it to their territory.[10]
Gobichettipalayam is located in Kongu Nadu, the northwestern part of Tamil Nadu about south west of Chennai. Western Ghats forms the border of the region resulting several hill locks and Bhavani River traverses across the region. The temperature is moderately warm in Gobichettipalayam, except during the summer months when it is very hot. Rainfall is moderate to high, unpredictable and unevenly distributed. The average annual Rainfall of Gobichettipalayam is 92cms. The soil mainly consists of black loam, red loam and red sand.[11] In general, the soil in and around the city is fertile and good for agriculture purposes and the surrounding water logged rice fields contribute to the high humidity levels.
According to 2011 census, Gobichettipalayam had a population of 59,523 of which 28,866 are males while 30,657 are females.[5] The town had a sex ratio of 1,062 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929 and a literacy rate of 85.2% higher than the national average of 72.99 %.[12] A total of 4,669 were under the age of six, constituting 2,364 males and 2,305 females with Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounting for 10.74% and 0.08% of the population respectively. The town had a total of 17,064 households and 25,225 engaged workers.[13]
The population is dominated by the Kongu Vellalar community.[7] [14] There are also a significant number of Senguntha Mudaliars, Vanniyars, Dalits, Nadars and Vettuva Gounders.[15] [16] As per the religious census of 2011, Gobichettipalayam had 90.3% Hindus, 7.1% Muslims, 2.5% Christians and 0.1% others.[17]
| Title | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Chairman | N. R. Nagaraj | |
| MLA | K. A. Sengottaiyan | |
| MP | K. Subbarayan |
The town elects a Member to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly. It is currently represented by K. A. Sengottaiyan of AIADMK.[3] Gobichettipalayam was a parliamentary constituency until 2009 when it was replaced by the newly formed Tirupur constituency during delimitation by Election Commission of India. After the delimination, Gobichettipalayam assembly constituency is part of the Tirupur constituency, which is currently represented by K. Subbarayan of Communist Party of India.[19]
The municipality of Gobichettipalayam has of roads of which is owned by the State Highways Department.[20] The town is well connected by roads with the major arterial roads including State Highway 81, State Highway 15, State Highway 15A. The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation operates a depot as a part of the Coimbatore division of TNSTC. Buses ply to all major towns and cities within Tamil Nadu and neighboring state of Karnataka. KSRTC buses also connect to the town due to its proximity to Karnataka.
The nearest major railway station is Erode Junction located from the town. A proposal to construct a railway line connecting Mysore with Erode via Gobichettipalayam was mooted during the British rule in 1915. Four official surveys were made in 1922, 1936, 1942 and as recently as 2008, but the plan failed to take off due to the concerns of railway line passing through the Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary.[21] [22] The nearest airport is Coimbatore International Airport, located from the town. The airport has regular flights from/to major domestic destinations and international destinations like Sharjah, Colombo and Singapore.[23]
See main article: List of educational institutions in Gobichettipalayam.
Gobichettipalayam has a good educational infrastructure. Notable schools are Diamond Jubilee Higher Secondary School, established over 100 years ago and visited by Mahatma Gandhi and Shree Vidyalaya which has a full-time dyslexic center.[24] [25] The town is home to Gobi Arts and Science College, one of the oldest arts colleges in the state.[26] The city itself has only a few colleges, but its proximity to Coimbatore and Erode makes it an ideal educational hub.
The town has been described by the government as "Bi-functional", with 31% of the work force engaged in agriculture, 56% in trading and other activities and 13% in industry.[20] A number of banks have their branches in the town with private banker ICICI Bank establishing its third branch in Tamil Nadu here. The economy is predominantly dependent on agriculture.[27] The economy of Gobichettipalayam centers on agriculture, with paddy, sugarcane, plantain, tobacco and turmeric being the principal crops.[6] The taluk is known for its lush green paddy fields which attracts cine industry. Gobichettipalayam is well known for its plantain cultivation and the production of coconuts. There are regulated market places run by the Government of India for the trade of agricultural products mainly turmeric, copra and bananas.[15]
Gobichettipalayam is one of the leading producers of silk cocoon in the country.[27] Mulberry cultivation has increased in the recent years and a silk research extension center was established by the Government of Tamil Nadu in collaboration with the Central Silk Board.[28] India's second automated silk reeling unit was established in here in 2008.[29] A large number of spinning mills have come up in to support to the weaving and knitwear to supplement Tirupur. IT and BPO sectors are also developing with a few start up companies based out of the town.[30] Other industries include cotton textiles, motors, pumps, automobile spares, textile machinery manufacturing, castings and machined parts.
Kongu Tamil, a dialect of Tamil is the language spoken by majority of the people.[31] [32] English is used as an official language along with Tamil. Other languages spoken include Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu. Gobichettipalayam cuisine is predominantly south Indian with rice as its base. Most locals still retain their rural tradition, with many restaurants still serving food on a banana leaf. Idly, dosa, vada-sambar and biryani are popular among the locals.[33] [34]