| Pulhal | |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Pushpin Map: | India Chennai#Tamil Nadu#India |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Tamil Nadu, India |
| Coordinates: | 13.1697°N 80.2072°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  India |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Tamil Nadu |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Chennai district |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Population Total: | 20297 |
| Population As Of: | 2001 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Languages |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Official |
| Demographics1 Info1: | Tamil |
| Timezone1: | IST |
| Utc Offset1: | +5:30 |
| Postal Code: | 600066 |
| Registration Plate: | TN-18 |
Pulhal is a Northwestern residential town in Chennai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Pulhal is located on the banks of Pulhal Lake. The town is known for Pulhal Central Prison.
The area is one of the 163 notified areas (megalithic sites) in the state of Tamil Nadu.[1]
In ancient times, the region was ruled by a chief of the Kurumbars variously titled as Kamunda Kurumba Prabhu and Pulhal Raja who is also credited with building a royal fort at this site.[2] The fort and the land was later overran by the Chola sovereign from Thanjavur.[3]
Pulhal aeri, or Pulhal lake, also known as the Red Hills Lake, is located in Ponneri Taluk of Thiruvallur district, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the two rain-fed reservoirs from where water is drawn for supply to Chennai City, the other one being the Chembarambakkam Lake / Porur Lake.
India census,[4] Pulhal had a population of 20,297. Males constitute 49% of the population and females 51%. Pulhal has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 68%. In Pulhal, 14% of the population is under 6 years of age. Pulhal is now in Chennai District. Major to supply water to Chennai people.
Pulhal camp is one of the Sri Lankan refugee camps out of 115 camps were found in Tamil Nadu. According to Indian census Thiruvallur districts has second highest Sri Lankan refugee population. It has 1,646 households with a total of 5,387 refugees. Particularly Pulhal camp has second highest refugee population in Thiruvallur district. It accounts for 408 households with a refugee population of 1,283. That is why Pulhal Town is also expressed as Camp.
Pulhal Central Prison is located in the neighbourhood. The prison began operation in 2006, replacing the erstwhile Chennai Central Prison.
The plan for the construction of Pulhal Central Prison was conceived during the early 2000s. Sites in Pulhal and in Maraimalai Nagar were initially considered and the final decision to construct in Pulhal was made due to the availability of large piece of Government owned land. It was constructed by Tamil Nadu Police Housing Corporation (TNPHC) for a cost of 1,770 million in less than 3 years. It was inaugurated by then chief minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Karunanidhi, on 26 November 2006.[5]