Puducherry
| புதுச்சேரி పాండిచెర్రి പുതുശ്ശേരി Territoire de Pondichéry Union Territory of Pondicherry | |
| Location of புதுச்சேரி పాండిచెర్రి പുതുശ്ശേരി Territoire de Pondichéry Union Territory of Pondicherry | |
| Country |  India |
| District(s) | 4 |
| Established | 1 July 1963 |
| Capital | Puducherry |
| Largest city | Puducherry |
| Lt. Governor | Lieutenant General Bhopinder Singh(Addl.) |
| Chief Minister | V.Vaithilingam |
| Legislature (seats) | Unicameral (30) |
| Population • Density | 973,829 (2nd) • 1,979 /km2 (5,126 /sq mi) |
| Language(s) | Tamil,Telugu, Malayalam, French |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| Area | 492 km² (190 sq mi) |
| ISO 3166-2 | IN-PY |
| Website | www.pondicherry.nic.in |
Coordinates: 11°56′N 79°50′E / 11.93°N 79.83°E / 11.93; 79.83 
Puducherry (help·info); Tamil: புதுச்சேரி, Telugu: పాండిచెర్రి, Malayalam: പുതുശ്ശേരി, French: Pondichéry, English formerly Pondicherry, is a Union Territory of India. It is a former French colony, consisting of four non-contiguous enclaves, or districts, and named after the largest, Puducherry[1]. It is also known as The French Riviera of the East (La Côte d'Azur de l'Est). Of late, Puducherry is also considered an educational hub of southern India, having about 7 medical colleges, 7 engineering colleges, and 10 arts, science, and technical colleges functioning within its territory. Many medical and engineering colleges are also reported to be in queue.
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Geography
Pondicherry consists of four unconnected districts: Pondicherry, Karaikal, and Yanam on the Bay of Bengal and Mahé on the Arabian Sea. Puducherry and Karaikal are by far the larger ones, and are both enclaves of Tamil Nadu. Yanam and Mahé are enclaves of Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, respectively. The territory has a total area of 492 km²: Puducherry (city) 293 km2 (113 sq mi), Karaikal 160 km2 (62 sq mi), Mahé 9 km2 (3.5 sq mi) and Yanam 30 km2 (12 sq mi). It has 900,000 inhabitants (2001)[edit] History
French influence
Pondicherry still retains much evidence of its history as a French colony. The design of the city was based on the French (originally Dutch, the plans of Pondicherry dating from the end of the seventeenth century (1693-1694) are preserved in the National Archives at The Hague) grid pattern and features neat sectors and perpendicular streets. The entire town is divided into two sections, the French Quarter ('Ville Blanche' or 'White town') and the Indian quarter ('Ville Noire' or 'Black Town'). The history of French India is led by Joseph Francois Dupleix, governor general of the French establishment in India, and rival of Robert Clive. Dupleix was primarily responsible for the Carnatic Wars. At first Dupleix was successful in resisting the attacks of the English East India Company, but he lost in the later battles.
There is also French influence in the layout of the city. The numbering of the houses is unique compared to other cities in Tamil Nadu, in that all with the even numbers are on one side and the odd number are on the opposite side of the road.
 The Old Light House |  Old Light House and one of the pillars which were brought from Gingee Fort and installed around the Gandhi Statue on the beach |  Bilingual street sign in French and Tamil |
Official languages of government
| [show]Pondicherry population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1961 | 369,079 | | |
| 1971 | 471,707 | 27.8% | |
| 1981 | 604,471 | 28.1% | |
| 1991 | 807,785 | 33.6% | |
| 2001 | 973,829 | 20.6% | |
| Source: Census of India[2] | |||
The official languages of Pondicherry are Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and French. The status of each language varies with respect to each district. When communicating between districts of different languages, generally English is used for convenience[citation needed].
1.Tamil: Language used by the people in the Tamil majority districts of Pondicherry and Karikal. Also the official language in Tamil Nadu state and a co-official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore. The language is also spoken in Malaysia and Mauritius.
2. Telugu: Another official language of Pondicherry, but used more within Yanam (Telugu district). So, more correctly, it is considered a regional official language of Pondicherry while being the official language of Yanam District. It also has an official language status in the state of Andhra Pradesh. And is spoken widely in Pondicherry and Karaikal also.
3. Malayalam: Another official language of Pondicherry, but used more within Mahé (Malayalam district). So, more correctly, it is considered a regional official language of Pondicherry while being the official language of Mahé District. It also has an official language status in Kerala State and Lakshadweep Islands Union Territory.
4. French: Also the official language of Pondicherry Union Territory. It was the official language of French India (1673-1954) and its official language status was preserved by the Treaty of Cession signed by India and France on 28 May 1956.
French remained as the de jure official language of Pondicherry U.T by the Article XXVIII of Traité de Cession which states that,
- Le français restera langue officielle des Établissements aussi longtemps que les représentants élus de la population n'auront pas pris une décision différente (French version)
- The French language shall remain the official language of the Establishments so long as the elected representatives of the people shall not decide otherwise (English version)
Languages spoken
As of 1981, number of people speaking in each official languages are,
Other Languages (Including Telugu, Malayalam and French) : 10.82 %[4]
Sub-divisions
Puducherry is divided into four districts and each districts are again sub-divided into taluks:
- Karaikal
- Thirunallar
Special administration status
According to Traité de cession dated 1956, the four former French colonies were assured of maintaining their special administrative status. That is why Puducherry is the only Union Territory with some special provisions like Legislative Assembly, French as official language, etc.
The Article II of Traité de Cession states that,
- The Establishments will keep the benefit of the special administrative status which was in force prior to 1 November 1954. Any constitutional changes in this status which may be made subsequently shall be made after ascertaining the wishes of the people.
Puducherry in literature
- Ananda Ranga Pillai (1709-1761), a dubash and famous writer.
- Puducherry (then Pondicherry) was the setting for the first third of the Booker prize-winning novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel.
- Lee Langley's novel A house in Pondicherry was likewise set there.
- In Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Prince Pondicherry has Willy Wonka build him a castle made entirely of chocolate, which quickly melts.
- In the Sherlock Holmes adventure, The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the family of a murder victim resides at Pondicherry Lodge. In the adventure of The Five Orange Pips a frightening letter is postmarked from Pondicherry, India seven weeks before the death of Colonel Openshaw.
- Some Novels of M. Mukundan, Mahe former employee of French Embassy and famous Malayalam Writer.
Economy
Macro-economic trend
This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Puducherry at market prices estimated by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.
| Year | Gross State Domestic Product |
|---|---|
| 1980 | 1,840 |
| 1985 | 3,420 |
| 1990 | 6,030 |
| 1995 | 13,200 |
| 2000 | 37,810 |
Puducherry's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $2 billion in current prices. The potential for fisheries is substantial in the Union Territory. The four regions of the Union Territory have a coastline of 45 km (28 mi) with 675 km2 (261 sq mi) of inshore waters, 1.347 ha of inland water and 800 ha of brackish water. There are 27 marine fishing villages and 23 inland fishing villages with fishermen population of about 65,000 of which 13,000 are actively engaged in fishing. Irrigation tanks and ponds are also tapped for commercial fish rearing. The Railways play a vital role for speedy economic growth. The entire cost towards execution of the new broad gauge line for 10.7 km (6.6 mi) from Karaikal to Nagore would now be funded by the Ministry of Railways and work has already been awarded on turn key basis for laying the new railway line in a period of 18 months. The present availability of power is about 400 MW. The demand is likely to increase with the development of Port, Special Economic Zone, other industrial development, trade, commerce etc.It has been decided to expand the Puducherry Airport so that air services could improve gradually over years, to land ATR to Boeing aircraft, to meet the growing demand for air travel. A MoU has already been signed with Airports Authority of India for expansion of Puducherry Airport in two phases.
Tourist spots
Places to visit
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…..There stands Francois Dupleix. Not too far away is Joan of Arc. It's a trip down France as one crosses symmetrically aligned streets in puducherry.
The Portuguese have been here. So have the Dutch.. The Danes. The English And the French.
By 18th century this tiny fishing village had turned into a grand port city. The French first set foot here in 1670 and left a part of them when their undisturbed rule finished in 1954. Not much has changed since. The history has become punctuated.
The air filled with nostalgia and the present is living up to a heritage that speaks so much. A trip to puducherry is like a journey in time with a vibrant present celebrating its interesting past. "History goes back to the Roman times, but factually started with the arrival of the French in 1963, who founded the town and built it in its present form, during the two and a half century they occupied it."
"puducherry" is the French interpretation of the original name "Puducheri" meaning "new settlement". Many pilgrims have shared the town's hospitality on their way to the temple town of Rameshwaram, thus enriching its culture.
Early Period
The known history of puducherry dates back to the beginning of our era. puducherry also had a flourishing maritime history. Excavations at Arikamedu, about 7 kms to the south of the town, show that Romans came here to trade in the 1st Century AD.
The trade included dyed textiles, pottery and semi-precious stones. The findings are now displayed in the puducherry Museum. Ancient Roman scripts mention one of the trade centres along the Indian coast as Poduca or Poduke, which refers, historians affirm, only to the present puducherry.
Before this period nothing is known with certainty. The "Bahur Plates", issued in the 8th century speak of a Sanskrit University which was here from an earlier period. Legend has it that the sage Agastya established his Ashram here and the place was known as Agastiswaram. An inscription found near the Vedhapuriswara Temple hints at the credibility of this legend.
History continues at the beginning of the fourth century A. D. when the puducherry area is part of the Pallava Kingdom of Kanchipuram. During the next centuries puducherry is occupied by different dynasties of the south: in the tenth century A.D.
The Cholas of Tanjavur took over, only to be replaced by the Pandya Kingdom in the thirteenth century. After a brief invasion by the Muslim rulers of the North, who established the Sultanate of Madurai, the Vijayanagar Empire took control of almost all the South of India and lasted till 1638, when the Sultan of Bijapur began to rule over Gingee.
Foreign contacts
Unlike the Arab merchants, who had been sailing the coasts of India since times immemorable, the impact of European contact had far reaching consequences in terms of establishments and in the end the occupation of the entire Subcontinent.
In 1497 the Portuguese discovered the route to India and began to expand their influence by occupying coastal areas and building harbour towns, which soon extended more than 12.000 miles of coast-line.
The Portuguese established a factory in puducherry at the beginning of the sixteenth century, but were compelled to leave a century later by the ruler of Gingee, who found them unfriendly. After that the Danes shortly set up an establishment, and likewise the Dutch. The latter set up trading posts in Porto Novo and Cuddalore. The French, who had trading centres in the North, Mahe and Madras were invited to open a trading centre in puducherry by the new ruler of Gingee to compete with the Dutch.In 1673, February 4th, Bellanger, a French officer, took up residence in the Danish Lodge in puducherry and the French Period of puducherry began.In 1674 Francois Martin, the first Governor, started to build puducherry and transformed it from a small fishing village into a flourishing port-town.
In 1693 the Dutch took over and fortified the town considerably. But four years later Holland and France signed a peace treaty and the French regained puducherry in 1699. In the 18th century the town was laid out on a grid pattern and grew considerably.
Able Governors like Lenoir (1726-1735) and Dumas (1735-1741) and an ambitious Governor Dupleix (1742-1754) expanded the puducherry area and made it a large and rich town. But ambition clashed with the English interests in India and the local kingdoms and a period of skirmishes and political intrigues began. Under the command of Bussy, Dupleix's army successfully controlled the area between Hyderabad and Cape Comorin. But then Robert Clive arrived in India, a dare-devil officer who dashed the hopes of Dupleix to create a French Colonial India. After a defeat and failed peace talks, Dupleix was recalled to France.
In spite of a treaty between the English and French not to interfere in local politics, the intrigues continued. Subsequently France sent Lally Tollendal to regain the French losses and chase the English out of India. After an initial success they razed Fort St. David in Cuddalore to the ground, but stategic mistakes by Lally led to the loss of the Hyderabad region and the siege of puducherry in 1760. In 1761 puducherry was razed to the ground in revenge and lay in ruins for 4 years. The French had lost their hold in South India.
In 1765 the town is returned to France after a peace treaty with England in Europe. Governor Law de Lauriston set to rebuild the town on the old foundations and after five months 200 European and 2000 Tamil houses had been erected. During the next 50 years puducherry changed hands between France and England with the regularity of their wars and peace treaties.
Only after 1816 the French regained permanent control of puducherry, but the town had lost much of its former glory. Successive Governors improved infrastructure, industry, law and education over the next 138 years. In 1947 the English left India for good, but it lasted till 1954 when the French handed puducherry over to an independent India.After Independent
On November 1, 1954, the French possessions in India were de facto transferred to the Indian Union and puducherry became a Union Territory. 280 years of French rule had come to an end. But only in 1963 puducherry became officially an integral part of India after the French Parliament in Paris rattified the Treaty with India.
puducherry became a Union Territory, not a separate State. A Union Territory (UT) has its own government but falls directly under the Central Government in New Delhi. Though a UT also has an elected Chief Minister and cabinet members, laws and legislative regulations made in these areas have to get sanction or need to be ratified by the Central Government (Centre).
The Centre is represented by the Lt. Governor, who resides at the Raj Nivas at the
Park, the former palace of the French Governor.puducherry still has a large number of Tamil residents with French passports, whose ancestors were in French Governmental service and who chose to remain French at the time of Independence. Apart from the monuments pertaining to the French Period, there is the French Consulate in puducherry and several cultural organisation, and even the Foyer du Soldat for war veterans of the French Army. Of the cultural organisations the French Institute, the Alliance Francais and the Ecole Francais d'Extrème Orient are noteworthy
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