Gobichettipalayam () is the Selection grade municipality in 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, from the district headquarters Erode, from Tiruppur and from Coimbatore. Agriculture and textile industries contribute majorly to the economy of the town and the town is situated at above sea level, surrounded by Western Ghats. The town is a part of Gobichettipalayam constituency and the Tirupur constituency that elects its member of parliament. The town is administered by a municipality established in 1949 and has a population of 65,238 as of 2011. 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.
History
A major part of present Gobichettipalayam was previously known as "Veerapandi Gramam", and documents and records still use that name. 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). Pariyur, a temple town near Gobichettipalayam was named after him. The land was later ruled by the Cheras and Vijayanagara empire with the town deriving its name after Gobi Chetti, a Vijayanagara Polygar. It was captured by Tipu Sultan and after Tipu's defeat, British annexed it to their territory.
Demographics
According to 2011 census, Gobichettipalayam had a population of 65,238 with a sex-ratio of 1,062 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 4,669 were under the age of six, constituting 2,364 males and 2,305 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 10.74% and 0.08% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the city was 78.52%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The city had a total of 17064 households. There were a total of 25,225 workers, comprising 512 cultivators, 2,035 main agricultural labourers, 637 in house hold industries, 21,070 other workers, 971 marginal workers, 15 marginal cultivators, 308 marginal agricultural labourers, 57 marginal workers in household industries and 591 other marginal workers.
The population is dominated by the Kongu Vellalar community. There are a significant number of Senguntha Mudaliars, Vanniyars, Dalits, Nadars and Vettuva Gounders. As per the religious census of 2011, Gobichettipalayam had 90.3% Hindus, 7.1% Muslims, 2.5% Christians and 0.1% others.
Administration
The town is administered by the Gobichettipalayam Municipality. The muincipal body was constituted on 1 October 1949 and was elevated to Grade II on 10 February 1970. It was later upgraded to first Grade on 1 October 1977 and Selection Grade on 2 December 2008.
Politics
The town elects a Member to the legislative assembly. It is currently represented by education minister K. A. Sengottaiyan of AIADMK. Gobichettipalayam was a parliamentary constituency until 2009 and 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.
Transport
The municipality of Gobichettipalayam has of roads of which is owned by the State Highways Department. 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. 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.