Kovilpatti is an Industrial City and Special Grade Municipality in Thoothukudi District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
History
The town already existed before 1876. Kovilpatti was a water stop for steam engines after the introduction of the Southern Railways, and the establishment of textile mills like Loyal Textiles (1891) and Lakshmi Mills Ltd (1926) fueled the economic growth of the town. The Government Revenue divisional offices were sited there in 1911. The town was constituted as a Municipal Town in 1964, composed of Kovilpatti Village and Illuppaiyurani village.
Geography
The town is spread around and had a population of 95,097 in 2011, with the urban agglomeration having a population of around 3,00,000.
Kovilpatti is located at . It has an average elevation of 106 metres (347 feet). Located 100 km south of Madurai, 55 km north of Tirunelveli and 60 km north-west of Tuticorin, Kovilpatti is situated on National Highway No. 07 NH 7, which connects Srinagar in the north and Kanyakumari in the south. The town lies approximately 130 m above mean sea level.
Climate
The climate of Kovilpatti town is hot and dry. Temperatures range between a maximum of 37 °C and a minimum of 22 °C. April to June are the hottest months, and December and January are coldest, with temperatures rising towards the end of February. Rainfall occurs mostly during the northeast monsoon in October to December. However, the town receives little rainfall, averaging 840 mm compared to the district average. Annual rainfall has ranged from 964 mm to 228 mm during past decades.
Demographics
Population
In 1961, the area of the town was 2.64 km2 with a population of 33,305; in 1971, it extended to 7.25 km2 and the population reached 48,509. In 1991, it was 12.58 km2 with a population of 78,834.
In the 2011 census, Kovilpatti had a population of 95,057. The sex ratio of 1,065 females to 1,000 males much exceeded the national average of 929. A total of 8,325 residents were under the age of six, constituting 4,158 males and 4,167 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 10.32% and 0.84% of the population respectively. The city's literacy rate was 81.27%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The city had 25099 households in 2011. There were a total of 41,006 workers, comprising 85 cultivators, 165 main agricultural labourers, 932 in household industries, 36,989 other workers, 2,835 marginal workers, 26 marginal cultivators, 26 marginal agricultural labourers, 262 marginal workers in household industries, and 2,521 other marginal workers.
Religion
In the religious census of 2011, Kovilpatti was 92.29% Hindus, 2.48% Muslims, 5.12% Christians, 0.01% Sikhs, 0.01% Buddhists and 0.08% followers of other religions.
Government and politics
Kovilpatti (state assembly constituency) is part of the Thoothukkudi (Lok Sabha constituency).
The member of loksabha currently is Kanimozhi from DMK party and the state legislative member is Kadambur Raju from All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party.
Economy
Kovilpatti is one of the industrial cities in Tamil Nadu, with almost all the Nationalized and Private banks having branches. The town started its industrial development earlier than 1891. The introduction of the Southern Railway, the establishment of Loyal Textiles (1891), Lakshmi Mills (1926), and the establishment of Government Revenue Divisional Offices (1911), induced the industrial growth of the town. Kovilpatti is famous for match factories like rose matches, Cycle Brand, eagle box. textile mills and fireworks industry. Kovilpatti and its neighboring towns are candy paradise and most shops sell eatables like dark brown spiral candy, bright yellow wavy sev, Ellu mittai, cocoa mittai, cheeni mittai, karupatti mittai and yeni padi mittai.
Kovilpatti is the leading producer of matches in the country and hence gets the name "Matchless city of Matches". It stands second in the fireworks industry in the country just after Sivakasi. Kovilpatti is famous for its unique candy kadalai mittai (Ground-nut candy) and is referred to as "Land of Homemade sweets and Savouries" . Manthithoppu Transgenders' Milk Producers' Cooperative Society (MTMPCS) - The first cooperative society in the country to be run by trans people was set up at Manthithoppu in Kovilpatti by the former Thoothukudi district Collector Mr.Sandeep Nanduri IAS.
Culture/Cityscape
Landmarks
Points of interest are the ruins of Ettayapuram Jamin palace, the Manimandapam of Bharathiyar, the birth house of Bharathiyar, and the memorial of Sri Muthusamy Deikshidar.
