Bharatpedia

Poovanthi

Poovanthi is a small town in the Poovanthi panchayat in the Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu, India. Poovanthi falls under Manamadurai (Assembly constituency) and Sivagangai Lok Sabha constituency. With a population of approximately 3,500, their primary source of income is agriculture.

A typical rural peasant Indian village

HistoryEdit

The Kings of Sivaganga regularly visited Madurai.[1][2] The Marudhu Pandiyar brothers, who ruled Sivaganga, visited the Meenakshi Amman Temple[3][4] in Madurai daily. At Kalaiyar Kovil, The Marudhu Pandiyar brothers built the famous Siva temple.[5] Starting from Kalaiyar Kovil to Madurai, daily on horseback, the Marudhu Pandiyar brothers used to take a brief rest at Padamathur (means Changing of Army) village and get fresh horses. Then they used to proceed to Madurai on horseback, crossing Poovanthi and Sakkudi. Keezhadhi[6] is located on the southern bank of the River Vaigai.[7] Whereas, Sakkudi is on the northern bank of the River Vaigai.

The historic Poovanthi was submerged due to a flood of the Vaigai River. Thereafter, the remaining people of Old Poovanthi settled in a high location, which is the present Poovanthi. The newly formed Poovanthi consists of Keela Poovanthi, Mela Poovanthi, and Kottai Poovanthi.

Kottai PoovanthiEdit

As of 2021, Kottai Poovanthi is in ruins. It appears deserted and consists of only a few houses. The remains of the Fort[8] and Akali can be found now. Some Muthumakkal Thali[9] and some statues of deities were found near Kottai Poovanthi.

Poovanthi is one of the five hamlets known as Anjoor, which means "five villages". All five villages, namely Enathi, Sunnambur, Madapuram, Thely, and Poovanthi are connected by roads.

Naadu and NagaramEdit

The rulers of Sivaganga divided their territory into two major divisions, Naadu and Nagaram. In Naadu, agriculture was the general occupation. On the other hand, in Nagaram, people generally engaged in trade. People who lived in the Nagaram area were known as "Nagarathar". Whereas, people who lived in the Naadu area were known as "Naattar". Nagarathar, popularly known as "Nattukkottai Nagarathu Chettiyars" had trade relations with Burma, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and other Southeast Asian countries. They used to build their houses and palaces with imported teak wood.

Anjoor Nadu means a group of five villages. At present, Enaathi is the head village of Anjoor and Poovanthi is one of the five villages. But there is a reference in the Book "Seermigu Sivagangai Seemai",[10] authored by S.M. Kamal,[11] it is noted on page 321 that Poovanthi Naadu was under the rule of the Sivagangai Seemai kings. It also refers that the Anjoor consisted of Poovanthi as the head village and the other five villages were Arasanoor, Padamaathur, Thirumanjsolai, Kilathari and Enaathi.

LocationEdit

Poovanthi is located on State Highway 33 to Madurai - Sivagangai via Varicchiyur and State Highway 85 to Madurai - Sivagangai via Thirupuvanam. Poovandi is located at a distance of 18 km from Madurai via Sakkudi. Poovandi's postal code is 630611. Its phone code is 04574 (STD).

Near Poovanthi on the border of Madurai District and Sivagangai District: Thiruppuvanam (4 km), Varicchiur (4 km), Ladanandal (7 km); The nearest cities are Madurai (18 km) and Sivagangai (26 km). The nearest railway stations to Poovanthi are Madurai and Thiruppuvanam.

It is bordered by Melur Panchayat Union to the north, Sivagangai Panchayat Union to the east, Madurai East Panchayat Union to the west, and Manamadurai Panchayat Union to the south.

Poovanthi is located on the way from Madurai to Sivaganga. Poovanthi is 25 Kilometers away from Madurai, towards the East. And it is 25 Kilometers away from Sivaganga, towards the West. In the South, Thiruppuvanam is located. In the North, Thiruvathavoor is located.

AvocationEdit

The main avocation of the people is agriculture.[citation needed] Mostly rice and sugarcane are planted there.

Temples and festivalsEdit

TemplesEdit

  • Pandaludaiya Ayyanaar Temple
  • Manthaiyan Kovil
  • Karuppu Swamy Temple
  • Muniyan Kovil
  • Nondiyaan Kovil and some small places of worship of village deities are in Poovanthi.

FestivalsEdit

Puravi Eduppu or Kuthirai Eduppu for Pandaludaiya Ayyanaar Temple is being celebrated by offering Terracotta of Horses and Bulls to the Deities. During this Festival, the Statues of the Deities are also renovated and replaced with new ones. The Terracotta of the Horses and the Bulls are used to be taken as a procession within the streets of the village. The devotees, who had prayed for the well-being of their family members and for the good harvest vowed to present a Terracotta. After their wish is fulfilled, they offer their Terracotta as they have prayed to the Deities of the Temple.

Thiri Aattam is being celebrated for Manthaiyan Kovil as a beginning of visiting Kallalagar Temple at Alagar Kovil, Madurai. This festival is a part of Madurai Chitthirai Festival. All devotees of Kallalagar dressed in colored attire, and torches made of cloth bundle and whips, used to move to Madurai with songs and dance in praise of Kallalagar all along their way to Madurai.

Manju Virattu or Jallikattu is being celebrated for Karuppu Swamy Temple. As Jallikattu is celebrated in other parts of Tamil Nadu, Manju Virattu or Jallikattu is a Festival of Taming the Bull by the Youths to show their valor. It is celebrated at the end of harvest season as Pongal Festival, to give thanks to the Sun and the Bull.

IndustriesEdit

There haven't been any recent industries. The nearby village is Sunnambur, which means Village of Lime Stones. Abundant limestone is available at Sunnnambur. Hence, a limestone factory was started in Poovanthi. But later the factory closed for lack of materials.

Natural resourcesEdit

Red soil is on the northern side of the village. In the southern part of the village, delta sand with good ground water resources is available. In the northern part of the village, there is mica. In some parts on the north side of the village, one can find graphite.

Educational institutionsEdit

  • Government High School, Poovanthi
  • Vikram College of Engineering
  • MANIMARAN Matriculation School

Population distributionEdit

According to the 2011 census, the total population of Poovanthi is 3655. Of these, 595 are oppressed.

LandmarksEdit

There are new settlements of colleges in and around Poovanthi. Due to the scarcity of places in Madurai, most of the educational institutions moved to Poovanthi. Michael Collage of Engineering.[12] Vikram College of Engineering, Pandiyan Saraswathi Yadav College of Engineering,[13] PRIST University[14] are the nearby educational institutions.

Sivakasi Nadar College of Arts and Science for Women is located at Poovanthi.

Historical backgroundEdit

A Rishi came from North India to Rameswaram enrouting through Poovanthi, to submerge the ashes of his mother at Rameswaram. He took a rest under a Poovanthi tree.[15] Children playing nearby opened the pot containing the ashes. They found flowers inside the pot instead of ashes. The Rishi came to know that it is a sacred place. So he called this place Poovanthi, which means place of flowers. Then the Rishi had submerged this mother's ashes at the bank of Vaigai River which runs south of Poovanthi. The place at which the ashes submerged is now notorious for all people to submerge the ashes of their ancestors. Now there is a Siva temple in that place, named Pushpavaneeswarar Temple, which means "Siva Temple in flower forest". That temple was developed by Pandiya Kings at Thiruppuvanam, which means "Holy Flower Garden". Thiruppuvanam is located on the National Highway from Madurai to Rameswaram.

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

  1. ↑ "Madurai District, Government of Tamilnadu | Athens of the East | India". Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  2. ↑ "Municipalities | Sivaganga District, Government of Tamil Nadu | The Land With A Hoary Past | India". Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  3. ↑ "Meenakshi Amman Temple Madurai - History, Architecture, Timings". www.culturalindia.net. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  4. ↑ Sivaganga (2019-10-24). "Floral tributes paid to Maruthu Pandiyar brothers". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  5. ↑ "Holy Places | Sivaganga District, Government of Tamil Nadu | The Land With A Hoary Past | India". Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  6. ↑ Annamalai, S. (2019-11-02). "Keeladi: Unearthing the 'Vaigai Valley' Civilisation of Sangam era Tamil Nadu". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  7. ↑ "Vaigai River | river, India". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  8. ↑ "Definition of FORT". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  9. ↑ "First Harappan People Buried as a Couple Found at Site in Haryana". The Wire. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  10. ↑ "சீர்மிகு சிவகங்கைச் சீமை/இணைப்புகள் - விக்கிமூலம்". ta.wikisource.org. Retrieved 2020-11-08.
  11. ↑ "ஆசிரியர்:எஸ். எம். கமால் - விக்கிமூலம்". ta.wikisource.org. Retrieved 2020-11-08.
  12. ↑ "St. Michael College of Engineering and Technology, Kalayar Koil, Sivagangai district, Tamil Nadu". www.smcet.edu.in. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  13. ↑ "Top Engineering Colleges In Madurai and Sivagangai - Admission 2020, Counselling 2020, Top Ranking, The Average fees". psyec.edu.in. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  14. ↑ "Ponnaiyah Ramajayam Institute of Science and Technology(PRIST)". Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  15. ↑ "Buy 500+ Medicinal Plants, Seeds in online at Medicinal Live | Largest Medicinal plants supplier in india - MedicinalLive.com". medicinallive.com. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
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