Page 50 - Microsoft Word - DIGITAL ATLAS THOOT-1

Highway 40 also connects the southern district. The southern railway also connets

thoothukkudi port with adjacent district. The minor port of Thoothukudi anchorage
port with lighter age facilities has had flourished traffic for over a century. The first

wooden Jetty of this port was commissioned in 1864. This port was being used for
export of salt, cotton yarn, senna leaves, palmyrah stalks, palmyrah fibres, dry, dry

fish, Country drugs etc. to neighboring countries and for import of coal, cotton, copra,

pulses and grains. The minor port of the Thoothukudi had the distinction of being
intermediate port handling the highest traffic tonnage of over 1million per annum.

The salient features of the district include its lengthy, curvy and scenic sea coast
which was an international cynosure in the days of yore for its pearl fishery and

beautiful coastal villages. The district has also the credit of comprising the historic

significant villages like Panchalamkurichi, the capital of Veerapandiya
Kattabomman, an early martyr for the cause of freedom; Ettayapuram, the birth place

of the great poet Subramanya Bharathi; Ottapidaram the home town of
V.O.Chidambaram Pillai, who dared to sail ships as a measure to combat British

imperialism; Maniyachi, where Vanchinathan assassinated, the British Collector for
this high handedness against the leaders during Swadeshi Movement;

Kulasekarapattinam and Kurumbur where patriots showed their anger against alien

rule; and temple towns like Srivaikundam, Meignanapuram one of the cradles of
Christianity. Thoothukudi, besides being a major port is the earliest settlement of the

Portuguese and the Dutch. The tall and dense palmyra groves and the bushy Odai
trees are predominantly seen. The Teri and the adjacent coral islands, Idayankudi and

Manappadu and the adjacent places of significance.

Reference codes for Thematic Map Plates

The Spatial distribution of all the above aspects are clearly depicted as district
level and block level thematic map plates as in the digital atlas by following district

codes viz Thoothukkudi District as IX.D.01 to IX.D.15 and the blocks in the

Thoothukkudi District are denoted with the following codes such as Alwarthirunagari
1B, Karungulam 2B, Kayathar 3B, Kovilpatti 4B, Ottapidaram 5B, Pudur 6B,

Sathankulam 7B, Srivaikundam 8B, Thoothukkudi 9B, Tiruchendur 10B, Udangudi
11B, Vilathikulam 12B, further the following block level thematic maps are coded by

using the block codes with appropriate thematic map plate no viz 1B to 12B – 1to 10
plates.