Tourist places of interest in and around Chennai

Chennai city is a very good place for tourists which is filled with lots of amusing places where you can spend your wonderful time. The city contains all sorts of attractions, famous South Indian Temples, amusement parks, museums, monuments, shopping complexes, beaches and many picnic spots. It is a wonderful place for honeymoon couples and also for spending vacations. This mega city also contains popular ancient places and also wild life sanctuaries which are around Chennai.

Holy Places in Chennai city

Chennai has many places of worship like temples, churches and mosques. The pilgrims from all over the world come to worship these holy places. The temples in Chennai are built in Dravidian style and they are also very ancient. Some temples attract the tourists because of the number of shops around the temple. One can buy all the things needed for worship be it the beautiful picture of the God or the items such as sambranis, agarbathis, turmeric powder, kumkum, etc. Everything what we buy near the temples will be of good quality. One can also get Bhakti books like skanda sashti kavacham, thiruppavai, etc. Many churches in Chennai were built in the 17th and 18th during the British period and is of historical importance. The mosques in Chennai were built during the Nawab period. Thus the holy places stands as the symbol of the ancient rulers and also for the excellent architecture of the tamilians. Below is the list of religious places in Chennai city: Parthasarathy Temple Kapaleeswarar Temple ISKCON Temple Vadapalani Temple Kandaswamy Temple Marundeeswarar Temple Ashtalakshmi Temple Thousand Lights Mosque Big Mosque St. Mary's Church Armenian Church Santhome Cathedral Basilica Luz Church St. Andrew's Church Christ the King Church Guru Nanak Sat Sangh Sabha Shree Gujarati Swetamber

Monuments in Chennai city

The monuments of Chennai clearly depicts the memories of the past and also of the respected patrons who is remembered by these monuments. They are present throughout Chennai and acts as a good sightseeing and tourist place in Chennai. These are built to pay homage to the wonderful rulers and ancient leaders of Tamilnadu. The popular monuments are listed below: Freemason's Hall Madras War Cemetery Valluvar Kottam Ripon Building Theosophical Society Doveton House Pancha Mandapams Senate House Kamaraj Memorial House Bharathiyar Illam Anna Square Vivekananda Illam Fort St. George MGR Film City Raj Bhavan

Museum in Chennai city

The museums of Chennai act as a treasure that remembers the glory of the ancient times. A large number of rich collections of arts, crafts and antiquities are present in these great museums. These also explains about the historical people, tamil culture, customs and traditions. The museums of Chennai are listed below: Government Museum Birla Planetarium Periyar Science & Technology National Art Gallery Cholamandal Artists' Village

Parks in Chennai city

Chennai Municipal Corporation maintains a number of parks in Chennai city to keep the city look green. This acts as an additional feature of tourist attraction. The parks contain big shady trees, lawns, sidewalk areas, children play areas, etc. Some parks also contain fountains and many chat item shops. The parks are maintained in good condition by the municipalities and is a good place for children to enjoy. Some of the popular parks of Chennai are as follows: Nageswara Park Natesan Park Sivan Park

Amusement Parks in Chennai city

There are a number of amusement parks in Chennai which acts as a place for fun and recreation. The amusement parks is a wonderful place of tourist attraction. The rides, water games, exciting activities, swings, etc. in the park makes it an excellent place for enjoying the whole day. There are lots of facilities for the visitors provided by the park authorities. The amusement parks of Chennai are listed below: Kishkinta MGM Dizzee World Dash-n-Splash Dolphin-City VGP Golden Beach Prime Time Tarsha Water Sports Queensland

Wildlife in Chennai city

Biodiversity means variety of all forms of life is the factor that makes Chennai popular. The city is inhabited by a wide number of animal and bird species. Many wildlife parks and sanctuaries acts as a good place for the animal and bird species to dwell and also for breeding. The government of Tamilnadu protects and conserves these wildlife parks and sanctuaries. Thus they act as an excellent sightseeing attraction for tourists. The water bodies, the greeneries, lawns and the shady areas of these parks not only attracts the animals but also the nature loving tourists. The Wildlife in Chennai city are as follows: Guindy National Park Arignar Anna Zoological Park Snake Park Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary Crocodile Bank

Beaches in Chennai city

Beaches are the important tourist attractions. But many cities do not have any beaches. In this aspect our Chennai people are lucky because of its location on the Eastern Coastal Plains of India. The Bay of Bengal lies by the side of the city. So Chennai attracts many foreigners and domestic tourists because of the presence of the beaches. These are listed as follows: Marina Beach Covelong Beach Elliot's Beach

Gateways in Chennai city

The gateways of Chennai are very much attracted by the tourists because of the ancient origin. Mammalapuram attracts for its beautiful sculptures and carvings. The popular gateways are: Mammalapuram Pulicat Spend your vacation with your family in the beautiful Chennai city.

Complete list and details about Chief Ministers of Tamilnadu

Tamilnadu has the rare distinction of having good and eminent personalities as chief ministers of the state. Since 1920 Tamilnadu had various chief ministers who had carved a niche of their own in the history books of Tamilnadu state. During the course of time Tamilnadu state had been subjected to geographical change which resulted in the formation of Andhra and Karnataka. It has been a long way since then and Tamilnadu came across Chief Ministers from political to cine field. In this resource we would segregate the list of Chief Ministers before and after 1950. This would help us to concentrate more on Chief Ministers of Tamilnadu after 1950 where lot of changes happened to the state which resulted in Tamilnadu being one of the most powerful states in India.

List of Tamilnadu Chief Ministers from 1920 to 1950

1. A. Subbarayalu Reddiar - 17 December 1920 to 11 July 1921 - Justice Party 2. Raja of Panagal - 11 July 1921 to 11 September 1923 - Justice Party 3. Raja of Panagal - 19 November 1923 to 3 December 1926 - Justice Party 4. P. Subbarayan - 4 December 1926 to 27 October 1930 5. B. Munuswamy Naidu - 27 October 1930 to 4 November 1932 - Justice Party 6. Ramakrishna Ranga Rao - 5 November 1932 to November 1934 - Justice Party 7. Ramakrishna Ranga Rao - November 1934 to 4 April 1936 - Justice Party 8. P. T. Rajan - 4 April 1936 to 24 August 1936 - Justice Party 9. Ramakrishna Ranga Rao - 24 August 1936 to 1 April 1937 - Justice Party 10. Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu - 1 April 1937 14 to July 1937 11. C. Rajagopalachari - 14 July 1937 to 29 October 1939 - Indian National Congress Governor's Rule from 29 October 1939 to 30 April 1946 12. Tanguturi Prakasam - 30 April 1946 to 23 March 1947 - Indian National Congress 13. O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiyar - 23 March 1947 to 6 April 1949 - Indian National Congress 14. P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja - 6 April 1949 to 26 January 1950 - Indian National Congress

List of Tamilnadu Chief Ministers from 1950 P.S Kumaraswamy Raja

P.S Kumaraswamy Raja was born in 1898 in Rajapalayam. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1949 to 1952. Kumaraswamy Raja joined congress after completed his schooling. He had held various positions in Rajapalayam which includes President of Rajapalayam union, Panchayat court, district board of Ramanathapuram and District educational council. He was an M.L.A in 1936 wgen Rajagopalachari was the

Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. He also held the post of Governor of Orissa from 1954 to 1956. Kumaraswamy Raja spent most of the time helping the poor and the needy and doing public services to the people of Tamilnadu. He followed the Gandhian principle and contributed in spreading Kadhi in the minds of the people. In his later years he donated his house to Gandhi Kalai Mandram an institution which promoted culture and principles of Gandhiji. He died in 1957.

C. Rajagopalachari
Rajagopalachari popularly known as Rajaji was born in 1878 at Thorapalli in Salem. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1954 to 1956. He had multi faces as an lawyer, politician, writer, statesman and the leader of India National Congress. Rajagopalachari a staunch follower of Indian National Congress has the rare distinction of being the last governor general of India. He is one of the first Indian personality to have won the Bharat Ratna in 1955. Rajagopalachari also held the position of Governor of west Bengal from 1947 to 1948. Rajaji's interest in politics started when he was practicing as a lawyer in Salem. He was impressed by Gandhiji's principle and joined Indian National congress. Rajaji emerged as an important leader in Tamilnadu congress during the year 1930. This helped him to become the president of Tamilnadu congress committee in 1935. Rajaji had difference with the congress party in 1959 which prompted him to start his own party called as Swatantra Party. His party fared badly in the 1971 elections which saw the decline of his party in Tamilnadu. Aged 94, he died due to illness in 1972.

K. Kamaraj
Kamaraj was born in 1903 in Virudhunagar district. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1954 to 1963. He was regarded as the Kingmaker in Indian politics when he was the mainly involved in taking important decisions in Indian National congress. He was elected as a Lok Sabha member from Nagercoil constituency from 1967 to 1975. He was also the Srivilliputhur Lok Sabha member from 1952 to 1954. He held the position as president of Indian National Congressfrom 1967 to 1971. He was also the tamilnadu congress president from 1946 to 1952. Kamaraj though uneducated did lot of changes in the education department in Tamilnadu. He reopened 6000 schools that was closed previously and was also instrumental in opening 12000 schools in Tamilnadu. He is famous for introducing the Mid-day meal schemewhich used to provide one meal per day for lakhs of poor students. He also introduced free uniforms to schools to avoid discrimination among students. Kamaraj sowed the seeds for starting the IIT Madras in 1959. Kamaraj not only contributed to education but also improved the standards of irrigation schemes and

promoted industrial development in Tamilnadu. During his reign as the Chief Minister, Tamilnadu ushered in to the state of Porkalam. His schemes are still followed in Tamilnadu. He died in 1975. In 1976 Kamaraj was awarded Bharat Ratna Posthumously.

M. Bhaktavatsalam
Bhaktavatsalam was born in 1897. A lawyer by profession he was also a politician and a freedom fighter. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1963 to 1967. He has the distinction of being the last Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from congress party till date. He served as the Minister of Public Works and Planning from 1947 to 1949. During his early years Bhaktavatsalam actively involved in politics and was imprisoned for participating in Quit India Movement and Salt Satyagraha. He retired from politics in 1967 when Indian National Congress was defeated in 1967. Bhaktavatsalam started daily newspaper India which existed till 1933. He also stood as Deputy Mayor in Madras City Corporation. In 1964 Bhaktavatsalam introduced the three language formula in Madras Legislative Assembly. The three languages included English, Tamil and Hindi. Due to this he faced a lot of anti-Hindi agitations during his period as Chief Minister. He initially opposed the construction of Vivekananda Rock Memorial at Kanyakumari. He died in 1987 at the age of 89.

C.N Annadurai
Annadurai popularly called as Arignar Anna was born on 1909 in Kanchipuram. He held the post of chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1967 to 1969. He was Rajya Sabha member from 1962 to 1967. Anna is famous for his oratorical skills and was an excellent writer in Tamil. He had written many plays which were later made into movies acted by many famous personalities. He used cinema to spread his political ideas to the minds of the Tamil people. He is a strict follower of Periyar and was under his guidance until he came out of his Dravida Kazhagam due to differences. Annadurai was B.A graduate from Pachaiyappa's college in the year 1934. Later he got M.A degree in Economics and Politics. He has the distinction of working as an English teacher in Pachaiyappa's college. Annadurai initially joined Justice Party in 1935 when Periyar was the party president. Periyar renamed the Justice Party to Dravidar Kazhagam in 1944. Annadurai had differences with Periyar when the later married 40 year younger women. Annadurai founded Dravida Munnerta Kazhagam (DMK) in 1949 when he the differences with periyar had gone out of proportions. After becoming the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu, Annadurai legalized Self respect marriages. He renamed Madras State to Tamilnadu. He was instrumental in conducting Second World Tamil conference in 1968. In 1968 he got the Chubb Fellowship from Yale University. He was the first

non-american to receive this award from Yale University. He was also awarded doctorate from Annamalai University in 1968. He died of cancer in 1969.

V. R. Nedunchezhiyan
V. R. Nedunchezhiyan was born in 1920 at Thirukkannapuram. He was actively involved in politics in 1944 when he joined Dravidar Kazhagam. He is an important member who along with Annadurai started Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in 1949. In 1969 when Annadurai died he was made the acting Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. He quit DMK party due to differences and started his own party Makkal DMK. Later he merged it with ADMK in 1977 when ADMK under MGR came to power in Tamilnadu. He was the Finance Minister in ADMK government from 1980 to 1987. when MGR died in 1987 he was asked to be the acting Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. Later he was replaced by Janaki Ramachandran as the Chief Minister. He joined the Jayalalitha faction of ADMK and was made the Finance Minster from 1991 to 1996. He died of heart attack in 2000.

M. Karunanidhi
M. Karunanidhi was born in 1926 at Thirukkuvalai in Tamilnadu. He was elected as the DMK chief when Annadurai died in 1969. He has the rare distinction of being the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu five times. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu during 1969 to 1971, 1971 to 1976, 1989 to 1991, 1996 to 2001, 2006 to 2011. Karunanidhi started his career in Tamil film industry as a script writer. He entered politics by joining Justice Party at the age of 14.He was one of the chief member to accompany Annadurai when the later started DMK party. Karunanidhi entered Tamilnadu assembly for the first time in 1957. He was elected from Kulithalai constituency. He was the DMK treasurer in 1961. He was the public works minister when DMK first came to power in 1967. After the death of Anndurai, Karunanidhi was elected as the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. Karunanidhi had contributed much to the Tamil Literature. He has written poems, biographies, historical novels and much more. He had penned the screen play for many Tamil movies in 1950s. His screen play was a hit among Tamil audience. Karunanidhi was awarded doctorate by Annamalai University in 1971. He was the chief member of the third tamil world conference in 1979 held in paris. Karunanidhi also inaugurated the sixth world tamil conference in 1987 at Kuala Lampur.He was the architect who started the Sethusamudram project which had created a huge controversy when he questioned the existence of Rama.

M. G. Ramachandran
M. G. Ramachandran popularly known as MGR was born in 1917 at Ceylon. He was Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 1977 to 1987. MGR first entered cine field as an actor. He is affectionately called as Puratchi Thailavar and Ponmana Semmal. He later turned into a politician by joining the DMK with his huge popularity among Tamil people. MGR started his acting career in the year 1935. He began to act in small roles which were not that much popular. His first breakthrough came in the year 1947 when he acted in the film Rajakumari. He became even more famous with the film Malaikallan released in 1954. After that there was no looking back and he began to rule the Tamil industry till he became the chief minister in 1977. MGR political career started in 1953 when he joined congress. Later he joined Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in 1953. In 1962 he was elected to the Tamilnadu assembly. After the demise of Annadurai, Karunanidhi was made the Chief Minister. MGR was the treasurer in DMK during that period. Differences crept between Karunanidhi and MGR and he was expelled from the party in 1972. MGR started his own party called as AIADMK in 1e972 and was actively mobilizing support to his party. This later helped him to win the elections in 1977 and became the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. As a Chief Minister, MGR showed keen interest in education and social development. He banned liquor from the state and also helped in restoring historical monuments and old temples in Tamilnadu. In 1984 he had kidney failure and his health began to worsen during the course of time. He died in 1987 at the age of 70. He was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1988.

Janaki Ramachandran
Janaki Ramachandran was born in 1923 at Kerala. she became the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu after the death of MGR. She was in the office as Chief Minister for a short span of 24 days. During this time AIADMK was split into Janaki and Jayalalitha faction. She contested the Tamilnadu assembly election in 1989 and lost it badly. she merged her party with Jayalalitha party and later informed she is quitting politics. From then on she quit politics and was not actively involved in it. She died in 1996 at the age of 73 due to cardiac arrest.

J. Jayalalitha
Jayalalitha affectionately called as puratchi Thalaivi by her political members was born in 1948 in Mysore, Karnataka. Her original name was Komalavalli. She had her initial schooling at Bishop Cotton Girl's High School in Bangalore. when she moved to Chennai she joined Sacred Heart Matriculation School. Her mother Sandhya is a famous film actress. Initially she wanted to become a lawyer, but circumstances forced her to become an actress in film industry. She had acted with leading actors including MGR and Sivaji Ganesan and ruled the film industry in the 1960s.

Her entry into politics came in the year 1981 when she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. She won the confidence of MGR the then Chief Minister and become his political heir. After the death of MGR the ADMK was split into but later joined in 1989. She became the leader of the opposition in the 1989 Assembly election. In 1991 she joined hands with the Indian National Congress and won the election comprehensively beating the DMK. She got the distinction of first elected women Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. In 1996 she lost power to DMK due to corruption charges. However the corruption charges proved to be false and she came back to power again in 2001 Assembly elections. In 2006 DMK joined Indian National Congress and came back to power in Tamilnadu. She had asked O. Pannerselvam to be the leader of opposition from 2006 to 2011. In the year 2011 she once again came back to power by emerging as the single largest party in Tamilnadu. Thus she became the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu for the third time.