Interesting Points About Puducherry

• The earlier name of this Union Territory was Pondicherry and it was changed to Puducherry on 20 Sept 2006.
• The UT consists of four geographically isolated districts – Puducherry, Karaikal and Yanam near the Bay of Bengal and Mahe near the Arabian Sea.
• Puducherry and Karaikal are surrounded by Tamil Nadu from the north, south and west directions and the Bay of Bengal in the east direction.
• Yanam district is surrounded by Andhra Pradesh from the north, south and west sides and the Bay of Bengal from the eastern side.
• Mahe is located on the western coast. The district is surrounded by Kerala from the north, south and east sides and the Arabian Sea from the western side.
• Pondicherry was handed over to India by the French in 1954. In 1962, it was declared Union Territory.
• From 1948 to 1954, Madras was the capital of Pondicherry.
• Puducherry celebrates its own Independence Day on the 1st of November.
• Puducherry is called ‘Paris of the South’ and ‘India’s Little France’.
• The French National Day on the 14th of July is also celebrated in Puducherry.
• Pondicherry has the third-largest Gandhi statue in the world. The statue is 13 feet tall and located on Promenade beach.
• Opposite the statue of Mahatama Gandhi is a French War Memorial, which was built to commemorate the martyred French soldiers of World War I.
• Puducherry is also known for Shri Aurobindo and his Ashram.
• Matrimandir located in Auroville township of Pondicherry is a spherical structure with golden discs. This is used for practising Yoga. This is built by Mirra Alfassa, the spiritual ally of Shri Aurobindo.
• In Manakula Vinayagar Temple of Lord Ganesh in Pondicherry, an elephant named Laxmi takes gifts and money from the devotees and blesses them. the UT has 70 Temples that are devoted to Lord Ganesha.
• Puducherry is the birthplace of famous Hollywood director M. Night Shyamalan.
• The beautiful Basilica Sacred Heart of Jesus Church of Puducherry is too huge to hold 2000 people.

More Informations About Puducherry

General Details About Puducherry
Formation	1 November 1954
Declared As UT	16 August 1962
Capital	Pondicherry
Lieutenant Governor	Tamilisai Soundararajan
Chief Minister	N. Rangaswamy
Districts	4
Area (km2)	483
Language	Tamil

Symbols of Puducherry
State Animal	Indian Palm Squirrel
State Bird	Koel
State Tree	Bael Fruit Tree
State Flower	Cannonball Flower

Demography of Puducherry
Population (2011 Census)	1,394,467
Population Density (per km2)	2,900
Sex ratio (Females per 1000 males)	1037
Literacy Rate (%)	85.85

Forest & Wildlife Reserves in Puducherry

1. Oussudu Wildlife Sanctuary

Major Rivers in Puducherry

1. Gingee River
2. Pennar River
3. Cauvery River
4. Godavari River
5. Coringa River
6. Mahe River

Airports in Puducherry

1. Pondicherry Airport

Traditional Dances in Puducherry

1. Podikazhi attam
2. Garadi

Art and Crafts of Puducherry

1. Hand Printed Textiles
2. Kalakari Batik
3. Marbling Works
4. Handmade Paper
5. Bronze Works

Regional Festivals Puducherry

1. Mascarade Mask Festival
2. Masi Magam Festival