Gta Chennai City Download For Pc
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Historically, the region was part of the Chola, Pandya, Pallava and Vijayanagara kingdoms during various eras. The coastal land which then contained the fishing village Madrasapattinam, was purchased by the British East India Company from the Nayak ruler Chennapa Nayaka in the 17th century. The British garrison established the Madras city and port, and built Fort St. George, the first British fortress in India. The city was made the winter capital of the Madras Presidency, a colonial province of the British Raj in the Indian subcontinent. After India gained its independence in 1947, Madras continued as the capital city of the Madras State and present-day Tamil Nadu. The city was officially renamed as Chennai in 1996.
The city is coterminous with Chennai district, which together with the adjoining suburbs constitutes the Chennai Metropolitan Area,[c] the 35th-largest urban area in the world by population and one of the largest metropolitan economies of India. Chennai has the fifth-largest urban economy, and had the third-largest expatriate population in India. As a gateway to South India, Chennai is among the most-visited Indian cities ranking 36th among the most-visited cities in the world in 2019. Ranked as a beta-level city in the Global Cities Index, Chennai regularly features among the best cities to live in India and is amongst the safest cities in India.
Chennai is a major centre for medical tourism and is termed "India's health capital". Chennai houses a major portion of India's automobile industry and hence the name "Detroit of India". It was the only South Asian city to be ranked among National Geographic's "Top 10 food cities" in 2015 and ranked ninth on Lonely Planet's best cosmopolitan cities of the world. In October 2017, Chennai was added to the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) list. It is a major film production centre and home to the Tamil-language film industry.
The name Chennai was derived from the name of Chennappa Nayaka, a Nayak ruler who served as a general under Venkata Raya of the Vijayanagara Empire from whom the British East India Company acquired the town in 1639.[11][12] The first official use of the name was in August 1639 in a sale deed to Francis Day of the East India Company.[13] A land grant was given to the Chennakesava Perumal Temple in Chennapatanam later in 1646, which some scholars argue to be the first use of the name.[14][11]
The name Madras is of native origin, and has been shown to have been in use before the British established a presence in India.[15] A Vijayanagara-era inscription found in 2015 was dated to the year 1367 and mentions the port of Mādarasanpattanam, along with other small ports on the east coast, and it was theorized that the aforementioned port is the fishing port of Royapuram.[16] Madras might have been derived from Madraspattinam, a fishing village north of Fort St. George but it is uncertain whether the name was in use before the arrival of Europeans.[17]
In August 1996, the Government of Tamil Nadu officially changed the name from Madras to Chennai.[18] The name Madras continues in occasional use for the city as well as for places or things named after the city earlier.[19]
Stone Age implements have been found near Pallavaram in Chennai and according to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Pallavaram was a megalithic cultural establishment, and pre-historic communities resided in the settlement.[20] The region around Chennai was an important administrative, military, and economic centre for many centuries. During the 1st century CE, Tamil poet named Thiruvalluvar lived in the town of Mylapore, a neighbourhood of present-day Chennai.[21] The region was part of Tondaimandalam which was ruled by the Early Cholas in the 2nd century CE by subduing Kurumbas, the original inhabitants of the region.[22] Pallavas of Kanchi became independent rulers of the region from 3rd to 9th century and the areas of Mahabalipuram and Pallavaram were built during the reign of Mahendravarman I.[23] In 879, Pallavas were defeated later by the Cholas led by Aditya I and Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan later brought the region under Pandya rule in 1264.[22] The region came under the influence of Vijayanagara Empire in the 15th century.[24][22]
The Portuguese arrived in 1522 and built a port named So Tom after the Christian apostle, St. Thomas, who is believed to have preached in the area between 52 and 70 CE. In 1612, the Dutch established themselves near Pulicat, north of Chennai[25] On 20 August 1639, Francis Day of the British East India Company along with the Nayak of Kalahasti Chennappa Nayaka met with the Vijayanager Emperor Peda Venkata Raya at Chandragiri and obtained a grant for land on the Coromandel coast on which the company could build a factory and warehouse for their trading activities.[26] On 22 August, he secured the grant for a strip of land about 10 km (6 mi) long and 1.6 km (1 mi) inland in return for a yearly sum of five hundred lakh pagodas.[27][28] The region was then formerly a fishing village known as "Madraspatnam".[25] A year later, the company built Fort St. George, the first major English settlement in India, which became the nucleus of the growing colonial city and urban Chennai.[29][30]
In 1746, Fort St. George and Madras were captured by the French under General La Bourdonnais, the Governor of Mauritius, who plundered the town and its outlying villages.[25] The British regained control in 1749 through the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle and strengthened the town's fortress wall to withstand further attacks from the French and Hyder Ali, the king of Mysore.[31] They resisted a French siege attempt in 1759.[32] In 1769, the city was threatened by Hyder Ali during the First Anglo-Mysore War with the Treaty of Madras ending the conflict.[33] By the 18th century, the British had conquered most of the region and established the Madras Presidency with Madras as the capital.[34]
The city became a major naval base and became the central administrative centre for the British in South India.[35] The city served as the baseline for the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India started on 10 April 1802.[36] With the advent of railways in India in the 19th century, the city was connected to other cities such as Bombay and Calcutta, promoting increased communication and trade with the hinterland.[37]
After India gained its independence in 1947, the city became the capital of Madras State, predecssor of the current state of Tamil Nadu.[38] The city was the location of the hunger strike and death of Potti Sreeramulu which eventually resulted in the re-organization of Indian states based on linguistic boundaries in 1956.[39]
Chennai is classified as being in Seismic Zone III, indicating a moderate risk of damage from earthquakes.[54] Owing to the geotectonic zone the city falls in, the city is considered a potential geothermal energy site. The crust has old granite rocks dating back to nearly a billion years indicating volcanic activities in the past with expected temperatures of 200 to 300 C at 4 to 5 km depth.[55]
Chennai receives majority of rainfall from the NE monsoon between October and December while smaller amounts come from the SW monsoon between June and September. The average annual rainfall is about 120 cm (47 in).[61] The highest annual rainfall recorded is 257 cm (101 in) in 2005.[62] Prevailing winds in Chennai are usually southwesterly between April and October and north-easterly during the rest of the year.[63] The city relies on the annual monsoon rains to replenish water reservoirs.[64] Cyclones and depressions are common features during the season.[65] Water inundation and flooding happen in low-lying areas during the season with significant flooding in 2015 and 2023.[66]
A protected estuary on the Adyar forms a natural habitat for several species of birds and animals.[73] Chennai is also a popular city for birding with more than 130 recorded species of birds have been recorded in the city.[74] Marshy wetlands such as Pallikaranai and lakes also host a number of migratory birds during the monsoon and winter.[75] The southern stretch of Chennai's coast from Tiruvanmiyur to Neelangarai are favoured by the endangered olive ridley sea turtles to lay eggs every winter.[76] Guindy National Park is a protected area within the city limits and wildlife conservation and research activities take place at Arignar Anna Zoological Park.[77] Madras Crocodile Bank Trust is a herpetology research station, located 40 km (25 mi) south of Chennai.[78] The city's tree cover is estimated to be around 64.06 square kilometres (24.73 sq mi) with 121 species belonging to 94 genera and 42 families and copper pod, Indian beech and Neem being the major species.[79] Chennai with a coastline and its water bodies houses a number of fresh water, salt water fishes and marine organisms.[80][81]
Chennai had many lakes spread across the city but urbanization has led to the shrinkage of water bodies and wetlands.[82][83] The number of wetlands in the city has decreased from 650 in 1970 to 27 in 2015.[84] Nearly half of the native plant species in the city's wetlands have disappeared with only 25 percent of the erstwhile area covered with aquatic plants still viable.[85] Adyar and Cooum rivers are heavily polluted with effluents and waste from domestic and commercial sources.[86][87] The encroachment of urban development on wetlands has hampered the sustainability of water bodies and was a contributor to the floods in 2015 and 2023 and water scarcity crisis in 2019.[88][89]
The Chennai River Restoration trust set up by the government of Tamil Nadu is working on the restoration of Adyar River.[90] Environmentalist Foundation of India is a volunteering group working towards wildlife conservation and habitat restoration.[91][92]
A resident of Chennai is called a Chennaite.[100][101] According to 2011 census, the city had a population of 4,646,732, within an area of 174 square kilometres (67 sq mi).[102] Post expansion of the city to 426 km2, the population including the new city limits as per the 2011 census was 6,748,026 with Chennai Municipal Corporation being renamed as Greater Chennai Corporation.[9][4][103] As of 2019[update], 712,000 (40%) of the 1.788 million families in the city live below poverty line.[104] As of 2017[update], the city had 2.2 million households, with 40 percent of the residents not owning a house.[105] There are about 1,131 slums in the city housing more than 300,000 households.[106]
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