''Podakkudi''(Shortened as PDK) is a village in Thiruvarur district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The town is located at a distance of from the district headquarters Thiruvarur and from the state capital Chennai. Podakkudi is known for the Big Pallivasal, a prominent Islamic shrine. Nearby town is Koothanallur and the nearby villages are Atthikadai and Budamangalam.
Podakkudi is derived from Pirai Kodi (Crescent Flag). Crescent flag were used as the identity of Muslims, the village was known by this name and over time it has become Podakkudi. Podakkudi was a part of
Tanjore district until India's independence in 1947 and
Nagapattinam district
Nagapattinam district is one of the 38 districts (a coastal district) of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. Nagapattinam district was carved out by bifurcating the erstwhile composite Thanjavur district on 19 October 1991. The town of Nagapatt ...
until 1991 and subsequently a part of the newly formed Thiruvarur district. The town is a part of the fertile
Cauvery Delta
Chola Nadu is a cultural region of the Tamil Nadu state in southern India. It encompasses the lower reaches of the Kaveri River and its delta, and formed the cultural homeland and political base of the Chola Dynasty which ruled large parts o ...
and the major profession in the town is agriculture.
Podakkudi is administered by a village
Gram panchayat
Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bo ...
. Podakkudi comes under the
Mannargudi assembly constituency which elects a member to the
Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members of whom are democratically elected using the First-past-the-post system. The presiding officer of the Assembl ...
once every five years and it is a part of the
Thanjavur constituency which elects its
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...
(MP) once in five years. Roadways are the major mode of transportation to the town and the nearest railway station is at
Mannargudi
Mannargudi () is a town in Thiruvarur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of the Mannargudi taluk. The town is located at a distance of from the district headquarters Thiruvarur, 36 km from Kumbakonam, 40 km fro ...
and
Koradacheri
Koradacheri is a panchayat town in Thiruvarur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It lies between the rivers Vettar and Vennar flowing at a distance of about 1.5 km.
This is the Panchayat Town. Major income only from Agriculture ...
. The nearest seaport is
Nagapattinam Port
Nagapattinam Port (''nākappaṭṭinam'', previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a port in the South Indian town of Nagapattinam in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a natural port located in the shores of Bay of Bengal. The port came ...
, located away, while the nearest airport is the
Tiruchirappalli International Airport
Tiruchirappalli International Airport ( IATA: TRZ, ICAO: VOTR) is an international airport serving Tiruchirappalli in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The airport spread over an area of is located on National Highway 336, about south of the c ...
, located away from the town.
Geography and climate
Podakkudi is located at . Rivers Vennar and Vettar, which flows on the two edges of the village, keeps the soil fertile. The topography is completely flat and the town is a part of the fertile
Cauvery Delta
Chola Nadu is a cultural region of the Tamil Nadu state in southern India. It encompasses the lower reaches of the Kaveri River and its delta, and formed the cultural homeland and political base of the Chola Dynasty which ruled large parts o ...
. Podakkudi is situated at a distance of from the state capital
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of ...
and from
Tiruvarur
Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and m ...
, the district headquarters. The type of soil is predominantly clay and sandy, conducive for cultivation. There are no commercial mineral resources in the town. Like in the rest of the state, the period from November to February in Mannargudi has a climate full of warm days and cool nights. The onset of summer is from March to the end of June. The average temperature range from in January to in May and June. Summer rains are sparse and the first monsoon, the
South-West monsoon
A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...
, usually sets in June and continues until September.
North-East monsoon usually sets in October and continues until January. The rainfall during North-East monsoon is relatively higher and is beneficial to the district at large because of the heavy rainfall and the Western ghats feeding the river Cauvery. The average rainfall is , most of which is contributed by the North-East monsoon.
[ Urban Infrastructure Report 2008, p. 23]
Culture
Legends and rituals
The muslims of podakudi are
Rowthers. Rowthers are traditionally Horsemen, Wealthy Landlords and traders. they follows
Hanafi fiqh.
Aqidah
''Aqidah'' ( (), plural ''ʿaqāʾid'', also rendered ''ʿaqīda'', ''aqeeda'', etc.) is an Islamic term of Arabic origin that literally means " creed". It is also called Islamic creed and Islamic theology.
''Aqidah'' go beyond concise state ...
of the podakkudi is based on
Sunnah
In Islam, , also spelled ( ar, سنة), are the traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad's time evidently saw and followed and pass ...
heavily influenced by the peaceful teachings of Islam. Podakkudi families are
patrilocal
In social anthropology, patrilocal residence or patrilocality, also known as virilocal residence or virilocality, are terms referring to the social system in which a married couple resides with or near the husband's parents. The concept of locat ...
and the
nikkah (marriage) registers
mahr
In Islam, a mahr (in ar, مهر; fa, مهريه; tr, mehir; sw, mahari; also transliterated ''mehr'', ''meher'', ''mehrieh'', or ''mahriyeh'') is the obligation, in the form of money or possessions paid by the groom, to the bride at the time ...
and witness. As a mark of modesty Rowthers women usually wear white ''thuppatti'' (whilst travelling only) which is draped over their whole body on top of the Saree.
Notes
References
* People of India - Volume 40, Part 3 - Page 1259
* Papers in Anthropology, Volume 18, Issue 2
* 900 Years Of rawthers, Author : Chunnakara Haneefa
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External links
Villages in Tiruvarur district