CHENNAI INFORMATION

Chennai (formerly known as Madras), the largest city in southern India located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, developed after 1639 when the British East India Company established a fort and trading post at the small fishing village of Chennai.

Over the past three and a half centuries, the small fishing village has grown into a bustling metropolis which is especially known for its spaciousness which is lacking in other Indian cities. This characteristic is exemplified by the long esplanade called the Marina and which is lined by impressive buildings which remind the casual visitor of the long and inseparable association the city has had with the British.

Even elsewhere in the city, one cannot fail to notice the dominant British influences in the form of old cathedrals, buildings in the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture wide tree lined avenues.

However, though the English legacy is undeniable, Madras has continued to be a centre which has blended the foreign influence with the traditional Tamil-Hindu culture. As a city it continues to maintain the best of South Indian traditions.

Thus, the unwary visitor will find Madras more than just a gateway of South India. He shall find it a convenient base to peep into the varied aspects of traditional south Indian culture and life styles which intermingle with the modern city complete with its plush hotels and restaurants- offering a range of continental and typical south Indian cuisine, long and uncrowded stretches of beaches, modern shopping centres which offer traditional handicrafts, textiles and much more peculiar to this part of India.

Chennai's economy has a broad industrial base in the automobile, technology, hardware manufacturing, and healthcare industries. The city is home to much of India's automobile industry and is the country's second-largest exporter of Software, information technology (IT) and information-technology-enabled services (ITES), behind Bangalore. Chennai Zone contributes 39 per cent of the State’s GDP. Chennai accounts for 60 per cent of the country’s automotive exports and is sometimes referred to as "the Detroit of India".

Chennai is divided into four broad regions: North, Central, South and West. North Chennai is primarily an industrial area. Central Chennai is the commercial heart of the city and includes an important business district, Parry's Corner. South Chennai and West Chennai, previously mostly residential, are fast becoming commercial, home to a growing number of information technology firms, financial companies and call centres. The city is expanding quickly along the Old Mahabalipuram Road and the Grand Southern Trunk Road (GST Road) in the south and towards Ambattur, Koyambedu and Sriperumbdur in the west. Chennai is one of the few cities in the world that accommodates a national park, the Guindy National Park, within its limits.

Chennai has a tropical climate, specifically a tropical wet and dry climate. The city lies on the thermal equator and is also on the coast, which prevents extreme variation in seasonal temperature.