HISTORY
Nagercoil derives its name from a famous old Jain temple called Naga Raja Temple (temple of the serpent king) which still exists in the central part of the town. Originally a Jain temple, it is now an important temple for the local Hindus and is also a tourist attraction.
Nagercoil came under the rule of various kingdoms, notably the Chera, Chola and Pandya kingdoms at various points of time; historical records reveal that these kingdoms fought over the control of the fertile area of Nanjilnadu and Kottar (a town mentioned in old Tamil writings and maps of ancient India). Archaeological records also show Jain influences in ancient times.
The modern history of the town is interwoven with the history of Travancore. The modern town of Nagercoil grew around Kottar, now a locality within the municipal limits. The town came into prominence during and after the reign of Maharaja Marthanda Varma, the king of erstwhile Travancore, the capital of which was Padmanabhapuram, about 20 km to the north of Nagercoil. The capital was later shifted to Thiruvananthapuram, the present capital of Kerala state, about 65 km to the north of Nagercoil. In the Travancore state, from the reign of Marthanda Varma up until India’s independence from Britain and Travancore’s annexation, Nagercoil was the second most important town in the state, after the capital Thiruvananthapuram.
Foreign colonial powers, most notably the Dutch, tried colonizing the areas around Nagercoil and Colachel during the 18th century, but were subdued. The Dutch East India Company(also known as Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie or VOC), with a keen eye on the spices of Travancore, tried to establish a trading post at the then important port town of Colachel, near Nagercoil. In the Battle of Colachel in 1741, a Dutch naval fleet under the command of Captain Eustachius De Lannoy gained control of the lands from Colachel to Nagercoil, but was subsequently defeated by the Travancore forces under the great king Maharaja Marthanda Varma.
Maharaja Marthanda Varma initiated the process of reforms in various sections of government, especially in the land, revenue, literacy, social and trade departments. His successors continued the reforms on the same stride. Though Travancore was considered by many to be a 'Hindu' administration, the rulers generally had religious tolerance, were not hostile to European educators, missionaries and traders.
Until the 19th century, the coffers of Travancore were greatly helped by revenues from the trade of pepper and other spices with the European powers.
Infrastructure like Irrigation systems (an excellent system is still found around Nagercoil), dams, roads, schools etc. developed under the able administration of the Travancore regents and their Dewans. The British in India called Travancore a 'model native state'. At the time, Travancore was the most socially developed and one of the most economically developed states under the British Raj.
During the time of the British Raj in India, Travancore was essentially a vassal to the British, but the British never interfered in the general administration of the Travancore regents.
At the time of India's independence from Britain, the then Dewan of Travancore, Sir C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyer, preferred Travancore to be a sovereign country, but eventually gave up after a tough stand by Sardar Vallabhai Patel, India’s federal minister in charge of home affairs. Late Sir C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyer is still kept in high esteem in Nagercoil, for the many projects and developments that took place during his tenure.
When the states in India were re-organized in the 1950's, under the States Reorganisation Act, the then Government of Kerala gave Kanyakumari district to Tamilnadu (because majority of the population spoke Tamil in the district).
Nagercoil has generally been a communally peaceful place, though there was some tension and violence between the Christian and Hindu communities in the 1980s. Since then, inter-religious meetings organised by various religious faiths and by District Collectors (local administrators) have helped in a good understanding between the various sections of the population .
TOWN SURRUNDINGS
Nagercoil is located at 8.18° N 77.43° E at the southern tip of peninsular India. Because of its close proximity to the Western Ghats, the town and its surroundings are generally hilly. The Western Ghats is the lifeline of the town, with water sources for drinking, its temperate climate, irrigation around the city and eco-system being influenced by this mountain range.
Sandwiched between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats, the town has some breathtaking sceneries of the surrounding hills (the Western Ghats), lush green paddy fields on the eastern side of the town, and sandy, palm-fringed beaches on the western side. Further east of Nagercoil, on the Western Ghats are plantations of rubber, cloves and cardamom. Many of these plantations were developed by British planters - planters names like Simpson and Balamore are still household names in the town - Rubber plant was introduced by the English missionaries in the pre-Indian independence days. Some of these plantation estates are still owned by the descendants of these British planters ; however, a majority of the estates are now owned by the rich and influential Mapillai (also called moplah or Syrian Christians) community of Kerala.
Being close to the cape, the southernmost tip of peninsular India, the town is the intersection of the eastern and western lines of the Indian Railways with one line leading through Kerala called the Konkan route and the other through the eastern part of India (through Tirunelveli of Tamilnadu). Nagercoil is 65 km from Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala state, connected by National Highway 47, and 80 km from Tirunelveli, connected by National Highway 7.
CLIMATE
Nagercoil has a pleasant yet humid climate for most part of the year. The maximum temperature during summer hovers around 86F or 30 degrees Celsius however the humidity is extremely high. Nagercoil is benefited by both the north-east monsoon and the south-west monsoon. It rains more often in this district than any other place in Tamil Nadu, with the exception of the Niligiris. The tropical rain belt passes over Nagercoil first in India thus Nagercoil receives more rain with relation to the rest of India. The southern tip of Kanyakumari is generally 2 °C to 3 °C warmer than Nagercoil during daytime, though Kanyakumari is only 20 km away.
Parvathipuram, in the outskirts of Nagercoil, with a scenic view of the Western Ghats.
Though the official population count (for the municipal area) is close to 2.25 lakhs, a significant population lives around the town, making the small district of Kanyakumari, with a population of about 1.7 million (17 lakhs), one of the most densely populated districts in Tamilnadu and in South India.
The concentration of the population of the town and the District is along the coastal belt along the western side, while the largely forested areas on the eastern side of the district (along the Western Ghats) is sparsely populated.
CULTURE & RELIGIONS
Tamil, Malayalam and English are widely spoken by the people. These three languages are used as a medium of teaching in all major schools.
The culture is a mixture of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Christianity, Hinduism and Islam are the main religions practised, with Christians accounting to nearly half of the populace.
Some of the prominent festivals that are celebrated here are Ramzan (Eid ul fitr), Bakreid (Eid ul alha)Christmas, Onam, Bhagavathy Amman Temple festival, St. Francis Xavier's feast, and Ayya Vaikunda Avataram festival at Swamithope among others.
