Arakkonam

Arakkonam (also "Arkonam") (Tamil: அரக்கோணம்) is a mid-sized town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, with a population of about 101,626 as per the census 2011. This town is located in the Vellore District about 69 km (via rail) from the state capital of Chennai.

Arakkonam is supposedly one of the hottest towns in India, where the temperature can exceed 43°C (110°F) for several peak days in the summer.

History
The name of the town is believed to have been derived from the Tamil word Aaru konam meaning hexagon (ancient name was "arunthamizh kundram"), since it has six important places on its six sides. Nearby towns include Kanchipuram, Tiruttani, Thiruvalangadu, Thakkolam, Manavur and Sholingur Paranji. Arakkonam is one of the important railway junctions in South India. The first train to south India was from Mumbai (formerly called Bombay) to Royapuram (Chennai) via Arakkonam. Arakkonam Joint Junction (AJJ) is one of the oldest Junctions in the country connecting major cities such as  Mumbai, Goa, Vijayawada, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Tirupati, Mangalore and Thiruvananthapuram.

Municipality
The Arakkonam Municipality was constituted as 3rd Grade Municipality on 01.10.1958, it was upgraded as 2nd grade municipality on 1.5.1974 and now it is a 1st grade municipality from 17.4.1984. The area of this municipality is 9.06 km2. This is also one of the assembly and parliamentary constituencies.

This municipality contains 36 wards.

Urban infrastructure
Arakkonam (AJJ) is third largest railway junction in Vellore district next to Vellore Katpadi Junction and Jolarpet and mostly all trains stop at this junction, except some super fast trains. The town has one of the biggest workshops for Southern Railway, known as the Engineering Workshop (EWS)] and the Electric Loco Shed (ELS). A frequent suburban electric train facility is also available towards Chennai.

The second biggest Food Corporation of India (FCI) godown is located at Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu. It is used to store all types of food grains for a long periods.

Transport is also available by road to all major cities and towns.

The runway at INS Rajali, a naval air force of the Indian Navy in Arakkonam is 4,500 metres in length, making it the second longest airforce runway in South Asia. It is also Asia's second biggest Naval Training Centre. The esteemed organisation in Arakkonam is the Indian Railways - Engineering Workshop Shops (EWS) which has many Employees serving the Indian Railways in various process related with fabrication and processing of various metal components for the railways. Most of the machines in these workshops are a century old and some of them are working.

There are other industries like MRF (Madras Rubber Factory), Ultratech Cements, Ramco Industries, Best and Crompton Exports all located in Arakkonam.

Many official buildings in Arakkonam were built during the British era. There is an underpass which connects Arakkonam and Kanchipuram beneath the railway track and is one of the oldest structures in Arakkonam having manufactured by lime Mortar and Stones. Arakkonam Fire Station, built in 1925, is one of the oldest fire stations in the nation.

Some major districts include Stuartpet, Nehruji Nagar, Ganesh Nagar, Jothi Nagar, Geeta Nagar, Ashok Nagar, Town Hall streets, Winterpet and Sholinghur Road,Gandhi road,Palinipet,TNHB.

Demographics
As of 2001 India census Arakkonam had a population of 78,686. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Arakkonam has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 54% of the males and 46% of females. 9% of the population is under 6 years of age. A wing of C.I.S.F.(Central Industrial Security Force) is also present at Arakkonam and also consists of a Disaster management team under the NDRF (National Disaster Management and Rescue Force) along with training centre for the recruitment of the personnel.

Language
Tamil is spoken by majority of the people. Hindi and Telugu is also spoken, due to the presence of Indian Navy establishments and proximity to the Andhra Pradesh state border.

Politics
Arakkonam (State Assembly Constituency) is part of the Arakkonam (Lok Sabha constituency). The ADMK candidate S. Ravi won Arakkonam assembly constituency in the 2011 elections. Recently, in the parliamentary elections held in 2009, the DMK candidate Mr.Jagathratchagan got elected as an MP from this constituency.

Schools
'''* Valluvar Matric Higher Secondary School *D.R.M Music Academy-ARAKKONAM.*
 * Railway Mixed High School, EM, Haffields pet (In arakkonam first Anglo-Indian school and founded in British India
 * Govt. Boys Hr. Secondary School, Krishnampet.
 * Govt. Girls Hr. Secondary School, Housing Board
 * CSI Central Higher Secondary School
 * CSI Central High Secondary School, in the centre of the town, is one of the oldest schools in India, having recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. This school is managed by the CSI Madras Diocese. Nearly 4,000 pupils study at this school. This school has been serving the nation for more than 109 years.
 * St Andrew's Higher Secondary School
 * St. Andrew's High Secondary School, in the centre of the town, is one of the oldest schools in India, having recently celebrated its 150th anniversary. This school is managed by the CSI Madras Diocese. Nearly 5,000 pupils study at this school. This school has been serving the nation for more than 159 years
 * Bharathidasanar Matriculation Higher Secondary School. Arakkonam, Vellore Dist school.
 * Rajeswari Primary and Nursery School, Griblespet, Arakkonam (founded on 1981)
 * GoodWill Nursery & Primary School
 * Marry Vision Matriculation Higher Secondary School (formerly known as Steelplant Matriculation Higher Secondary school name change in 2006 as Marry Vision)
 * Selvam Matriculation Higher sec. school
 * Sacred Heart School Matriculation Higher Secondary
 * SMS Vimal Matriculation Higher Secondary School
 * Good Shepherd Nursery & Primary School, Arakkonam, Vellore Dist.
 * Vivekanada Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School
 * Dr. V. G. N Matriculation Higher Secondary School
 * Krishna Matriculation school
 * St.Andrew's matriculation school

Colleges

 * Sri Krishna College of Engineering, Arakkonam
 * Sri Krishna Polytechnic College, Arakkonam
 * Arakkonam Jaya Arts and science, Arakkonam
 * Mercury College of Arts and Science, Arakkonam
 * Christian Teacher Training Institute, Arakkonam
 * VS Isaac College of Education, Arakkonam
 * Premkumar Engineering College, Arakkonam
 * Doss Community College, Arakkonam
 * Dr. Pradeep Prakash College Of Medicine and Pharamists
 * Aruna Institute of Hotel Management, Catering and Tourism School. Arakkonam,
 * Government arts and science college,ARAKKONAM.
 * Dr Radha Krishnan Institute Of Safety management.

Financial institutions

 * Canara Bank
 * HDFC Bank
 * Indian Bank
 * Indian Overseas Bank
 * State Bank of India
 * Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank
 * Union Bank of India
 * City Union Bank
 * South Indian Bank
 * Karur Vysya Bank
 * Muthoot Finance
 * Manappuram Gold Loan
 * Muthoot Mini
 * IIFL Gold Loan

Industries

 * Electric Loco Shed, Southern Railway,Arakkonam.
 * Engineering Work Shop, Southern Railway,Arakkonam.
 * UltraTech Cement Limited., thandalam
 * Ramco Industries, Arakkonam.
 * FCI (Food corporation of India), Arakkonam.
 * MRF Limited., Itchiputhur, Arakkonam.
 * FL SMIDTH, Kavanoor.Arakkonam.
 * Fenner India Limited, Kavanoor, Arakkonam.
 * Dennis Steel plant, Arakkonam.
 * Genius Glass Company, Mulvaai
 * Saatva Logistics, Melpakkam
 * SANDIVS, Arakkonam
 * Arokya Agrotech Limited, Arakkonam

Nearby towns/cities

 * Chennai - Tamil Nadu
 * Kancheepuram - Tamil Nadu
 * Ranipet - Tamil Nadu
 * Sholingur - Tamil Nadu
 * Tiruttani - Tamil Nadu
 * Tiruvallur - Tamil Nadu
 * Tindivanam - Tamil Nadu
 * Vellore - Tamil Nadu
 * Arcot - Tamil Nadu
 * Walajapet - Tamil Nadu
 * Tirupathi - Andhra Pradesh
 * Nagari - Tamil Nadu