Forts in TamilNadu

There are only a few remaining ports in Tamilnadu today. The Tamilnadu forts that are still standing intact are from the recent history, mainly belonging to the 17th and 18th centuries. The state enjoyed relative peace during the muslim invasions that swept most of North India and the Deccan. The extreme southern situation may be the reason for this. The British built their first major fort here, and most of the ports in Tamilnadu include forts built by them and some remnants of medieval and ancient forts. Tourism in Tamilnadu benefits from these forts as each year numerous tourists visit them. Some of these forts are among the major tourist destinations in Tamilnadu.

Important Ports in Tamilnadu:

Chennai Port is the second largest port of India, behind the Mumbai Port. It is over 125 years old. This was a major travel port before becoming a major container port. It is a substantial reason for the economic growth of Tamil Nadu, especially for the manufacturing boom in South India. Its container traffic crossed 1 million TEUs for the first time in 2008>[1]. It is currently ranked the 91st largest container port and is expanding in the coming years.

Chennai Port, is more than a century old artificial port, and located in >Chennai, South India, is one of the major ports on the Coromandel coast of India. The initial piers were built in 1861, but the storms of 1868 and 1872 made them inoperative. So the Masonry work for L shaped breakwaters was started in 1876, but the storm of 1881 completely washed the almost completed harbour. The Chennai Port Trust has taken the year of rebuilding 1881 as the starting year and is now celebrating its 125th anniversary. The port's quays (berths) were constructed at different periods — the South Quay I in 1913, the five West Quay berths between 1916 and 1920, the North Quay in 1931 and the South Quay II in 1936, in the Inner Harbour, later christened Dr Ambedkar Dock.

It was under the stewardship of Sir Francis Dallas Rafold Spring from 1905-1919 that the major improvements took place. It can be said without doubt that the Madras Port was the main reason for the booming industry in Madras and contributed in no small measure to the development of the City. From handling a meagre volume of cargo in the early years, consisting chiefly of imports of oil and motors and the export of groundnuts, granite and ores, the port is moving towards handling 500 lakh (50 million) tonnes of cargo this year.

Ennore Port, located about 24 km north of Chennai Port, Chennai, India is the 12th major port of India, and the first port in India which is a public company. [1] Ennore Port, designed as Asia’s energy port, has only 16 employees. Hailed as a landmark port, it is the first corporatized port in India. Envisaged as a satellite port to decongest and improve the environmental quality at the bustling Chennai Port, Ennore Port is evolving itself into a full-fledged port with the capacity to handle a wide range of products.

Operating on a landlord port concept, it is outsourcing all services required for operation and maintenance, and new terminals are being developed with the participation of the private sector.[2] During the year of 2006, it handled a total cargo of 10.7 million tons. The port has effectively taken over all the ore movement from the Chennai Port.

The port has adequate road and rail links. The Port has obtained an in-principle approval from Southern Railways for providing rail connectivity to coal and iron ore stackyards. Ennore Port Limited (EPL) is also developing an 8-lane Northern Express Road, which would link the Port with the National Highway No. 5. It has a 560-meter (m) long coal wharf for berthing two Panamax size vessels and fully mechanized systems for handling 16 million tons of cargo a year. Designed as a world-class port, with two breakwaters—one in the north measuring 3,080 m and the other in the south measuring 1,070 m with a depth of 15m — it has the capacity to develop 22 berths for handling a variety of bulk, liquid, and container cargo. The port is an artificial port and has several modern features including all weather round the clock operations, a large back-up land, eco-friendly environment, state of the art navigational facilities, well organized logistics systems and transport interface. The highway authority is implementing the project for construction of 30 km segment of Chennai-Ennore Port Connectivity.

Tuticorin Port is one of the 12 major ports in India. It was declared to be a major port on 11 July 1974. It is second-largest port in Tamil Nadu and third-largest container terminal in India after Jawaharlal Nehru Port (Mumbai) and Chennai Port. Tuticorin Port is an artificial port[1]. This is the third international port in Tamil Nadu and its second all-weather port. All Tuticorin Port’s traffic handling has crossed 10 million tons from April 1 to September 13, 2008, registering a growth rate of 12.08 per cent, surpassing the corresponding previous year handling of 8.96 million tons[2]. It has services to USA, China, Europe, Sri Lanka and Mediterranean countries.

Tuticorin has been a centre for maritime trade and pearl fishery for more than a century. The natural harbour with a rich hinterland, activated the development of the Port, initially with wooden piers and iron screw pile pier and connections to the railways. Tuticorin was declared as a minor anchorage port in 1868. Since then there have been various developments over the years.

After 1945, Tuticorin Port has been a centre for maritime trade and pearl fishery for more than a century. The natural harbour with a rich hinterland, activated the development of the Port, initially with wooden piers and iron screw pile pier and connections to the railways. Tuticorin was declared as a minor anchorage port in 1868. Since then there have been various developments over the years.

To cope with the increasing trade through Tuticorin, the Government of India sanctioned the construction of an all-weather Port at Tuticorin, which brings second largest revenue to India. On July 11, 1974, the newly constructed Tuticorin Port was declared as the 10th major port 1 April 1979, the erstwhile Tuticorin minor Port and the newly constructed Tuticorin major Port were merged and the Tuticorin Port Trust was constituted under the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963.