Royapuram
Royapuram
Neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Royapuram is a locality in the northern part of the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is best known for its beach, and for Royapuram Railway Station. The station is the first railway station of South India, opening in 1856, and is today the oldest surviving railway station of the Indian subcontinent.[1]
 | This article possibly contains original research. (March 2019) |
Royapuram | |
|---|---|
neighbourhood | |
 Royapuram fishing harbour | |
  Royapuram  Royapuram  Royapuram | |
| Coordinates: 13.10403°N 80.29366°E / 13.10403; 80.29366 | |
| Country | India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District | Chennai |
| Metro | Chennai |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Tamil |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 600 013 |
| Vehicle registration | TN-04 |
The region existed as a well known settlement during the Chola times, but the name Royapuram is derived from a Tamil appellation for St. Peter, Royappa, in connection with St. Peter's Church in the area.[2] The region was originally called Rayarapuram named after the Rayar Kings who rules down South. It is also believed that the British / Anglo Indians settled in this locality were called Rayars, which lent the name Rayarpuram.[3]
From the 14th century, the erstwhile Vijayanagara Rulers[4] controlled this region till the Madras land grant to Francis Day.[5][6]
Royapuram Railway Station was the first railway station constructed in South India and second railway line in South Asia. The first train service commenced in 1856 from here to Arcot, the then capital of the Carnatic region.[7]
| Year | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 53.3% 50,647 | 39.1% 37,144 |
| 2001 | 56.8% 44,465 | 39.3% 30,753 |
| 1996 | 35.4% 27,485 | 57.8% 44,893 |
| 1991 | 59.0% 46,218 | 37.8% 29,565 |
| 1989* | 8.0% 6,532 | 46.0% 37,742 |
| 1984 | 50.3% 40,727 | 48.7% 39,432 |
| 1980 | 49.1% 36,455 | 50.3% 37,390 |
| 1977 | 31.3% 22,626 | 33.5% 24,217 |
State assembly politics
Royapuram assembly constituency is part of Chennai North (Lok Sabha constituency).[8]
- "The train to Royapuram". Mint. 25 May 2012.
- Muthiah, S. (11 September 2011). "Madras miscellany". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 18 May 2019.
- Bureau, The Hindu (6 July 2022). "Watch | Inside India's oldest, surviving railway station". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- Krishnamachari, Suganthy (21 August 2014). "Madras is not alien". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 18 May 2019.
- "District profile - Chennai district administration- official website". Chennai.tn.nic.in. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
- C S Srinivasachari (1939). History of the City of Madras. pp. 63–69.
- "The South's first station". The Hindu. Chennai. 26 February 2003. Archived from the original on 2 July 2003. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
- "List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies" (PDF). Tamil Nadu. Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2008.