Karaikal

Karaikal (/ˈkɑːraɪkʌl/, Tamil: [kaːɾɐi̯kːaːl], French: Karikal /kaʁikal/) is a port city of the Indian Union Territory of Puducherry. It is the administrative headquarters of the Karaikal District and the second most populated town in the Union Territory after Pondicherry. Located on the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal in South India, it is situated at the center of a coastal enclave surrounded by the state of Tamil Nadu and its Cauvery delta districts (Mayiladuthurai, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam).

The origin of the word Karaikal is uncertain. The Imperial Gazetteer of British India gives its meaning as 'fish pass'. Both the words 'Karai' and 'Kal' have several meanings, of which the more acceptable ones are 'lime mix' and 'canal' respectively. Hence it has been suggested that the name may mean a canal built of lime mix, however, no trace of such a canal is evident.

In 1738, Karaikal was promised to the French by Sayaji, the exiled Rajah of Thanjavur, in exchange for their assistance. However, the transfer of control only occurred in 1739 with the help of Chanda Sahib of Arcot, when the French formally obtained the town.

In 1749, additional territories consisting of 81 villages were ceded by Pratap Singh to the French during their siege of Thanjavur, a grant that was confirmed by treaty in 1754. Karaikal changed hands multiple times in the following years due to conflicts between the French and the British, notably during the siege of 1760, when British forces captured the town after a ten-day defense.

Karaikal was eventually restored to French control in 1817 following the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French continued to hold control, despite occasional interruptions by the British Raj, until 1954, when it was de facto incorporated into the Republic of India. Karaikal, along with the other French Indian colonies of Mahé, Yanaon, Chandernagor, and Pondichéry, was de jure integrated into India in 1962.

Karaikal is a small coastal enclave which was formerly part of French India. Together with the other former French territories of Pondicherry, Yanam, and Mahé, it forms the Union Territory of Puducherry. Karaikal is bounded on three sides by three districts of Tamil Nadu, on the North by Mayiladuthurai district, on the South by Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu state, on the west by Tiruvarur district (also belonging to Tamil Nadu), and on the East by the Bay of Bengal. The enclave is located 140 kilometres (87 miles) south of the city of Pondicherry, 158 kilometres (98 miles) east of Trichy and is known for its rich cultural heritage.

The main branches of Kaveri below Grand Anicut are the Kudamurutti, Arasalar, Virasolanar and the Vikramanar. Although Arasalar and its branches spread through Karaikal, the waters of Kudamurutti and Virasolanar also meet the irrigation needs of the region.

Forming a part of the fertile Kaveri delta, the region is completely covered by the distributaries of Cauvery. Covered completely by a thick mantle of alluvium of variable thickness, the lie of the region is flat having a gentle slope towards the Bay of Bengal in the east. It is limited on the north by the Nandalar and on the south-east by the Vettar. The group of rocks known as Cuddalore formations is met with in the area contiguous to Karaikal region in Nagapattinam district.