Spatial planning

Pondicherry

About Pondicherry
Pondicherry is the French
interpretation of the original name
"Puducheri" meaning 'new
settlement.
A marketplace named Poduke or Poduca is
recorded as a Roman trading destination
from the mid 1st century. The area was part
of the Pallava Kingdom of Kanchipuram in
the 4th century. The Cholas of Thanjavur
held it from the 10th to 13th centuries, only
to be replaced by the Pandya Kingdom in the
13th century. The Vijayanagar Empire took
control of almost all the South of India in the
14th century and lasted until 1638, to be
supplanted by the Sultan of Bijapur. The
French acquired Puducherry in 1674 and
held control, with occasional interruption
from the British and Dutch, until 1954 (de
jure in 1956), when it was incorporated into
the Indian Union along with the rest of
French India.

History

Evolution

Pondicherry orPuducherry acity, an urban

agglomeration and amunicipalityinPondicherry
districtin theIndianunion territoryofPuducherry. It is
affectionately known asPondy, and has been officially
known by the alternative name Puducherry since 2006

The City of Pondicherry have recorded history after the advent

of the Colonial Powers like the Dutch, Portuguese, British and
the French. Though nearby places like Arikamedu,
Ariyankuppam, Kakayanthoppe, Villianur, Bahur which
were annexed by the French East India Company over
a period of time and which became the Union Territory
of Pondicherry after Independence have history
predating the Colonial History.

Land use

History

evolution

Topography
The topography of Pondicherry is the same as that
of coastal Tamil Nadu. Pondicherry's average
elevation is at sea level, and a number of sea
inlets, referred to as "backwaters" can be found.
Pondicherry experiences coastal erosion. The city
is protected against the sea by a 1.25 mile (2kilometres) long seawall, first completed by the
French in 1735, which reaches a height of 27 feet
above sea level.
A weather-beaten cement plaque with the year
1952 is still visible along a section of the seawall.
The seawall is protected from the direct onslaught
of waves by rows of granite boulders which are
reinforced every year to stop erosion. Whenever
gaps appear or the stones sink into the sand, the
Government adds more boulders to keep it strong.

Land use

Country
Capitaland Largest ci
ty
Total area

492km2(190sqmi)

Population

2,44,464

Density

2,500/km2(6,600/sqmi)

Official languages

Tamil
Malayalam
Telugu
French

History

evolution

Land
use

Key
land
Puducherry
suffers a tremendous strain on its
issues
urban infrastructure and quality of life because of

Environment
Natural resources are under severe strain because
neither their use, nor plans for their protection,
uncontrolled and unplanned expansion and
conservation, and augmentation are coordinated
excessive development cramped into a limited
among the stakeholders within the region.
land area, Other critical concerns related to land
Coastal mismanagement has already destroyed
use include: unplanned sprawling growth, lack of
beaches and fishing villages throughout the region,
enforcement, loss in agricultural land, and minimal and continues to threaten the remaining areas.
recreation areas.
Given the disaster wrought by the tsunami in Tamil
Nadu in the recent past (December 2004) and
cyclone Thane (December 2011) to the coastal
areas of the region, preservation and restoration of
the beaches of the bio-region and forests need to
be given high priority.

History

Evoluti
on

Land use

History

Evoluti
on

Land use

2005

History

Evoluti
on

Land use

2005
2010

History

Evoluti
on

Land use

2005
2010
2014