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Vellore

Pop: 300,000 Area Code: 0416
Vellore is 145km west of Chennai. The Jalakanteswara Temple and the Vijaya­nagar Fort are interesting. Vellore is not a major place to visit and the town itself is not very interesting, but it is worth stopping here if you are passing through the area.

The Christian Medical College Hospital is one of the best tropical disease hospitals in India.
Practical Information

The State Bank of India (21291), Officer Line Rd, changes money. The Head Post Office, Officer Line Rd. Postal Code: 632004.

Christian Medical College Hospital (22102) is on Officers Line Rd. It is said to treat over 2,000 people a day.

Vellore Fort
Bommi and Thimma Reddy built this large fort in the 16th century during the reign of the Vijayanagar king Krishnadeva Raja. The fort was captured in the 17th century by the Adi Shahis, the Muslim rulers from Bijapur. It was then taken by the Marathas, and later taken by Daud Khan of Delhi in the early 18th century. The British took control of this fort in 1768 and controlled it until Independence. After the British killed Tipu Sultan they imprisoned Tipu’s son and daughter in this fort.

There is a big moat around the fort that is still filled with water. At one time it was full of crocodiles. The fort, which is well preserved, now contains the Jalakanteswara Temple, a church, a mosque, courts and a police training center.
There is a Museum here that contains old sculptures, paintings and handicrafts. Open daily except Fri 8 am to 8 pm.

The modern CSI Church, opposite the fort, has an old British cemetery, which contains graves of British officers killed in the final campaign against Tipu Sultan.

Jalakanteswara Temple
This large, impressive Siva temple was built around 1566 in the Vijayanagar style. This ancient temple is named after Jalakanteswara, or “Lord Siva residing in the water.” The temple has a Nataraja Siva deity on the northern altar, and on the western altar is a Siva-linga. This temple has just recently been reestablished as a place of worship.

The temple is famous for its magnificent sculptures. There is a 30m (100ft) high, seven-storey gopuram made of blue granite, which is flanked by two carved dwarpalas (door guards). The carvings in the kalyan mandapa (pillared hall) are some of the most impressive in India. The outer pillars have sculptures of rearing horses and dragons. The inner pillars have sculptures of yalis, which are lion-like creatures.
This temple is located in the Vellore Fort, near the north wall of the fort. Open daily 6 am to 1 pm and 3 to 8 pm.

Where to Stay
Most hotels in Vellore have 24-hour checkout. The cheap hotels are on Babu Rao St and Ida Scudder St, near the hospital and bus stand.
Mayura Lodge (25488), Babu Rao St, is a recommended budget place. It has clean rooms for Rs 65/95.
Hotel Solei (22996) has rooms for Rs 80/120. It is decent, but some rooms do not have windows.
VDM Lodge (24008), 13 Beri Bakkali St, has rooms for Rs 100/125 and Rs 200/250 for a better room with a TV. It is a friendly place.
Srinivasa Lodge (26389), 14 Beri Bakkali St, has clean rooms with bath for Rs 100/140.
Nagha International Lodge (26731), 13 KVS Chetty St, has modern rooms that are a good value for Rs 100/160. An A/C room is Rs 450.
Hotel Park Avenue (20799), 3 First Main Rd, Anna Nagar, is a good place with rooms for Rs 150/250 and A/C rooms for Rs 400.
Hotel Ganga (23033) has rooms for Rs 400 and Rs 450 with A/C.
Hotel River View (25568), Katpadi Rd, 1km north of downtown, is a recommended, well-managed place with clean, modern rooms with cable TV for Rs 400/450 and Rs 600/700 with A/C. It has a garden and three restaurants.
Hotel Prince Manor (22926, 27916), Katpadi Rd, is a clean, well-managed, modern place with rooms with cable TV for Rs 600 and with A/C for Rs 800. It is conveniently located near the railway station.

Where to Eat
Raj Cafe, in the India Lodge, across from the bazaar, is a good veg restaurant.
Lalit Vihar, KVS Chetty St, has Gujarati thalis for Rs 25.
Simla Ice Cream Bar, 88 Ida Scudder St, has good vegetarian North Indian food and naans.
Palace Cafe, Officers Line Rd, serves cheap unlimited thalis.
Shanti Sagar, Beri Bakkali St, near the VDM Lodge, is a popular vegetarian place that has a nice courtyard.
Hotel Karthik has a good vegetarian restaurant.
Chinatown, Gandhi Rd, has good Chinese food, serving noodles and rice.
Kings, in the Hotel Prince Manor serves a non-veg Indian and Chinese cuisine. Princes, also in the Hotel Prince Manor, is a good vegetarian place, which serves North and South Indian food and ice cream.
Ganga Restaurant, in the Hotel River, serves North and South Indian veg food.
Hotel Anand, Ida Scudder Rd, is a higher-class vegetarian place with an A/C room.

Travel
Train Vellore has two railway stations. The main railway station for Vellore is at Katpadi (4km north of Vellore). This is a junction on the broad-gauge Chennai-Bangalore line and the metre-gauge line that goes between Tirupati and Madurai. The line between Tirupati and Madurai goes via Tiruvannamalai, Chidambaram, Thanjavur and Tiruchirappalli.

From Katpadi it takes 4½ hours to get to Bangalore and 2 hours to get to Chennai. A daily train to Madurai (15 hr) departs at 7 pm. There is a passenger train to Tirupati (3 hr, 105km) at 9.15 am.

A bus from Vellore to Katpadi takes about 20 minutes. An auto rickshaw from the Katpadi station to Vellore is about Rs 35.

The Cantonment railway station is 2km south of town, and it is only on the metre-gauge line. 

Bus The bus stand is a little east of the fort. Thiruvalluvar Transport Corporation buses that go to Tiruchirappalli, Madurai, and Tiruvannamalai—which begin in Vellore— can be booked in advance. There are also buses to Bangalore (3 hr), Tirupati, Thanjavur, and Chennai. PATC operates buses to Chennai (every 30 min, 3 hr), Bangalore (10 daily, 6 hr), and Kanchipuram (every 30 min, 2½ hr). The bus station is not user friendly.

Around Vellore

Vellamalai (20km)
The Vellamalai Temple is dedicated to Subrahmanya (Murugan in Tamil), the son of Lord Siva. The main temple is at the top of a hill and is carved from a giant stone. There is also a temple at the bottom of the hill. People tie cloth onto trees here to have their wishes fulfilled. From Vellore, Bus #20 comes here each hour.

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