Economy
Fishing is the major industry, with fish such as tiger prawns and lobsters being mostly exported. Coral mining and diving for conches is also performed, though activity is declining. The government actively discourages these activities as Tharuvaikulam falls under the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park.
A number of prawn hatcheries had sprouted up since 1990, but most shut down by 2000.
Salt mining is another lucrative industry. Production is mostly for industrial use.
Early in its history there was a flourishing trade in palm tree products which has gradually declined over time.
Agriculture is practiced on a small scale. Tharuvaikulam tomatoes are quite popular in the region. Red chilies are another favorite from the region. The vagaries of weather, however do not permit regular cultivation.
Thoothukudi is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and headquarters of Thoothukudi district. It is located about 590 kilometres southwest of Chennai, 190 kilometres northeast of Thiruvananthapuram and 580 kilometres southeast of Bangalore. According to Confederation of Indian Industry, Thoothukudi has the second highest Human Development Index in Tamil Nadu next to Chennai. Thoothukudi City serves as the headquarters of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Limited. Major educational establishments in the city include Government Thoothukudi Medical College, Fisheries College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Maritime Academy, V.O. Chidambaram College, Kamaraj College, Anna University and Government Polytechnic College. V. O. Chidambaranar Port Trust is one of the fastest growing Major Ports in India. Thoothukudi is an "Emerging Energy and Industrial hub of South India".
Virapandianpattanam or Virapandianpatnam is a village on the southeastern coast of the Indian peninsula, near Thiruchendur, Thoothukudi District, Tamil Nadu. Many people were converted to Roman Catholicism there by St. Francis Xavier by 1544.
Pragasapuram is a sub-village adjacent to Nazareth and Mukuperi in the Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. The Tirunelveli-Tiruchendur Railway Line divides the villages of Pragasapuram and Nazareth. Pragasapuam is included under Nazareth Village for Revenue and Land administration, but the Mukuperi Post Office provides postal service. Pragasapuram and Mukuperi are on the northern border of Therikaadu and Nazareth is on the northwestern border. It is surrounded by trees, lakes and paddy fields.
Our Lady of Snows Shrine Basilica is located at Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the Catholic pilgrimage centers in India dedicated to the Our Lady of Snows, a title given to St. Mary. The Shrine name refers to the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Vellore is a diocese located in the city of Vellore in the Ecclesiastical province of Madras and Mylapore in India.
St. Stephen's Church is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint Stephen, located in the village of Kombuthurai in the Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. The church was built by St. Francis Xavier in May 1544. It was abandoned by the Jesuits until 1983. The church was taken care of by a people called the "Patangatins/Pattamkattins", according to the wished of St. Francis Xavier, who believed that they could take care of the work of Christianity in Thoothukudi as written in his letters.
Christianity in the state of Tamil Nadu, India is the second largest religion in the state. According to tradition, St. Thomas, one of the twelve apostles, landed in Malabar Coast in AD 52. In the colonial age many Portuguese, Dutch, British and Italian Christians came to Tamil Nadu. Priests accompanied them not only to minister the colonisers but also to spread the Christian faith among the non-Christians in Tamil Nadu. Currently, Christians are a minority community comprising 6% of the total population. Christians are mainly concentrated in the southern districts of Tamil Nadu - Kanyakumari, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli.
Our Lady of Ransom Church is a Catholic church located at Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India.
Kuthalur is a village which is located in Sivagangai District, Tamil Nadu, India, 10 km from Karaikudi towards Sivagangai. The village was called "Chinna Colombo" by the surrounding people, as the villagers have traveled and worked in Colombo and Rangoon prior to India's Independence.
The Church of St. Joachim and St. John the Evangelist is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Beacon, Dutchess County, New York. It was established after a parish mergers of the Church of St. Joachim, and St. John the Evangelist. The merged parishes share a pastor, clergy and administrative staff, and the two church buildings continued to be used for worship.
Mudalur is a village in the Thoothukudi District of India. It was the first purely Christian settlement. It was formed by missionaries in South India with 28 Christians. Today it has a population of more than 4,500 people.
St.Joseph Shrine of Panagudi is under the Diocese of Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu. Approximately 850 families are in this Catholic parish. Many people from southern Tamil Nadu made pilgrimage to this holy shrine of St.Joseph. They reported many miraculous cures and believe to get much more every time.
The Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) is situated in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India.
St Antony's Church, Kanjiracode is a Latin Catholic Church located in Kollam district in the Indian state of Kerala. The Parish Priest is Very Rev. Fr Tomy Kamans. The Assistant Parish priest is Rev. Fr. Lenin Darwin Leon.
Athisaya Manal Matha Shrine is located in the southern part of Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu. The shrine belongs to the Sokkan Kudierappu Parish of the Diocese of Tuticorin. The Shrine is surrounded by land masses of red sands and a large number of palm trees. A small lake is also located near the shrine. It was once known as Kanakkan Kudieruppu, were lived a number of families in the kingdom of The Pandiyas. It's said that, as a result of the unjust in the kingdom, through a poor widow who was killed by the king, the whole village was covered by red sand by sand storm. It is considered as a punishment given to the people and the king by God. Later in 1798, the church was discovered by a shepherd boy with the help of the people of Sokkan kudieruppu.
Thirumoolanagar is a village with about 175 households and a population of 800 in the Kanyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu in India. It falls under the Agastheeswaram taluk of Tamil Nadu. It also borders Tirunelveli district.
Vembar is a village panchayat in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Vembar is a village situated along the East Coast road at the north end of the Tuticorin district. It has two Panchayats - Vembar South and Vembar North.
Our Lady of Fatima Shrine is a place of worship for Catholic Christians in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu, India. The church also served as the parish church for Krishnagiri. This church was constructed in 1972 due to the insufficient space of the existing Ignatius Church which is located in Oldpet, Krishnagiri. The Fatima Mary statue inside the church is from Fátima, Portugal. Every year on the second Sunday of July, the church celebrates a feast which is very famous in the town. In this church, Tamil is the medium of preaching. This church is affiliated with the Dharmapuri Diocese.
The Vinnarasi Madha Church, also called Our Lady of Queen of Heaven Church, is a Roman Catholic Parish Church in Kandikuppam village, Krishnagiri district, in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is situated on the Krishnagiri - Bargur National Highway NH48. It is the place of worship for about 3000 Catholics living in that village. Under this parish administration there are 4 Churches (Chapels), a Divine center and Middle School. This church is servers under the administration of Dharmapuri Diosceses.
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