Kovilpatti is an Industrial City and Special Grade Municipality in Thoothukudi District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. History The town already existed before 1876. Kovilpatti was a water stop for steam engines after the introduction of the Southern Railways, and the establishment of textile mills like Loyal Textiles (1891) and Lakshmi Mills Ltd (1926) fueled the economic growth of the town. The Government Revenue divisional offices were sited there in 1911. The town was constituted as a Municipal Town in 1964 composed of Kovilpatti Village and Illuppaiyurani village. Geography The town is spread around an area of and had a population of 95,097 in 2011 with the urban agglomeration having a population of around 3,00,000. Kovilpatti is located at . It has an average elevation of 106 metres (347 feet). Located 100 km south of Madurai, 55 km north of Tirunelveli and 60 km north-west of Tuticorin, Kovilpatti is situated on National Highway No. 07 NH 7, which connects Srinagar in the north and Kanyakumari in the south. The town lies approximately 130 m above mean sea level. Climate The climate of Kovilpatti town is hot and dry. Temperatures range between a maximum of 37 °C and a minimum of 22 °C. April to June are the hottest months and December and January are coldest with temperatures rising towards the end of February. Rainfall occurs mostly during the north-east monsoon in the months of October to December. However, the town receives little rainfall, averaging 840 mm compared to the district average. Annual rainfall has ranged from 964 mm to 228 mm during past decades. Demographics Population In 1961, the area of the town was 2.64 km2 with a population of 33,305; in 1971, it extended to 7.25 km2 and the population reached 48,509. In 1991, it was 12.58 km2 with a population of 78,834. In the 2011 census, Kovilpatti had a population of 95,057. The sex-ratio of 1,065 females to 1,000 males much exceeded the national average of 929. A total of 8,325 residents were under the age of six, constituting 4,158 males and 4,167 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 10.32% and 0.84% of the population respectively. The literacy rate of the city was 81.27%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The city had a total of 25099 households in 2011. There were a total of 41,006 workers, comprising 85 cultivators, 165 main agricultural