The city of Pondicherry was designed based on the French grid pattern and features neat sectors and perpendicular streets. The town is divided into two sections: the French Quarter (Ville Blanche or 'White town') and the Indian quarter (Ville Noire or 'Black Town'.) Many streets still retain their French names, and French style villas are a common sight. In the French quarter, the buildings are typically colonial style with long compounds and stately walls. The Indian quarter consists of houses lined with verandas and houses with large doors and grills. These French and Indian style houses are identified and their architecture is preserved from destruction by an organization named INTACH. The use of the French language can still be seen and heard in Pondicherry.
The official languages of Puducherry are Tamil (89%), Malayalam (4.8%), Telugu (2.9% Yanam) and French (1%). The status of each language varies by district. When communicating between districts of different languages, generally English is used for convenience.
Tamil is used by the Puducherry government, especially used when communicating within and between the Tamil majority districts (Pondicherry and Karaikal) along with issuing official decrees. Telugu is widely spoken in Pondicherry, Karaikal and Yanam districts. Malayalam is spoken in Mahé and Pondicherry districts.
French is also an official language of the territory. It was the official language of French India from 1673 until 1954), and its official status was preserved by the Treaty of Cession signed by the Indian Union and the French Republic on 28 May 1956.
French remained as the de jure official language of Puducherry U.T by the Article XXVIII of the Treaty of Cession, which states that:
Puducherry is one of the most popular tourist spots for national and international tourists. There are several beaches here. There is also Sri Aurobindo Ashram, where Sri Aurobindo spent his last years. There are several temples, monuments, parks and mosques which attract tourists.
Puducherry is a Union Territory with one of the highest levels of quality of life in the country with moderate physical infrastructure and almost a hundred per cent literacy level. It is also the place where Sri Aurobindo and the Mother chose to stay and their writings remain a tremendous source of spiritual awakening that emphasizes the progress of humanity and its spiritual brotherhood. A unique experimental city, Auroville, the brainchild of the Mother, whose inhabitants are drawn from all parts of the world, is situated on the outskirts of the city. Puducherry, which still carries several marks of French culture and heritage, was also the place where the national poet Shri Subramania Bharathiar wrote several of his masterpieces that fanned the flames of freedom and also enriched modern Tamil literature. Bharathidasan, a staunch disciple of Subramania Bharathiar, whose poems stressed social revolution and emancipation of women, was also an eminent son of Puducherry. Therefore, it is, indeed, in the fitness of things that this city with such an illustrious history should also have the distinction of housing a Central University that would meet the needs of the people of the Southern states of India in general and those of Puducherry in particular, for higher education.[13]
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