Madurai is the oldest inhabited city in the Indian peninsula[3]. It is the third largest city and a municipal corporation situated on the banks of the River Vaigai in Madurai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city is also referred to as the Temple town[3]. With a population of 922,913 according to the 2001 census, it is the administrative capital of Madurai district.
Madurai was built by the Pandyan king Kulasekhara and was the capital city of the great Pandya kings of South India. Madurai's cultural heritage goes back 2500 years, and the city has been an important commercial center and has conducted trade as far as Rome and Greece since as early as 550.
