Inaugurated on February 28th, 1968, Auroville is an experimental township built in the Viluppuram district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The sole purpose behind the creation of this township is to realize Humanity. Men and Women from around the world stay here in composite peace and harmony away from all nationalities, any politics and all creeds.
About Auroville
Auroville is a unique township all over the world where men and women from all ages groups, different countries, diverse cultures, various social classes, distinctive backgrounds, contrasting environments live together to realize the humanity in diversity. The residents of Auroville termed as "Aurovillians" are residents from 49 nations currently approx 2,500 in number. Out of then, one-third approximately are Indians.
About the Architecture of the Planned Township
The Auroville township is a properly planned city. The city has separate areas for various purposes.
The Peace Area: At the center of the Auroville, there is a Peace area called Matrimandir(The meditation dome) which comprises an amphitheater, surrounded by lush green gardens. The soil for this place is taken from 121 nations and 23 Indian States to show the Human Unity.
The Industrial Zone: The industrial zone consists of the art and craft industry, small and medium scale industries, training centers and the city's administration.
The Residential Zone: The residential zone is the place where inhabitants are colonized. The area is 55% covered with greenery and the rest is populated.
International Zone: The national and international events are hosted in this zone.
Green Belt: This belt is used for organic farming, dairies, orchards, forests, and wildlife. Basically, it is the source of food, medicines and etc. necessities for the inhabitants of the Auroville.
Eateries Inside Auroville: There are numerous eateries inside the Auroville where you can enjoy multi-cuisines catered to meet the needs of diverse taste of the inhabitants of the Auroville. There are lots of Cafe's, Bakery, Farm Fresh Food Corners, Garden Cafe, Market for the daily needs and other eateries.
My Experience of the Visit: I stayed in Club Mahindra Puducherry for my stay in Pondicherry. It took me around an hour to reach Auroville from there.
Club Mahindra Puducherry -- approx 30kms -- Auroville
I reached Auroville at 3 pm in the evening. Till the time, the visitor's time to get an entry to visit the Matrimandir has passed away for the day. As I reached the main entry area of Auroville, we walk down for few meters through a dense green belt of plants and trees, we reached the main center area. I was able to see a few cafes, a bookstore, a shopping shop, a small area where I can read articles and pictures depicting about Auroville(Auroville Visting center).
We were then taken via a small bus to the area near Matrimandir. Since I mentioned I couldn't go inside it but I still had a chance to view from a certain distance. So, the bus driver dropped us to a junction a few meters away from the camera point of Matrimandir. On the way, I witnessed an old banyan tree. It was amazing. the branches of the tree grew into new trees. Here is a picture of the same.
Then, after walking a few meters we reached a camera point where we could click the pictures of Matrimandir. Sadly, I missed seeing inside of it.
Then, the same bus took us back to the entry of Auroville. We had Cold Coffee in one of the cafes. I wanted to interact with residents of the place but was unable to do so. After looking at some nearby places, we headed back to our cars.
I must mention the immense calmness and tranquility inside the place. The charismatic view of Matrimandir is worth watching.
Nearby Places to Visit: Auroville beach, Serenity Beach, Savitri Bhawan, Auro Beach, Auroville Botanical Gardens
Talking about the weather, I visited Auroville in the month of July. The weather is quite warm. I recommend visiting the place in the months of October-February when the weather is more soothing.
When in Pondicherry, I recommend to must visit this place.
