Madurai Million

Census records show that the city of Madurai is approaching a population of million people. The 2011 census data is not out yet. I can only imagine the population has crossed over the million mark in the last decade.

City population nearly doubled between the years 1960 and 1980. The steepest increase is between the years 1970 and 1990 at the rate of approximately 20,000 people a year. That is an average of 55 child birth a day every day for 20 years, without accounting for any death. Migration from south and nearby villages to Madurai probably contributed to such growth in addition to the child birth.

Population seems to have slightly leveled off per 2001 data. I believe the growth hasn't slowed down really. The city has expanded widely in all directions in the last decade. Establishing of the High court bench in Madurai, splitting up of the central bus-stand into many bus-stands in different direction, increased connectivity to extended areas around the town through mini-bus service, setting up of passport office in Madurai and the IT outsourcing boom with SEZs all must have contributed to the population growth and resettlement in and around Madurai in the last decade.