In india’s defence

  • Just 1 km. before Aravankadu, 12 km. from Ooty, the Shahney Stadium is on the right. The road inside is one of the most pleasant drives through densely wooded forests and ends just above the Black Bridge near the Madras Regimental Centre (MRC). It is also an excellent road for walking as there is no traffic. The only draw back is that it is a very lonely road

  • Past Ketti, 13 km. down the same road, is Aravankadu and the Government Cordite Factory. Built in 1900, it commenced manufacture of propellants for ammunition for small arms and guns in 1904. This valley was chosed because of the climate and the ideal conditions where ‘dangerous’ buildings could be isolated in separate hollows while water and other liquids run by gravity whenever and wherever required. The Kateri Falls, about 5 and half km. from the factory, supplies hydroelectric power and water

  • The name Aravankadu is supposedly derived from aravan (snake) and kadu (forest in Tamil). It was also known as Sappers Valley because the sappers and miners who built the first rough ghat road stayed here. As this is a defence establishment and a high security area, it is off limits to all visitors. The Mettupalayam- Ooty train halts here

  • Wellington Cantonment is reached by turning off the highway across a small bridge 3 km. from Aravankadu on the Ooty- Coonoor Road. This is the famous Black Vridge or Waterloo Bridge. Built in 1858, it collapsed because of heavy rain and poor construction even before it was completed. The present tarred wooden bridge (which is why it is known as the Black Bridge) was built in 187

  • Wellington is almost entirely a military town, well known for the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), the only one of its kind in Asia, and the Madras Regimental Centre. Both junior and senior officers of the army, navy, and air force of India and other countries undergo 10 months training after being selected through rigorous tests. Doing this course and being an instructor here is one of the criteria for accelerated promotions

  • Most officers who came for training stayed in rented houses in Coonoor earlier, but now the DSSC is almost self sufficient in housing. The Coonoor shops cater to most of their daily requirements; while the army canteen supplies their other necessities at highly subsidised rates. The Madras Regimental Centre barracks was begun in 1852 and completed in 1860, with another block added in 1876

  • The traffic island is a war memorial always filled with seasonal flowers, now known as the place where ‘Roja’ was filmed. From this island, roads lead to Lower and upper Coonoor, Ooty, Kotagiri and the barracks. Obviously, the defence establishments in Wellington are off limits to visitors

  • The Wellington Gymkhana Club and its very interesting and challenging golf course straddle the road leading to Coonoor. The Nilagiri Passenger train stops at Wellington too