Pondicherry (/pɒndɪˈtʃɛri/ or /-ˈʃɛri/), officially known as Puducherry, is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian Union Territory of Puducherry, with a population of 657,209 and an area of 492 sq km. The city is in the Puducherry district
of the union territory and is surrounded by the state of Tamil Nadu to
which it shares most of its culture. It is affectionately called Pondy
and short code as "Pdy," and has been officially known by the
alternative name Puducherry in Tamil (New Town) since 2006.
