K ariapatti block is part of Virudhunagar District and has border with Madurai and Ramnad District. The population is roughly 1,20,000 with 144 hamlets situated in 38 Panchayats. The block can be divided into 2 with a major portion east of the Madurai Aruppukottai road which runs through the block. The Kariapatti town lies on the road near Madurai. The block is an agricultural community with only one major industry run by TVS on the border of Madurai District. There are a few scattered small match factories, 1 spinning mill at the border with Aruppukottai. 79% farmers are marginal farmers growing groundnut, vegetables grain and in some area a little rice.

T hough it is agriculture it is not the breadbasket of Tamil Nadu as it is rain fed with no river running through. Families are known to migrate enmassoff season. There is one institute of technology; primary schools are well spread out high schools clustered along the town.