| Kirloskarwadi | |
| — town — | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Country | India |
| State | Maharashtra |
| District(s) | Sangli |
| Parliamentary constituency | Sangli |
| Assembly constituency | Palus-Kadegaon |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) |
| Area |
• 570 metres (1,870 ft) |
Kirloskarwadi (Marathi: किर्लोस्करवाडी) is an industrial township based around the Kirloskar Brothers factory in the Sangli district, in Maharashtra state, India. It is the second oldest industrial township in India. On March 10, 2010, Kirloskarwadi celebrated 100 years[1] of its establishment.
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The town of Kirloskarwadi was founded by Laxmanrao Kirloskar in 1910 when he started his factory, called Kirloskar Brothers Limited, near the railway station that was at that time called Kundal Road. Laxmanrao Kirloskar had read about "industrial townships" in Europe and USA where the owners of industries had built communities for the employees. His dream was to build his own industry and a community for the employees. The culmination of his dream is the town of Kirloskarwadi. Balasaheb Pant Pratinidhi, the ruler of the Aundh Sansthan, one of the many Indian Princely States under the British rule in India before independence, donated the land to Laxmanrao Kirloskar to establish the factory and the town.[2] The factory around which the town was built is still the flagship manufacturing plants of the Kirloskar Group
During Indian independence struggle, some of the militant revolutionary fighters who went underground to escape arrest took refuge in Kirloskarwadi. The workers from the factory took part in protests and satyagraha against the British rule. Two workers from the factory - Umashankar Pandya and Sadashiv Pendharkar - were killed when police opened fire on one such protest. An obelisk (Marathi: स्तंभ) and park in the town commemorates the sacrifices of these workers.
Kirloskarwadi's residential area is scenic, with well-planned roads, buildings, and abundant greenery. The township has a high school, Kirloskar High School, and a junior college which is managed by Vikas Charitable Trust. The town library, started by donations from the residents, has a good collection of Marathi, Hindi, and English books as well as periodicals. Kirloskarwadi has excellent sports facilities, including a cricket club, tennis courts, golf course, and swimming pool. It has a market place and grocery store, and a well-equipped hospital. The township also has its own post office and PIN code.
Kirloskarwadi is located at . Kirloskarwadi is located in the Krishna (Marathi: कृष्णा) river valley. It is surrounded by fertile agricultural land. Kundal, Palus, Sawantpur and Ramanandnagar are the nearest towns.
Historically, Kirloskarwadi was part of the Tasgaon taluka in Sangli district. After creation of Palus taluka, the town became part of Palus taluka. The town is a part of the Sangli Lok Sabha constituency and Palus-Kadegaon Vidhan Sabha constituency.
The Kirloskarwadi railway station (spelled 'Kirloskarvadi') is on the Pune–Miraj railway line managed by Central Railway, Pune division. There are trains to major cities like Sangli, Kolhapur, Pune, Mumbai and Bangalore.[3] There are Maharashtra State transport corporation (MSRTC) buses and private buses from Kirloskarwadi to Sangli, Kolhapur, Pune and Mumbai.
The Town also has an airstip for business jets and a heliport.