Chintamani, Karnataka

Chintamani Chikkaballapur, Karnataka
Town
Chintamani Location in Karnataka, India
Coordinates: 13°24′00″N 78°03′58″E / 13.400°N 78.066°E / 13.400; 78.066Coordinates: 13°24′00″N 78°03′58″E / 13.400°N 78.066°E / 13.400; 78.066
Country	India
State	Karnataka
District	Chikkaballapur
Taluk	Chintamani
Municipality Established	28 November 1938
Founded by	Chintamani Rao
Named for	Gold & Silver Trade, Tomatoes, Mangoes, Snacks
Government
• Type	Municipal Council
• Body	City Municipal Council
• Municipal Commissioner	Dr RameGowda
• MLA (Current)	J K Krishna Reddy
• MLA (Preceding)	Dr MC Sudhakar
Areaof 867 km2
• Total	15.208 km2 (5.872 sq mi)
Elevation	865 m (2,838 ft)
Population (As per 2011 Census)
• Total	76,068
• Density	5,001.84/km2 (12,954.7/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Kannada
• Others	Telugu, Urdu
Temperature
• Summer	28°C to 34°C
• Winter	20°C to 25°C
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	563 125
STD Code	08154-25xxxx
Vehicle registration	KA40
Website	http://www.chintamanicity.gov.in/

Chintamani (ಚಿಂತಾಮಣಿ), is a Taluk Head Quarter in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka.

Chintamani is one of the well planned and developed Towns in the District of Kolar (before splitting) and presently Chikkaballapur. Chintamani is known for its Silk and Tomato production and their largest markets in Karnataka.

Chintamani's development is happening at a fast phase with the grants from 100 Crore Grant Scheme for City Corporation. Developmental works include the improvement of the basic amenities which include - Bridges, Public Buildings, Burial Grounds, Water Supply & Lake Development, Parks & Gardens, Roads, Solid Waste Management, Storm Water Drains, Street Lighting, Traffic Management, Under Ground Drainage & other related works. Chintamani has some well-recognized schools, colleges and other educational institutions in Karnataka. Chintamani is also known for Gold & Silver Trading, Mangoes, Groundnuts, a variety of snacks.

Etymology

Word Chintamani refers to a precious stone or gem that's been documented since centuries in the Hindu Scriptures and Literature.

However the naming of the town as 'Chintamani' doesn't have any relevance or relation with this gem. Its said that the town is named after a chieftain Chintamani Rao.

History

Before 19th Century

The Town of Chintamani along with the District of Kolar has been part of the continuous rule of numerous kingdoms and rulers that include Cholas, Vijayanagar Empire, Gangas, Mysore Wodeyars, Palegaras, Tippu Sultan, British and many local chieftains.

This area during the 12th Century was under the rule of Kōpparakēsarivarman Vikrama Chola of the Chola dynasty.^[1]

During the reign of British, the Town was called by name CHINTOMNIPETT. The document A Gazetteer of the Territories Under The Government of India on document page no. 204 reads...

“	CHINTOMNIPETT. - A town in Mysore, distant N.E. from Bangalore 43 miles. Lat. 13° 23″, long. 78° 6″[2]	”

CHINTOMNIPETT in British accent could have been CHINTAMANIPETE (ಚಿಂತಾಮಣಿ ಪೇಟೆ), in local Indian accent.

However as per the known history, the Maratha Chieftain Chintamani Rao was last in line to rule the locality of Chintamani. Its said that the Town has been named after the Chieftain.^[3] Part from this nothing much is known either about this person or his achievements.

There are a few buildings and monuments available which stand as an evidence of the history of the place. There is no valid information available about these. Some of them include -

1. The Fort like construction and watch tower on Anjanadri Hill
2. Forts on the hill tops at Ambajidurga and Kaiwara and other villages nearby
3. Inscription at Vasavi Kanyakaparameshwari Temple on Ganigara Veedhi
4. Architecture and Construction features of some temples - Naganatheshwara Temple, Vasavi Kanyaparameshwari Temple
5. The old temple at Alambagiri and writings found there.
6. Street Lamps at Azad Chowk belonging to the time of British (Currently only one of them can be seen in front of Hurigadale Shop)
7. The Chintamani Cooperative Society Building on Double Road built around 1930's built during British
8. The Drinking Water Fountain at Bangalore Circle in front of the Guru Bhavana
9. Kalyanis at Ramakunte and near Railway Station
10. Some identification names in use. Example : The name Ambhajidurga. Ambhaji is a Maratha name while durga is a common Kannada word used for hills as-in Chitradurga.

Below are a list of some citations that are available in some literature and research documents.

“	At Chintamani (Andhra) in 1231, the Devanga 'ten thousand' in the presence of their deity Ramayadeva and goddess......	”

from the Textiles and weavers in medieval South India by Vijaya Ramaswamy.^[4] Its to be noted that Chintamani shares the border with Andhra Pradesh.

Post 19th Century

Most of the temples currently seen and being offered worship, have been built mostly during the 19th Century. List below are the few monuments that narrate the history of the place.

1. Sri Hari Hareshwara Temple, Azad Chowk

This temple was built around 19th Century by Sri Karupakula Subbarayappa. The temple later received restoration and alteration works by the family members.

Temple spans over an area of around 25000 square feet (160 ft x 150 ft). The temple is surrounded by a commercial complex on its East Side, while the other sides are bounded by a high wall. Within the temple complex are the temples dedicated to the Hindu deities Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu. Most of the Sabarimala Trips originate at this temple by offering the various rituals and attaining the pence (diksha).

Geography

Geographical Location

Chintamani lies in the southeast of the South Indian state of Karnataka. It is in the heart of the Mysore Plateau at an average elevation of 865 m (2,838 ft). Chintamani is one among the 6 Taluks of Chikkaballapur District. The Taluk Head Quarters which is Chintamani Town is located at a distance of 36 km from the District Head Quarters Chikkaballapur and about 74 km from State Capital Karnataka.

The Taluk geographically lies between 78°12′36″N 13°16′38″E / 78.21000°N 13.27722°E / 78.21000; 13.27722 and 77°51′39″N 13°42′00″E / 77.86083°N 13.70000°E / 77.86083; 13.70000. The Chintamani Town lies between 13°24′N 78°04′E / 13.40°N 78.06°E / 13.40; 78.06.

Chintamani was originally a part of Kolar District since the Formation of State of Karnataka in 1950 until on 23 August 2007, when the Government of Karnataka carved out the new district of Chikkaballapur from the old Kolar district. Chintamani was then included into the new district of Chikkaballapur.

The Taluk is bound by Sidlaghatta on West, Bagepalli on North-West, Kolar on South-West, Srinivaspur on South-East and Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh on East.

Administrative Division

The Taluk falls under Bangalore Division and Chikkaballapur Sub-Division. The Taluk consists of 6 hobblies - Chintamani, Ambajidurga, Kaivara, Muragamalla, Munganahalli and Chilakalanerpu. Of these, Chintamani Hobbli forms the Chintamani Town. The 6 hobblies together have around 339 villages.^[5]

The Taluk Administration lies with the Taluk Panchayat, which will be in-charge of the implementation and progress of the developmental activities and schemes. Executive Officer, Taluk Panchayat looks after the administration. Who in turn Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Panchayat.

The Chintamani Municipal Council is the body which administers Chintamani Town. It consists of the Elected Counselors.

The Municipal Council is further divided into 31 wards as per the list below

Ward List Abbagundu, Anjani Extension, Bamboo Bazaar, Chowda reddy Palya, Halepete, Huvina Pete, JJ Colony, Kanampalli, Kolar Cross, Kolar Road, KR Extension, Malapalli, Mehaboob Nagar, Narashimha Pete, Nekundhipete, NNT Temple Behind, NR Extension, Patalamma Temple Road, Shanti Nagar, Shri Rama Nagar, Sri Rama Nagar, Sonashetty Halli, Tank Bund Road, Tank Bund Road East, Thimmasandra, Tippu Nagar, Venkatagiri Kote 1, Venkatagiri Kote 2, Venkatagiri Kote 3, Venkateshwara Extension, Vinoba Colony,

Ward wise Councillor List

Ward No	Current Councillor
WARD - 01	P.Devaraj
WARD - 02	A.R.Anwar
WARD - 03	N.Thulasi
WARD - 04	R.Baskar
WARD - 05	Bagyamma Srinivas
WARD - 06	P.Shanthakumari
WARD - 07	K.R.Sumithramma Baireddy
WARD - 08	Aruna Manjunath
WARD - 09	N.Nagaraj
WARD - 10	Anjamma
WARD - 11	S.Nataraja
WARD - 12	N.Manjunath
WARD - 13	Sree Ramappa
WARD - 14	R.Prakash
WARD - 15	Alla Bakash
WARD - 16	R.Manjunath
WARD - 17	Mahammad Shafeek
WARD - 18	R.Venkataramana
WARD - 19	Sujatha
WARD - 20	G. Krishnappa
WARD - 21	K.Manjunatha
WARD - 22	Sujatha
WARD - 23	Sayad Eliyad Pasha(Friends)
WARD - 24	R.Srinatha(Babu Reddy)
WARD - 25	Abhugundu V Srinivasa Reddy
WARD - 26	Jabeen Taj
WARD - 27	D.Sadappa
WARD - 28	Rebhana
WARD - 29	Jiyaull Rehaman
WARD - 30	S.Pavithra Lokesh
WARD - 31	T.V.Rama Murthy

Span

The Taluk covers an area of 892  km²; the Town or the Chintamani Hobbli constitutes 15.208 km² (5.872 mi²) of the total area.

Climate and Rainfall

Chintamani is falls in the Tropical Semi-Arid (Steppe) Type of climatic region of India. The climate here is moderately hot and dry. The months of March to May of the summer season are very hot with temperatures of around 32°C. The region receives very less rainfall of about 40 to 75 cm annually. The area receives rainfall during both South West Monsoon and North East Monsoon Season.^[6]

Soil

Taluk mostly consists of Clayey-Loam Soil. This soil has moisture-retention capacity and allows deep furrowing and is suitable for cultivation of cereals, vegetable and pulses.

Rivers

The Taluk doesn't have any perennial rivers. River Papagni has got its catchment basin on the hills of Ambajidurga. The basin over the years has got completed ruined with no vegetation and with soil erosion. Recently, under NREGA guidelines about 73,111 plants are plated and being nurtured to improve the conditions at the catchment basin and inflow of the once river.

Water Resources

Chintamani has a few large lakes that take care of the Town's thirst for water. Kanampalli Lake is the main water reservoir for the Town. Besides other lakes include - Ambajidurga Lake, Gopasandra Lake, Malapalli Lake, Nekkundipete Lake. Under the 100 Crore Grant Scheme, these lakes are being rejuvenated and storage is being upgraded with modern facilities.

Civic Administration

The Chintamani Municipality was constituted on 28 November 1938. In the year 1995, it was reconstituted to form City Municipal Council.

The City Council currently contains 31 wards and 1 representative per ward totaling to 31 Councillors.

Economy

Chintamani has a business based economy. Agriculture based business contributes the highest share, while the rest form a remaining part.

Transport

Bus Service

The Town fall under the KSRTC wing of the State Transport Department. Chintamani has an excellent and state of the art KSRTC Bus Service. Since few decades there has been a large Bus Depot and Bus Terminus in the town, well located, maintained and periodically upgraded/developed by the authorities. All the routes operational from the town have a computerized ticketing system in place since last few years. Proposals for the GPS Tracking are under consideration and due implementation shortly.

The town is catered mostly through the Suvarna Karnataka Sarige type of KSRTC Buses. The mostly catered route outside the district is Chintamani - Bangalore. Apart from this there are a numerous routes that cater to many of the important Towns & Cities around that include - Mysore, Chitradurga, Shimoga, Tirupati, Hindupur, Gowribidanur etc. There are number of routes that connect the town with the adjacent town of the Chikkaballapur and Kolar Districts.

The KSRTC has provided its employees with a Residential Quarters and required amenities at a prominent location in the town. As well the Town has one of the main depots in the region.

In the recent years, there has been a greater involvement by the authorities in the up gradation of the Transport Facilities. As part of this, the main Bus Terminus on the Chelur Road has been modified in phase manners to include - RCC Flooring, Improved Bus Shelters, Public Toilets, Commercial Shops, Signage and Information Systems. As well there have been Bus Stops constructed at every village and town on the route between Chintamani - Bangalore as part of this project. And local bus service is in its way of implementation with the goal to cater the local villages and nearby places of importance on the lines of BMTC

Apart from State Transport Corporation, the area has a number of private players, who cover many of the routes as well along with some of those that are not covered by the KSRTC.

The KSRTC Bus Depot is located on the Bangalore Road and that of the Bus Terminus near the Chelur Circle. The KSRTC Residential Quarters are located adjacent to the KSRTC Bus Depot.

Railways

Chintamani
Railway Station Construction View
Background
Owner	India Railways
Locale	Chintamani, Karnataka
Number of lines	3
Number of stations	1
Operation
Operation will start	November 2013
Operator(s)	Southern Railways
Technical
Track gauge	Broad Gauge

The Chintamani Railway Station which was once a busy terminal, before the advent of Bus Service, had been neglected during the course of time and the services were completely halted since last few decades.

Recently after due proposals and requests from general public, the Railway Authorities, decided to restart the service and the repair of the existing tracts and stations were taken up. Very soon, the Railways ordered the up gradation of the Narrow Gauge to Broad Gauge and the entire work soon took a sharp swing.

Currently, the New Station at the Chintamani Town is in final stages of completion, whereas the track work between Chintamani-Srinivaspur is under testing. The services are scheduled to start anytime in year 2013. Meanwhile the stretch between Chintamani-Chikkaballapur is also moving fast and the civil works related to construction of bridges, underpasses and roads are almost complete and track works in progress.

The Chintamani Station is abbreviated as CMY on the Railway Station Index.

Airways

The town doesn't have any airports or helipads at present. The nearest airport is the Bengaluru International Airport, Devanahalli at a distance of 62 km.

Demographics

Population at a glance

(As per 2001 Population Census)

Description	Total	Male	Female
Total	2,71,284	1,38,311	1,32,973
Villages	2,05,791	1,04,466	1,01,325
Chintamani City	65,493	33,845	31,648

Culture

Since the place is surrounded by 2 different states, the culture here is majorly Kannada influenced by Telugu culture.

Education

As per the latest reports of the Department of Public Instruction of Karnataka, the [Chintamani Taluk|Taluk of Chintamani] a total of 420 registered schools, of which 222 are Lower Primary Schools and rest 198 are Higher Primary Schools. This list is inclusive of all the schools run by Education Department, Social Welfare Boards, Local Bodies, Aided, Un Aided, Central, Others.^[7]

Below is the list of schools located in the City of Chintamani

List of Private Schools

(As per Department of Public Instruction, Government of Karnataka)

Sl	Name	Trust Incharge	Location	Lower & Higher Primary School	High School
1	Adarsh Vidyalaya RMSA			*
2	Anantha Vidhayala Samsthe			*
3	Chethana Vidya Samathe			*	*
4	Diligence School			*
5	Dolphins Delhi Public School			*
6	Kepme Gowda School			*	*
7	Kinder Garten School		Anjani Extension	*
8	Kishora Vidya Bhavana	Chintamani Educational Trust	Bangalore Road	*	*
9	Kittur Rani Channamma School			*
10	Little Lords School			*
11	LPS			*
12	Mathrushri Primary School			*
13	MKB Public School			*	*
14	MWA School	Muslim Welfare Association	KR Extension	*	*
15	Nalanda		Bangalore Road	*
16	Naveen Vidya Samsthe			*
17	New Modern School			*
18	New Public School		Bangalore Road	*
19	Pavan School			*
20	Pragathi Vidya Mandira	Sree Vinayaka Educational Trust	MG Road	*	*
21	Royal Convent	Royal Educational Trust	Anjani Extension	*	*
22	Sarvodaya English School			*
23	SFS School			*	*
24	Shanthi Nikethana		Bangalore Road	*
25	Shilpa School			*	*
26	SRET School		Bagepalli Road	*	*
27	Sri Jain Public School		Malapalli	*
28	Sri Lal Bahadoor Memorial School			*
29	Sri Vani English Convent	Vani Education Trust	Tank Bund Road	*	*
30	Sri Vishwa Bharathi			*
31	Swathi Vidya Samsthe			*
32	The Horizon School			*	*
33	The Preethi Public School	MG Road		*	*
34	Uday HPS			*
35	Vani (Kannada) School	Vani Education Trust	Tank Bund Road	*	*
36	Vasavi Vidyanikethana	Vasavi Educational Trust	Diamond Taxies Road	*
37	Vikram Composite High School	Sri Lakshmi Educational Society (R)	Chelur Road	*	*

Sports

Many attempts have been carried out for providing a state of the art infrastructure for the sports. One of these is the Jansi Rani Lakshmi Bai Stadium. The concept of this stadium was conceived around 20 years back by Late Sri Anjaneya Reddy, by allotment of the land. Over a period of time the ruling MLA's improved the facilities by constructing the boundary wall, commercial complex, seating facilities etc. Currently the track works, seating and canopy works are in progress. A dedicated running track, volleyball court, tennis court and other courts are being developed.

Notable People

• Y Muniventaka Reddy, an educationist and researcher, popularly known as Y M Reddy, was born in Chintamani

References