Gadhinglaj
| Gadhinglaj गडहिंग्लज Hengaleaj | |
|---|---|
| city | |
| Nickname(s): Hengaleaj | |
  Gadhinglaj | |
| Coordinates: 16°14′N 74°21′E / 16.23°N 74.35°ECoordinates: 16°14′N 74°21′E / 16.23°N 74.35°E[1] | |
| Country |
 India |
| State | Maharashtra |
| District | Kolhapur |
| Named for | Fort |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| • Body | Gadhinglaj Muncipal Council |
| Area | |
| • Total | 17.97 km2 (6.94 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 623 m (2,044 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 79,997 |
| • Rank | 3 rd in Kolhapur |
| • Density | 4,500/km2 (12,000/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Gadhinglajche |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Marathi |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 416502 |
| Telephone code | 02327 |
| Vehicle registration | MH 09 |
Gadhinglaj is a city in the Kolhapur district in the southwestern corner of Maharashtra, India. It is located on the banks of the river Hiranyakeshi. It is the Taluka (Tehsil) headquarters of Gadhinglaj Taluka and a subdivision headquarters of the Gadhinglaj Subdivision of the Kolhapur District. It is governed by a municipal council. As is the case in most of the cities in Maharashtra, the main language spoken is Marathi, and a majority of its people are Hindu. The rapidly-growing city is the third largest in the Kolhapur District, with a 2011 population of 79,997.
Geography
Gadhinglaj is situated on the banks of the Hiranyakeshi river, which originates in the Amboli Ghats mountains. It is a Taluka city, located at the border of Maharashtra and Karnataka, and is on Maharashtra State Highway 134. Gadinglaj is often called the headquarters of South Kolhapur or a sub-district of the Kolhapur District as it is the largest city in South Kolhapur and has enough area and population to be called a district. The city is at an average elevation of 623 metres (2,044 ft).
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Ratnagiri | Mumbai, Pune | Nipani | |
| Kadgaon, Sawantwadi |  |
Sankeshwar | ||
| ||||
 | ||||
| Goa | Goa, Mahagaon,Gadhinglaj, Bhadgaon Nesari,Chandgad | Mugruwadi, Bangalore, Belgaum |
History
Although the exact date of Gadhinglaj's founding is not known, old texts date it back to at least 1500 AD. Gadhinglaj was a small village near the banks of the Hiranyakeshi River. It was not until 1887, when the Gadhinglaj Municipal Council was formed, that it rapidly transformed from a small village into a bustling town. At that time the official name of the city was Hengaleaj. During the 1960s and 1970s it transformed into a city and its local government also transformed from a C-class municipal council to B-class municipal council. During the 1970s the Gadhinglaj Sugar Factory was founded by Appasaheb Nalawade, thus contributing to both the city's industrial and agriculture growth. Since 2000 it has seen a population and economic boom, with its population nearly tripling, thus becoming one of fastest growing cities in Maharashtra and India. During this time Gadhinglaj also saw a boom in the trade, business, financial, and real estate sectors.
Demographics
As of the 2001 India census, Gadhinglaj had a population of 27,757.[2] However, recently that population spiked to 79,997, which includes Gadhinglaj City and surrounding areas. Males constitute 51 percent of the population. Gadhinglaj has an average literacy rate of 79 percent, higher than the national average of 74.9 percent, with male literacy at 85% percent and female literacy at 74 percent. The most widely spoken language is Marathi, with 79,997 people speaking Marathi as their primary language.
Religion
The population is almost entirely (94 percent) Hindu, with Islam as the largest minority religion. There are also some Buddhists, Christians, Sikhs, and others.
Culture
Civic Administration
The civic administration of the city is managed by the Gadhinglaj nagar palika. It is among the richest municipal councils of that classification in the country. It was founded on 1 August 1887, and oversees the engineering works, health, sanitation, water supply, administration, and taxation in the city. Gadhinglaj is divided into 15 wards: Bazaar Peth, Gune Path, Gandhinagar, Gurav Colony, Doctor Colony, Manglewadi, Gaurav Nagar, Kaju Baug, Sadhana Nagar, Yamunanagar, KDCC Bank Colony, Gurukul Nagar, Gijawanenagar, Bhadagaonnagar, and Hiranyakeshinagar.
Gadhinglaj operates its own fire department, the Gadhinglaj Municipal Fire Brigade, which operates a fire engine, tanker truck, ambulance, support vehicle, and a hydraulic platform truck. Gadhinglaj Municipality (GMC) is headed by a municipal president who is assisted by a municipal chief officer and council members.[3] The city's electrical supply is managed by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MAHADISCOM). It has maintained high-quality roads and civil facilities thanks to high tax revenues collected from various economic sectors.
In 2008 Gadhinglaj was one of the first talukas in India to initiate energy conservation programmes, by utilising solar energy for its street lights.[4]
Economy
Gadhinglaj's major businesses are trade, sugar production, and red chili production. Thanks to its proximity near Goa and Sindhudurg, it serves as a marketing hub, and its MIDC is developing greatly for heavy and light industries. The trade sector of the city's economy is booming and has eclipsed agricultural production. Real estate is another prosperous sector in Gadinglaj, due to its booming trading and industrial sectors, location, climate, infrastructure, and abundant electricity and water supply. These have led to heavy investment in the city's real estate by outsiders, mainly from Kolhapur, Satara, Pune, Mumbai, Nagpur, and all around Maharashtra and other states.
For many years agriculture was the dominant economic sector of Gadhinglaj, due to its sugarcane and jaggery production, but the trading sector overtook it in 2000. Gadhinglaj's agricultural sector is known for sugarcane, red chili, jaggery, food grains, and vegetables. Some parts of Sindhudurg district and Goa state heavily rely on Gadhinglaj for food grains and vegetables. Gadhinglaj has also been a major hub for cattle trading for many years. There are sugar mills situated 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from the city. Textiles are also a major business in Gadhinglaj due to its proximity to a textile producing region. The city is also known for its production of kolhapuri chappal (hand-crafted leather slippers).
Many banks have a strong presence in Gadhinglaj city and the Gadhinglaj Taluka due to its large-scale trading business and its textile and agricultural industries. Gadhinglaj has major banks including ICICI Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, State Bank of India, Union Bank of India, as well as some local banks.
MIDC
The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation Industrial Area is situated 75 kilometres (47 mi) south of Kolhapur and Kolhapur Airport. The industrial area is well connected by road, rail, and air transport to almost all Indian cities. The nearest railway station is 45 kilometres (28 mi) away, in Belgaum. The area is located on the Sankeshwar-Ajara-Sawantwadi state highway and is 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from National Highway 4. The Karnataka state boundary is just 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from this area. The port and airport at Panjim (Goa) are 150 kilometres (93 mi) away.
The area has a separate sub-station and uninterrupted power supply. MIDC has plans to provide a water supply scheme to source 3.00 MLD of water from the Gijawane K.T., which was constructed on the Hirankeshi River, the main source of which is the Chitri dam on the Hiranyakeshi River.[5] The Grinex company pledged an investment of Rs 320 Crores (US $60 million) in a production plant for the manufacturing of fibre pipes for the water supply. Many other small-scale and mid-scale industries have started or pledged to start production in the Gadhinglaj MIDC (GMIDC).
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar is a planned upper-class closed development of Gadhiglaj. When it was built in 1980, it became the first planned community in Gadhinglaj. It mainly consists of bungalows and high-rise housing societies. It includes high-class schools and hotels, as well as many other amenities such as a park, gym, community hospital, swimming pool, helipad, and community hall. It is governed by the Gandinagar Housing Society Corporation (GHSC).
Expansion of Gadinglaj City Municipal Limit
In 2010, it was rumoured that the Nagar Palika of Gadhinglaj City was in process of expanding municipal limits by 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) towards Mahagaon.[citation needed] This would result in a very large increase in both area and population, with population increasing to 150,000. It would also transform the Gadhinglaj Nagar Parished into a 'Class A' Nagar Palika, which could then operate its own municipal public transportation system, among other services. This would improve Gadhinglaj's status as an economic hub in Kolhapur and South Maharashtra.
Education
Gadhinglaj includes some of the most reputed educational institutions in India, and it serves as an educational hub in Maharashtr and India as a whole. Some of Gadhinglaj's education institutions include:
- Shivraj College of Arts & Commerce and D.S. Kadam Science College.
- Gadhinglaj High school and College
- Sadhana High School and College
- Lotus English School Gadhinglaj
- Jagruti High School and Jr. College
- V.D. Shinde High School
- Sadhana Vidyalay, inaugurated by Sane Guruji, a famous Marathi author, teacher, social activist, and freedom fighter. Sadhana Vidyalay became the first government-aided English medium school in Kolhapur district in 1962.
- Shivraj College
- Dr.Ghali College
- Creative High School
- M.R. College
- Sant Gajanan Maharaj Rural Polytechnic College
- Kedari Redekar Ayurvedic College
- E B Gadkari Homeopathy College
- A D Shinde Polytech
- Neora High School
- Kalu Mastar Vidyalay
- Barister Nath Pai Vidyalay
- Creative School
- St. Ann's English medium school
- Sanskar technical & management college
Places of tourist interest in and around Gadhinglaj
- Amboli, Sindhudurg
- Jotiba Temple, Kadgaon (4 KM away)
- Prataprao Gurjar Smarak, Nesari (22 KM away)
- Kalbhairav Temple
- Mahalaxmi Temple
- Ramling Temple, Virbhadra Temple, Laxmi Temple, Hanumaan Temple, and others around the town of Halkarni
- Samangarh (The hill fort)
- The Samangad grant, which belongs to the seventh Rasrakuta king Dantidurga or Dantivarma II, bears date sak 675 (A.D. 733-54)[6]
- River Hiranyakeshi
- Kasturba garden
- Tilak garden
- Rajarshi Shahu garden
- Shendri lake
- Nakshatra Garden
- Chitri Dam (near Ajra)
- Laxmi Temple, Basarge
- kalavati devi temple{Hari mandir},chidambarnagar
- Guddai Temple, Bhadgaon
- Sai Temple, Lokamany tilak Udyan
- Shri Kalleshwar Devasthan, Bhadgaon
- Shri Guddadevi Mandir, Bhadgaon
- Shrimant Shri L. V. Desai (Bhadgaonkar Inamdarso) Vada.
- Shri. chaloba temple Kadal
- kadal lake
Sports
Gadhinglaj City stands out from other municipal council cities in India by having world class sports facilities. These include a football stadium, numerous cricket grounds, and two sports complexes (one managed by the Municipal Council and the other by the Gadhinagar Housing Society Corporation). Both sports complexes include facilities for football, cricket, badminton, tennis, basketball, track, and swimming, and the GHSC-run complex also includes an Olympic swimming pool. Football and cricket are both popular sports in Gadhinglaj.
Transportation
Gadhinglaj is connected to the rest of Maharashtra and India by the state highway system. It is situated on Maharashtra State Highway 134 and is about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from National Highway 4 (NH 4). MSRTC has regular bus service from Kolhapur city.
Distances to nearest major airports
- Dabolim Airport (Goa International Airport) : 160 kilometres (99 mi)
- Belgaum Airport : 54 kilometres (34 mi)
- Kolhapur Airport : 78 kilometres (48 mi)
The nearest railway stations are located in Belgaum to the south, Ghataprabha to the east, Kolhapur to the north, and Savantwadi to the west.
Notable Persons
- Babasaheb Kupekar, a politician who served as a Member of the Maharashtra Vidansabha, representing Chandgad.
- Dr Ghali, a member of the Nationalist Congress Party who served as municipal president and MLA many times.
- Appasaheb Nalawade, who founded the Gadhinglaj Sugar Works, the largest sugar factory in Maharashtra.
- Narisingrao Patil, a politician who represented Changad from 1990 to 1995, 1999 to 2004, and 2004 to 2009 for Vidansabha of Maharashtra.
- Shripatrao Shinde, a politician and founder of A D Shinde College. Former MLA and served as Chairman of Gadhinglaj Sugar Works.
- Kisanarao Kurade, a politician and founder of various co-operative organisations, including Shivraj College and sakhar maharshi dattajirao kadam sahakari soot girni gadhinglaj.
See also
- Kadgaon
- Nesari
- Mahagaon,Gadhinglaj
- Harali
- Mugruwadi
- Halkarni
- Gijawne
- Gadhinglaj Taluka
- State Highway 134 (Maharashtra)
References
- ↑ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Gadhinglaj
- ↑ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
- ↑ Gadhinglaj Municipal Council.
- ↑ http://www.mahaurja.com/PDF/List_WSH_MAH.pdf
- ↑ Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation
- ↑ Kolhapur district gazettee
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