Gadhinglaj

This article is about the City. For its eponymous Taluka, see Gadhinglaj Taluka.
Gadhinglaj
गडहिंग्लज
Hengaleaj (हिंग्लज)
City
Nickname(s): Hengaleaj
Gadhinglaj

Location in Maharashtra, India

Coordinates: 16°14′N 74°21′E / 16.23°N 74.35°E / 16.23; 74.35Coordinates: 16°14′N 74°21′E / 16.23°N 74.35°E / 16.23; 74.35[1]
Country  India
State Maharashtra
District Kolhapur
Named for Fort
Government
 • Type Municipal Council
 • Body Gadhinglaj Municipal Council
Area
 • Total 17.97 km2 (6.94 sq mi)
Elevation 623 m (2,044 ft)
Population (2011)
 • Total 79,997
 • Rank 3rd in Kolhapur
 • Density 4,500/km2 (12,000/sq mi)
Demonym(s) Gadhinglajkar
Language
 • 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. The main languages spoken are Marathi which is also the official language, and a majority of its people are well versed with Kannada as well. 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).

 Ratnagiri Mumbai, Pune Nipani
Kadgaon, Sawantwadi Sankeshwar
   Gadhinglaj  
Goa, Karwar Goa, Mahagaon,Gadhinglaj, Bhadgaon Nesari, Chandgad Mugruwadi, Bangalore, Belgaum, Hubli

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 27,185.[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 80.91 percent, higher than the national average of 74.9 percent, with male literacy at 87.51 percent and female literacy at 74.5 percent. The main languages are Marathi.

Religion

The population is almost entirely (98 percent) Hindu, with Islam as the largest minority religion. There are also some Buddhists, Christians(Bardeskars), Sikhs, and others.

Culture

Most residents of Gadhinglaj are Hindu and this is reflected in the festivals celebrated. The main festivals include: the Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Vijaya Dashami, Navaratri and Holi (Festival of Colours) celebrations.

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, Ayodhya Nagar, 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 Gadhinglaj. 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 Gadhinglaj 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. 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

Literacy rate of Gadhinglaj city is 89.36% higher than state average of 82.34%. In Gadhinglaj, Male literacy is around 93.74% while female literacy rate is 85.03%. 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:

Places of tourist interest in and around Gadhinglaj

* The Samangad Fort, which belongs to the seventh Rasrakuta king Dantidurga or Dantivarma II, bears date sak 675 (A.D. 733-54)[6]

Guddai Temple, Bhadgaon, Tal-Gadhinglaj

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 is most popular sports in Gadhinglaj. Since 1920 football was played in Gadhinglaj. At school & college level Maharani Radhabhai high school ( M.R.) is the strongest team in Kolhapur district. Ajit Krida mondal starts Interstate football tournament in Diwali vacation. Continuous 20 years successfully organised these tournaments.After 1984 Gadhinglaj Soccer Association & Gadhinglaj Taluka football Association tried to maintain this Interstate tournament tradition.But because of day by day increasing rates of food , sports equipment's so both organization concentrate on player development. In 2004 Gadhinglaj United Football Association continue this tournament tradition in Diwali vacation. Gadhinglaj United upgrade the standered of tournament to all India level. So Kerala's State Bank of Travancore, Goa's Sporting Club, Pune football Club,Bangalore's Hindustan Aeronautics & Bharat Earth Moving limited (BEML),Karnataka Police,Mumbai's Oill Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC)such Indian football League ( I league) teams participated.last 11 years this tournament continues.Gadhinglaj United's Vikram Patil is the 1st player who played Santosh Trophy. Vikram represented from Tamilnadu four years in Santosh trophy. Now in Gadhinglaj 17 registered football clubs.

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

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

See also

References

  1. ↑ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Gadhinglaj
  2. ↑ "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.
  3. ↑ Gadhinglaj Municipal Council.
  4. ↑ http://www.mahaurja.com/PDF/List_WSH_MAH.pdf
  5. ↑ Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation
  6. ↑ Kolhapur district gazettee
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