Indi, Karnataka

Indi
—  town(tehsil)  —
Indi Location of Indi in Karnataka and India
Coordinates	17°10′01″N 75°58′01″E
Country	India
State	Karnataka
District(s)	Bijapur district
Population • Density	31,482 (2001) • 2,998.29 /km2 (7,766 /sq mi)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	10.5 square kilometres (4.1 sq mi) • 464 metres (1,522 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 586 209 • Telephone • +08359 • Vehicle • KA-28

Indi (Kannada: ಇಂಡಿ) is a town in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the taluk headquarters of Indi Taluk, in the district of Bijapur.

Geography

Indi is located at 17.17°N 75.97°E / 17.17; 75.97. It has an average elevation of 465 meters (1525 feet). It is located at the border of Maharashtra, a neighboring state of Karnataka. The soil at Indi is mainly dry and agriculture was mostly dependent on rainfall. But now, most of the agricultural land is being brought under irrigation with the construction of the Upper Krishna project. A River flows through Indi Taluk Bhima, it originates at Bhimashankar Hills in Maharastra.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Indi has a population of 31,483. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Indi has an average literacy rate of 57%, lower than the national average of 59.5%. The male literacy rate is 65%, and the female literacy rate is 48%. In Indi, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age. The widely spoken languages are Kannada & Marathi.

Places of interest

The Gramadevata (deity) of Indi is Shanteshwara. A Shanteshwara temple is located in the central part of the town with a Shiva linga. Pooja (worship) is done three times a day. A big celebration is held every year and a special Akki pooja is done. The linga is decorated with several kilograms of wet rice. The specialty here is not a single rice grain falls down.

Apart from this temple , Indi has one old Venkateshwara temple which has a beautiful deity idol. At a distance of ten kilometers from Indi there is the village of Lachyan where, according to legend, a famous saint called Siddalinga maharaj lived. He performed many miracles and, at present, has thousands of followers.

Three kilometers from the town is a place called Hire-Indi (Hire meaning ancestral). It is believed to be older than Indi. It was plagued by diseases, so the new town of Indi was formed. Hire-Indi has a very old Hanuman temple backed by a huge farmland maintained by the agriculture department. It is a picnic spot for primary school students of Indi.

Connectivity with other towns

Many buses run from Bijapur (district headquarters of Bijapur district) to Indi. Bijapur is 60 km from Indi. The other major town Solapur, in the neighbouring state of Maharastra, is 70 km away from Indi. Indi has a railway station 6 km from the town and has train called Basava express that connects it to Bangalore.