Wardha
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This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2008) |
| Wardha | |
|---|---|
| — city — | |
 Wardha
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| Coordinates: 20°45′N 78°33′E / 20.75°N 78.55°ECoordinates: 20°45′N 78°33′E / 20.75°N 78.55°E | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Maharashtra |
| District | Wardha |
| Elevation | 234 m (768 ft) |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
Wardha 
pronunciation (help·info) (Marathi: वर्धा) is a city and a municipal council in Wardha district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Wardha district. Wardha gets its name from the Wardha River which flows at the North, West and South boundaries of district. Founded in 1866, the town is now an important centre for the cotton trade. It was an important part of Gandhian Era.
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Geography [edit]
Wardha is located at 20°45′N 78°36′E / 20.75°N 78.60°E.[1] It has an average elevation of 234 metres (767 feet).
Demographics [edit]
Wardha city is administered by a municipal council(category-A). According to census 2011, its population is nearly 105,543.[2] But this figure is number of inhabitants within municipal boundaries. Urbanization has crossed municipal boundaries and neighboring villages viz. sindi(meghe), sawangi(meghe), borgaon(meghe), pipri(meghe),mhasala, nalwadi and chitoda have become part of urban agglomeration having population nearing 2 lacs.
As of 2011[update] India census,[3] Wardha district had a population of 1,296,157[4] Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Wardha has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 83%, and female literacy is 76%. In Wardha, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
History [edit]
It was included in the empire of the Mauryas, Sungas, Satavahanas and Vakatakas. Pravarapura, modern Pavnar, was once the capital of the Vakataka dynasty. Vakatakas were contemporary of Imperial Guptas. Prabhavatigupta, the daughter of Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya), was married with Vakataka ruler Rudrasena. The period of Vakatakas was 2nd to 5th century CE. The empire stretched from the Arabian sea in the west to the Bay of Bengal in the east, and from the Narmada river in the north to the Krishna-Godavari delta in south.
Later on, Wardha was ruled by the Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Yadavas, the Delhi Sultanate, the Bahamani Sultanate, Muslim ruler of Berar, Gonds and Marathas. Raja Buland Shaha of Gonds, Raghuji of Bhonsale were the prominent rulers in the Medieval period.
During the 1850s Wardha, (then a part of Nagpur) fell into the hands of British. They included Wardha in the Central Provenance.
Wardha is a sister city for Sevagram, and both were used as major centers for the Indian Independence Movement, especially as headquarters for an annual meet of the Indian National Congress in 1934, and Mahatma Gandhi's Ashram.
The existing Wardha district was part of Nagpur district till 1862. Further it was separated for convenient administrative purposes and Kawatha near Pulgaon was the district headquarters. In 1866, the district head quarter moved at Palakwadi village. The huts in village were destroyed and new city was constructed by English town-planner Sir Bachlor and Crawdok. This new city was given name "Wardha". In Wardha district there is a village called Pavanar where Acharya Vinoba Bhave lived.
Transport [edit]
Wardha railway station is an important rail junction on Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line. This town is also connected to southern part of country through Sevagram station.
Religion and Culture [edit]
Population of Wardha city constitutes Hindus, Muslims and Buddhists with little percentage of Christians, Jains and Sikhs. Main spoken languages are Marathi and Hindi. Other languages viz. Marwari,Gujarati, Sindhi and Punjabi are spoken by people of respective communities. There are many temples, mosques, viharas, gurudwaras, jain temples and churches of which Laxminarayan temple (Bachchhraj road), Lingi Mandir (Mahadeo Mandir)near Dr. Raosaheb Gade Bhavan, Vitthal mandir (hawaldwarpura), Ganesh Mandir (Main Road), Gajanan Maharaj Mandir, Sai mandir (M.G. Road), Digambar and Shwetambar Jain temples (mahadeopura),Jama Masjid (Itwara), Shanti Stupa (Gopuri), Gurudwara (dayalnagar) are important.
Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, the conference on Marathi Literature were held once in Wardha city. It was presided by President of the Conference Purushottam Shivram Rege in 1969.
Education [edit]
Wardha city is famous for a number of educations institutions. Some of the notable institutes are Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (MGIMS) at Sewagram, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College at Sawangi, Rashtrabhasha Prachar Samiti at Wardha,Priyadarshini Mahila Mahavidyalaya,Wardha and Janakidevi Bajaj College of Science at Wardha. There are six engineering colleges in Wardha, namely Bapurao Deshmukh, Sureshrao Deshmukh, Om, Acharya Vinoba Bhave, Datta Meghe and Agnihotri. The Institute Of Pharmaceuticals Education and Research is a reputed pharmacy college in Wardha.
New English High School, Wardha is one of the oldest school with a very big playground. This school has given many scholars from Wardha to the society. This is a State Board School. Agragami High School,Bharat Dnyan Mandiram convent,Bhavan's Lloyds Vidya Niketan and Gandhi City Public School are reputed[citation needed] English-medium CBSE schools in Wardha. Kasturba Vidya Mandir is one of the oldest school run by Kusturba Society. CCCI i.e. Complete Commerce Coaching Institute is the prime institute for commerce education. Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya (Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University) is established by the Parliament of India and run directly by the Government of India.
Important Places [edit]
Magan Sangrahalaya (Museum) [edit]
This museum was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1938. It is situated in Maganwadi near the village's Centre of Science. The purpose of construction of this museum is to spread awareness about research and development of rural industries, agriculture, dairy, various types of charkhas, khadi, hadicrafts by rural artisans, methods to promote Swadeshi movement, etc.
Gitai Mandir [edit]
This temple is situated in Gopuri near Vishwa Shanti Stupa. This is a unique temple in India which has no deity and roof. It has just walls made of granite slabs on which 18 chapters of Gitai (Shrimad-bhagwad-gita in marathi) are inscribed. The wall enclosed a little beautiful park. This temple was inaugurated by Acharya Vinoba Bhave in 1980. Beside are two exhibitions about life of Acharya Vinoba Bhave and Jamnalal Bajaj.
Vishwa Shanti Stupa [edit]
Vishwa Shanti Stupa was a dream of Fujii guruji as called by Gandhiji. It is beside Gitai Mandir. It is a large stupa of white color. Statues of Buddha are mounted on stupa in four directions. It also has a small Japanese Buddhist temple with a large park.
Sewagram Ashram [edit]
Old name of village Sewagram was shegaon. After leaving Sabarmati ashram, Gandhiji stayed a few days in Wardha City at Bunglow of Jamanalal Bajaj. Thereafter, this ashram was built by him for Gandhiji at outskirts of Wardha. Gandhiji arrived here in 1936 and stayed till his death in 1948. It is a group of huts used by Gandhiji, his wife Kasturba and other disciples. The premise is very calming. All the things used by Gandhiji and others are preserved here including his spectacles, telephone, notebook, tables, mats, etc.
Paramdham Ashram [edit]
This ashram was established by Acharya Vinoba Bhave in 1934 on bank of river Dham with spiritual purpose. He also establish Brahma Vidya mandir in it. He started Bhoodan Movement from here. Also starting point of "Bharat Chhodo Andolan" was this ashram.
Kelzar Ganpati temple [edit]
The Kelzar Ganpati Temple is situated about 26 km form Wardha on the Nagpur road. This temple is situated on a hill & surrounded by the scenic beauty of forests & hills. The temple is historical place and its history goes back to "Vashishtha Purana". The place is also mentioned in "Mahabharata". The temple is situated near the Bor National Tiger Reserve & Bird sanctuary.
References [edit]
- ^ Wardha District at a Glance. Wardha.nic.in. Retrieved on 2013-05-04.
- ^ Wardha City Population Census 2011 | Maharashtra. Census2011.co.in. Retrieved on 2013-05-04.
- ^ "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.
- ^ Wardha District Population Census 2011, Maharashtra literacy sex ratio and density. Census2011.co.in. Retrieved on 2013-05-04.
External links [edit]
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