Miraj

For the Night Journey, Islamic prophet Muhammad took, see Isra and Mi'raj.

Miraj Miraj (मिरज)
Government
• Mayor	Mr. Savagave Nitin Ganapatrao(from 2009)

Miraj (Marathi: मिरज) is a historic town in southern Maharashtra, India. The history of the town dates back to the early 10th century, and the town is known for its rich tradition of Hindustani classical music and for religious harmony. It served as a stronghold and a strategic bastion owing to its location and was an important Jagir of the Adilshahi Court of Bijapur. Shivaji Maharaj stayed in Miraj for two months during his South India Campaign. It was the capital of the erstwhile princely state of Miraj Senior. Pathwardhan Raje ruled Miraj until Independence. It is one of the leading medical centers in India. Miraj is also an very important railway junction and is part of the Central Railways network. Miraj City is part Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad Municipal Corporation formed in 1999.

History

Important Years in History

1024 AD Miraj under control of Narsimha of Silahar dynasty

1216-1316 AD Miraj is ruled by Yadavas of Devgiri

1395 AD Miraj conquered by Bahamanis

1391-1403 Durga Devi Famine, one of the longest lasting famines

1423 AD Miraj under Malik Imad Ul Mulk

1494 AD Bahadur Gilani's Revolt

1660 AD Chh. Shivaji Maharaj lays siege for about two months but has to give up as Panhala is attacked by Adilshah.

1680 AD Santaji Ghorpade gets Deshmukhi of Miraj

1686 AD Miraj captured by Aurangzeb

1730 AD Pant Pratinidhi attacks Miraj as directed by Chh. Shahu of Satara

3 Oct 1739 Miraj is under Maratha rule led by Chh. Shahu

1761 AD Harbhat Patwardhan's Son, Gopalrao, gets Miraj Jagir from Peshwa Madhavrao.

1801 AD The Miraj state is divided. Chintamanrao separates and establishes Sangli

1819 AD The local ruler becomes a vassal of British Empire.

1948 AD Princely state of Miraj merges with the Indian Republic.

Silahars

At the turn of first millennium, Miraj passed on to the Silaharas of Kolhapur when they declared independence towards the close of the tenth century Jattiga II (C. 1000-1020 AD) the 4th ruler of Silahar dynasty has been mentioned by his son Narasimha (C. 1050 to 1075 AD) his Miraj plates dated Saka 980 or AD 1058. He was succeeded by Gonka who has been described in the same plates as the conqueror of Karahata (Karhad), Mirinj Miraj and Konkan. But the Hotur inscription of 1037 AD records that Panhala, the capital city of Silahara Jattiga II was conquered by Chavan-raja, the general of Chalukya Jayasirhha II. The Miraj plates of 1024 AD reveal that Jayasimha II issued the grant when he was in his victorious camp near Kolhapur. This goes to establish that Panhala was captured before 1024 AD either at the end of Jattiga's reign or in the beginning of his son Gonka's. It seems that the Silaharas were allowed to retain their territory. There is no doubt that Gonka submitted to Chalukya power but the fact that he is described as the conqueror of Konkan may mean that either he was appointed as the administrator or was allowed to penetrate beyond his territory. In 1216 AD Miraj along with other territories of Silaharas fell to the onslaught of the Yadavas who retained their hold up to AD 1318 when it passed on to the Bahamanis. We have it on the authority of the Tazkirat-ul-Mulk that Hasan, the founder of the Bahamani dynasty was in the employ of one Saikh Muhammad Junaidi at Gangi near Miraj where he found a treasure with which he raised an army, marched on Miraj and captured the fort after defeating and imprisoning one Rani Durgavati who was its subhedar. In view of his first victory the name of the town was changed to Mubarakabad at the wishes of Saikh Muhammad. This event took place in 748 Hijri or AD 1347.

Fortress

It is not known who built the Miraj fort. Some say that it was built by one of the Bahamani Sultans; but this view is untenable as the fort was in existence even before the establishment of the Bahamani dynasty. Bahamam Sultans may have only carried some repairs and fortified it. The first mention of Miraj by Firishta occurs in the account of the revolt of Bahadur Gilani in AD 1494, which was quelled by Sultan Muhammad II (1452–1515). The Sultan had received a complaint from his counterpart in Gujarat and wanted to punish him. He invested the fort which was surrendered by its governor Buna Naik after some resistance. He was received well by the Sultan. The troops of Bahadur Gilani were given the alternative of either joining his army or leaving the fort. It is said that nearly 2,000 cavalry left the fort and joined Bahadur Gilani. Those of whom preferred to enter Sultan's service were accepted and rewarded suitably. Whether this leniency shown towards the troops was an indication of the nobility of character of the Sultan or was the result of the growing weakness in the Sultanate following Gavan's death may he best left to the imagination of the reader. Be that as it may, the importance of Miraj as a base of operations for the expeditions against South Konkan and Goa was clearly envisaged by the Bahamani kings and there are not a few references to the place being used as a camping ground for the purpose.The main entrance of the fortress was a huge gate about 30 ft (9.1 m) high. It was demolished 10 years ago.

Disintegration of the Empire

The Bahamani empire disintegrated due to a succession of weak rulers who could not put down the turbulence of the powerful provincial governors. Thus in 1490 the governors of Ahmadnagar, Golconda, Bijapur etc., declared their independence and on the fall of the Bahainani dynasty, Miraj passed into the hands of Bijapuri Sultans. Ali Adil Shah was kept here under house arrest during the later years of the reign of Ibrahim Adil Shah, his father, and on the death of the latter it was turned into a point d' appui in the operations undertaken to possess the throne. The garrison took part afterwards, in the revolt of Ismail against Ibrahim Adil Sah III.

At this time Shivaji was fast rising into prominence and had carved out a separate principality at the cost of the Muslim dynasties that were gradually waning in power and losing hold over their dominions. His growing power was felt by the Mughals and the Bijapuris who relentlessly tried to suppress him though without any success. Within 18 days of Afzal Khan's (Bijapuri sardar) death at Pratapgad, Panhala, the capital of the western Adil Sahi district was taken hy Annaji Datto through negotiations on 28 November 1659. Panhala Fort and the surrounding district of Kolhapur, Vasantgad, Khelna (also called Vishalgad), Ranganagad and other minor forts quickly capitulated. While yet Shivaji was camping at Kolhapur be sent Netaji Palkar to besiege Miraj fort. In January 1660 Chh. Shivaji Maharaj arrived in person to press the siege which had continued for two to three months, when news of Siddi Johar and Fazal Khan invading his territories urgently called him to Panhala fort. Under these circumstances Sivaji had to give up the siege and make arrangement to meet the challenge posed by the Bijapuri Sardars. Under the rule of Chh. Sambhaji, Maratha generals Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav had chosen the fort of Miraj as a safe custody for their families while they were engaged in carrying on a guerilla warfare against the invading hordes of Aurangzeb, the Mughal Emperor. With the fall of Bijapur in 1687 Miraj passed into the hands of the Mughals and remained so until it was captured by Chhatrapati Shahu on 3 October 1739 in a campaign that lasted for two years. Thus the remnant of the old Moghal power almost bordering on the Maratha capital was wiped once for and all. It was one of the many pockets of the Moghals which threatened the Maratha dominions, the others being Raigad, Gopalgad, Govindgad, etc. In 1761 the fort of Miraj was awarded by Peshva Madhavrao to Gopalrao Patwardhan. The Patwardhans of Miraj as they were called now played a stellar role in Peshwa campaigns against Haider & Tipu Sultan.

Modern history

Laxmi Market Miraj

Miraj came under the rule of Peshwas. The Patwardhan dynasty ruled the state as a principality until March 8, 1948. Prior to 1948 it was capital of princly state of Miraj Senior. It was one of the full powered princely states of British India, under the southern division of the Bombay Presidency, forming part of the southern Mahratta Jagirs, and later the Deccan States Agency. The State of Miraj was founded before 1750 and was the former capital of the pre-British Patwardhan territory that extended between the rivers Krishna and Tungabhadra. In 1820, the Patwardhan territory was divided between a Senior and Junior branch. The territory of both branches was widely scattered among other native states and British districts.

The rulers, of the Patwardhan dynasty, used the title of Raja, and were of the same clan that ruled nearby Sangli, Budhgaon, Jamkhandi, Tasgaon, Kurindwad, Madavpur (Kurundwad Junior) and Wadi. Actually all of them are offshoots of the original Miraj Jagir. Raja Govind Rao Patwardhan, 1st Ruler of Miraj, began as a commandant of the body of horse, distinguished himself in several expeditions against the Nizam of Hyderabad and Hyder Ali of Mysore, established the Maratha ascendancy in southern India and pushed the Maratha conquests to the frontier of Mysore.

Miraj Senior measured 339 square miles (880 km²) in area. According to the 1901 census, the population was 81,467. In 1901, the state enjoyed revenue estimated at £23,000-, and paid £800 in tribute to the British Raj. The Raja resided in the town of Miraj (population 18,425 in 1901), which was a junction on the Southern Mahratta Railway.

Miraj Senior acceded to the Dominion of India on March 8, 1948 and is currently a part of Maharashtra state.

Noted artists

Pt. Vishnu Digambar Paluskar, Ustad Abdul Karim Khan, Pt. Bhatkhande, Hirabai Badodekar and Pt. Vinayakrao Patwardhan are famous artists from Miraj. Bal Gandharva made his debut performance at HansPrabha Theatre in Miraj. At the same place stands the newly built Balgandharva Natyagruha that has been named after him. Ustad Abdul Karim Khan, the doyen of the Kirana gharana, lies interred within the compounds of the Khvaja Samsuddin Mira Saheb dargah and Annual music festival is organised in his memory at the dargah. Because of this rich tradition of Hindustani Classical Music, it is a matter of pride for artistes to perform here in Miraj on occasion of Urus or Navratrotsav. The Administrative Office of the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya is situated at Miraj.

String instruments

Miraj is the place where one can get finest of the Indian String instruments such as Sitar, Sarod and Tanpura. These are made of wood and specially treated gourds. This art was pioneered by Faridsaheb Sitarmaker in 18th century and is still practiced by his descendants.

Railway

Miraj is also one of the very important junctions on the Central Railway. Until recently, it was the only junction to have all three rail gauges - broad gauge, narrow gauge and metre gauge. The last narrow gauge train departed on 1 November 2008. Now Miraj has only broad gauge railway tracks.

Miraj junction is directly connected with New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Bhopal, Nagpur, Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur, Ajmer, Surat, Vadodara, Mysore, Cochin, Mangalore, Calicut, Tirupati, Hubli, Agra, etc.

Medical facilities

Miraj has a unique distinction of having the highest number of per ca pita hospitals in India. The city boasts of two medical colleges and more than a hundred private clinics and hospitals. Miraj's fame lies in its large number of hospitals and a medium sized string instrument industry.

It was famous in 19th century for Vaidyas as practitioners of traditional Ayurvedic Medicine are known.

The Wanless Hospital was founded in 1894 in the small town of Miraj, in southwestern India by Dr. Sir William James Wanless (1865 to 1933) a missionary physician of the American Presbyterian Church and has served the people of this area for over one hundred years.

Dr. R. K. Padhi, an Indian Cardiac surgeon trained in Canada, and Dr. A. G. Fletcher, General and Thoracic surgeon from the USA, performed the first successful Open-Heart Operation in India at Miraj in April 1962.

Miraj also boasts of the Government Medical College. It is an old institute which has reputedly produced some of the finest doctors in the country.

The Miraj Heart Institute is a Tertiary referral Centre for Congenital & Acquired Cardiac diseases as well as Thoracic & Vascular problems, both elective as also emergent, catering to the needs of patients from the states of Maharashtra,Karnataka and Goa.

Major hospitals

1. Wanless Hospital
2. Siddhivinayak Ganpati Cancer Hospital
3. Government Medical College Hospital
4. Lions Nab Hospital
5. Bharati Hospital
6. Gulabrao Patil Homeopathy Medical Hospital & College
7. Dr.G.S.Kulkarni orthopaedic hospital (one of the best in India )
8. Dr P.B.Magdum Orthopaedic Hospital , MIraj .

Places of worship

Annual Ganeshotsav is celebrated on the last day of which there is a "Ganesh Visarjan Miravanook" in which thousands of people participate actively. every Navratri, there is a music concert at Ambabai Temple.

The Rosary Church is situated near the Railway station and is 104 years old though it was rededicated in 2006. The annual feast of Our Lady of Good Health [8th Sep ] attracts a huge crowd.

Transportation routes

You can reach Miraj by road by taking Mumbai-Bangalore National Highway NH4.

There are two exits for Sangli-Miraj twin cities on NH4. Both form a triangle and Sangli is about 50 km from each exit.

• Exit 1: Peth Naka - Take this exit when you drive to Sangli-Miraj from Mumbai & Pune.
• Exit 2: Shiroli Naka - Take this exit when you drive to Sangli-Miraj from Bangalore.

Mumbai-Miraj Travel Time by road is 7 hours Bangalore-Miraj Travel Time by road is 10.5 hours

See also

• Sir William James Wanless - Founder of Wanless Hospital.

External links

• The Municipal Corporation home page - Marathi language only as of 2006/10/09
• The List of the rulers of Miraj Senior
• Original article in the district Gazetteer
• Miraj online
• Miraj Dargah