Chandrapur
—  municipal corporation  —
Chandrapur Location of Chandrapur in Maharashtra and India
Coordinates	19°57′N 79°18′E / 19.95°N 79.3°E / 19.95; 79.3Coordinates: 19°57′N 79°18′E / 19.95°N 79.3°E / 19.95; 79.3
Country	India
State	Maharashtra
District(s)	Chandrapur
Mayor	To be Decided (as of Feb 2012)
Population • Density	373,000 (2011[update]) • 1,321 /km2 (3,421 /sq mi)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area	77 square kilometres (30 sq mi)
Codes • Pincode • 442401 • Telephone • +91-7172
Website	www.chanda.nic.in

Chandrapur (Marathi: चंद्रपूर) is a city and a municipal corporation in Chandrapur district in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is also the headquarters of Chandrapur district. As the city has passed the population limit of 3 lakh, with the population of 3.73 lakh as per 2011 census, in a decision made on 20th Oct, 2011 by the state cabinate, Chandrapur municipal council is elevated to the D-grade Municipal Corporation status^[1], along with Latur and Parbhani in the state.

The city of Chandrapur has ancient temples of the goddess Mahakali and of Anchaleshwar, a form of the god Shiva. Chandrapur is also known as Chanda. The region is very rich in mineral wealth such as iron ore, limestone and coal. Many cement factories are located in this region. Due to large number of coal mines present around the city, the city is also known as City of Black Gold.

Narsimha Rao, a prime minister of India, was stationed at Chandrapur during the days when Nizam ruled Hyderabad. Rao got admission to Nagpur on recommendations of one of the prominent advocates of the region, Balwantrao Deshmukh. Balwantrao Deshmukh was a follower of Bal Gangadhar Tilak. It was due to his efforts that Tilak visited Chandrapur and laid the foundation stone of a school "Lokmanya Tilak Vidyalaya". Shantaram Potdukhe, one of the ministers of state having charge of finance portfolio in Narasimha Rao's government, is from Chandrapur.. Mohan Bhagwat, senior functionary of Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, is also from Chandrapur.

Geography[link]

The city is located on the confluence of rivers "Erai" and "Zarpat". The northern portion of the city is at high elevation and southern at low as per topographical map i.e. 56m. The old city is surrounded by walls. These walls were called as "Parkots". These walls have four gates to enter and leave the old city namely Jatpura Gate, Pathanpura Gate, Bimba Gate and Anchaleshwar Gate. Also they have four windows (Khidki in Marathi) to enter and leave the old city namely Chor Khidki, Vithoba Khidki, Hanuman Khidki and Bagad Khidki.The Gaontideo Nala is originating form the upland of CSTPS. The Macchhi Nala is originating from upland of Ranger college. This Nalah is merge in the tank "Ramala Talao" located in the heart of city. River Erai has a long history of floods, the flood marks appears on the fort wall of city, i.e. Pathanpura gate. The North South length of Chandrapur city is about 10 km and East West is 7 km. In the north of city, there is a dam made on river Erai, having the capacity of 207 million cubic meter. Foundation stone of the city was laid down by Khandkya Ballalshah (Veer Shah), a Gond king.

Physical setting[link]

Chandrapur, the headquarters of the district to which it gives its name, is the largest city in the district. The city of Chandrapur is located at 19.57°N latitude and 79.18°E longitude in the eastern Maharashtra, it is situated at 189.90 meter above form the mean sea level. Altitude of city railway station is of 189.90 meter above MSL. Area of the city region is about 70.02 km². The city is at Southeast direction from Nagpur city, on the Delhi-Chennai railway route. About 30 express trains stop here every day of up and down route. Here is a broad gauge double line railway track. Another railway route is here known as Gondia-Chandafort railway route, on which four trains operate every day. Mul, Sindewahi, Nagbhir and Bramhapuri are the major stations on this route in Chandrapur district. The north-south length of the city is about 10.6 km, while the east-west length is about 7.6 km.

Rivers and Dams[link]

The entire area of the district is in the Godavari basin. The area is drained by major tributaries of the Godavari river viz. Painganga, Wardha. The Painganga, flowing along part of the Western boundary, meets the Wardha river in Wada village near Ghugus to form the Wardha river. It further flows in NW-SE direction finally merging into the Wainganga river at the south eastern corner of the district. After this confluence the river along with their sub tributaries rising in the uplands within the district drain whole area of the district. Rising in the uplands within the district drain whole area of the district. The Wainganga river which flows along the border of Chandrapur and Gadchiroli district is the main river of the district. The Wardha is the only perennial river in the district having the longest river course as compared to the other two major rivers. The main tributaries of the Wardha river are the Erai rises in the northern part of Warora tahsil and flows along due south over a length of 80 km till it meets the Wardha just south of Chandrapur at Wardha District. The Penganga flowing along western border takes east west course and then joins the wardha river at Ghugus. The area occupied by Gadchiroli tahsil and part of Rajura tahsil is drained by the Penganga and its tributaries.

History[link]

Tradition and legends tell that in Krta Yuga the name of this place was Lokapura and its extent much wider than what it is to-day. In Dvapara Yuga, during the reign of one Raja Chandrahasa its name was changed to Indupur and still later as Chandrapur or the city of the moon. During the period of the British Raj, Chandrapur came to be called as Chanda for no particular reason perhaps because the short form was more convenient and continued to be so called until 1964 when its name was officially changed to Chandrapur again. In spite of the restoration of the name it is still known to the general public as Chanda. Puranas mention the town as having been founded by Krtadhvaja Raja, but modern Chandrapur has grown out of the foundations laid by Khandkya Ballal Sah, the Gond King, about the year 1450 A.D. Other places of the region in ancient times include Wairangad, Kosala, Bhadravati and Markanda. Hindu and Buddhist kings are said to have ruled the area for a long time. Later on Gonds overtook Mana kings who ruled Chandrapur around 9th century and Gond Kings ruled the area till 1751 after which Maratha period started. Raghuji Bhosale, the last King of the dynasty, died heirless in 1853 and Nagpur province together with Chandrapur was declared annexed to British Empire.

In 1854, Chandrapur formed an independent district and in 1874, it comprised three tehsils viz. Mul, Warora and Bramhpuri. In 1874, however, upper Godavai district of Madras was abolished and four tehsils were added to Chandrapur to form one tehsil with Sironcha as its headquarters. In 1895, the headquarters of one tehsil transferred to MUl to Chandrapur. A new tehsil with headquarter at Gadchoroli was created in 1905 by transfer of zamindari estates from Bramhpuri and Chandrapur tehsil. An small zamindari tract from Chandrapur district as transferred to newly from districts in 1907. In the same year an area of about 1560 km² comprising three divisions of the lower Sironcha tehsil, namely Cherla, Albak and Nugir, were transferred to Madras State.

No major changes occurred in the boundaries of the district or its tehsils between 1911 and 1955. Consequent upon reorganization of the states in 1956, the district was transferred from Madhya Pradesh to Bombay state. In the same Rajura tehsil, a part of Adilabad district of Hydrabad state, was transferred to Nanded district subsequently it was transferred to Chandrapur district in 1959. The district became part of the Maharashtra since its creation in May 1960. For administrative convenience and industrial and agricultural development, this district was again divided into Chandrapur and Gadchiroli district after 1981 census. Chandrapur district now comprises the tehsil of Chandrapur, Bhadravati, Warora, Chimur, Nagbhir, Bramhpuri, Sindhewahi, Mul, Gondpipri, Pomburna, Saoli, Rajura, Korpana, Jivati and Balharshah.

Demographics[link]

As the city has passed the population limit of 3 lakh, with the population of 3.73 lakh as per 2011 census, in a decision made on 20th Oct, 2011 by the state cabinet, Chandrapur municipal council is elevated to the municipal corporation status^[2]. This will be a D-grade corporation, along with Latur and Parbhani in the state and will have 67 wards to start with ^[3].

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[4] Chandrapur had a population of about 297,612. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Chandrapur has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 81% and female literacy of 65%. 12% of the population is under 6 years of age. The Chandrapur city constitutes around 25% of the district population. The total population of the Chandrapur district is 2,077,909 (Male-10,59,875 and Female-10,18,034).

Climate[link]

Chandrapur is known for hot and dry climate. Humidity is very low in the region. Temperatures start decreasing in October with December being the coldest month, with a minimum average temperature of 7.6 °C and maximum of 28.2 °C. The Southern region is warmer than the Northern region. The lowest recorded temperature is 3 °C (Northern region) and 8 °C (Southern). Temperatures begin to rise in February. May is the hottest month with a mean maximum temperature of 45 °C and minimum of 28 °C. It is not uncommon for temperatures to reach up to 46 °C, and temperatures in this region are often the highest in Southern Asia. The highest temperature ever recorded in Chandrapur was 48.3 °C on May 16, 1912 and lowest temperature recorded was 2.8 °C on January 10, 1899. Monsoons bring humidity to the region in June, and this lasts until September.

The average annual rainfall is about 1420 mm. The Eastern region receives more rainfall than Westermonsoon season [Jun-Sep], which exceeds 70%, but it falls down rapidly in Summer [Feb-May]. Average number of rainy days is 60 to 65 per year. The humidity is relatively more during the 20%.

The prominent wind direction is from South to North. In Summer the wind direction is from East to south and in Monsoon from South to East. During Winter [October–January], the wind direction changes from North to East.

Transport[link]

Chandrapur is located on main New Delhi-Chennai and New Delhi - Hyderabad - Banglore railway line of the Indian Railway. It comes under Nagpur division of the Central Railway. It is connected to Bhopal, Gwalior, Indore, Allahabad, Nagpur, Jhansi, Agra, New Delhi, Jammu Tawi, Warangal, Vijaywada, Chennai, Kanyakumari, Vadodara, Bangalore, Secunderabad, Hyderabad, Puri, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Mumbai Bangalore, Mysore, Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Patna and Gaya by train.

Chandrapur is also connected to many cities in Maharashtra by MSRTC buses. The buses ply to Nagpur, Gondia, Amravati, Akola, Shirdi, Aurangabad, Nanded and Hyderabad.

Chandrapur airport is situated near Morwa village. The airstrip is 950 metres long and is operated by the MADC. MADC has no plans of developing this airstrip owing to obstructions all around the site, particularly the Thermal Power Plant.^[5] The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Nagpur Airport.

Culture and Religion[link]

Mahakali Mandir[link]

Mahakali Mandir in Chandrapur is an icon for Chandrapur. It is symbolic to Chandrapur City and it has prominent place in the heart of people of Chandrapur. Devotes visit Mahakali Mandir every day but Tuesdays are special days to visit Mahakali mandir. There is a small Ganesha temple and Hannuman temple inside the Mahakali Mandir premises. There are two entrances for the temple. The rear entrance has Ganesh and Hanuman temple. Both the entrances have small shops for puja supplies like coconut, flowers and cloth. We get lot of other things for home décor & puja décor items all the time near the temple. There is also Shani temple next to the rear entrance.

There are two idols (murthys) in the Mahakali Mandir. One standing murthy is the main idol decorated with red, yellow and orange color cloths. The main idol also associated with Shiv Ling. The second murthy is reclining position. The second idol is actually below the ground level and to reach there, devotes need to walk in kind of a tunnel.

Inside the temple the priest will be always there to assist you with puja and offerings. Every year there is a fair during the month of April, during that period all the devotes from different parts of state visit the Mahakali Mandir. Now there is a trust formed to take care of temple administration. There were lot of improvements to the amenities of the temple in last decade. Temple authority has made dharmashalas for devotes to help them stay near the temple for free who travels from distant places of the Chandrapur district.

The annual fair that used to happen in the month of April used to be a big festival for the devotees of Mahakali and also for Chandrapur people. There used to be lots of activities and events for all the ages and used to be a time for joy and fun for all the people. There used to be shops selling kitchen gadgets, toys, bangles, imitation jewellery, cloths. Entertainers used to come from different parts of Chandarpur district and various parts of Maharastra state to show entertain the people and show their skills. There used to be small magic shows and circus. The kids used to wait for all the year for this event and which makes it a memorable festival for the family and kids.

Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, the conference on Marathi Literature were held twice in Chandrapur city, in 1977 and Feb 2012 ^[6]. It was presided by President of the Conference Vaman Krushna Chorghade in 1977.

You will also find Gajanan Mandir and Sai Baba's Temple in Chandrapur. 2 Gurudwara's are located in Chandrapur, one near to Mahakal Temple and the new one is in Tukum.

Education[link]

Chandrapur is well known for education facilities in the district.

Chandrapur has Engineering / Polytechnic / medical / Law schools.

Notable educational institutes in the city are..

As of December 2011, all the graduation colleges in Chandrapur are under newly formed Gondwana University.

Industries[link]

About 6000 small and big scale industries are located at Chandrapur. Chandrapur, also known as 'City of Black Gold', has one of the oldest coal mines in the country. The mammoth coal mines around the city also contribute to the heavy industrialization of the city. The second-biggest coal producer in India, the Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) have their mines in the district. Most of the Cement manufacturing companies have their plants in Chandrapur District as it is rich in natural resources of Limestone. The city houses various cement factories in its vicinity. Prominent among these are the ones established by Manikgarh Cement, Ulltratech Cement (formerly L&T Cement), Associated Cement Companies (ACC) and Gujarat Ambuja (Maratha Cement Works).

The city also boasts of having the largest paper manufacturing unit of Ballarpur Industries Limited (BILT), largest manufacturer and exporter of paper in India, in the adjoining Ballarpur. Other major industries include a ferro-manganese and silico-manganese plant of Maharashtra Elektrosmelt Ltd. (MEL), a subsidiary of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL). The neighbouring Warora region has a manufacturing plant, for electrical household appliances, owned by Videocon. Maharashtra Electrosmelt Ltd (MEL) is a Subsidiary of Steel Authority of India Ltd, is the largest Manganese based Ferro Alloy producer in the country situated in the outskirts of city.

Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station[link]

The Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station (CSTPS)/Mahagenco sprawled over 12212 Hectares and employing a workforce of around 3460 people, is the biggest pit head thermal power station of the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited located 6 km from Chandrapur City . The 2,340 MW Power station complex is on the way to the famous Tadoba National Park. It contributes about 25 % of electricity for the entire state. It is the first ever thermal power plant in India to have commissioned a 500 MW Unit in 1991-92. The First stage of the Plant was sanctioned in 1976 and the then Central Energy Minister Shri K. C. Pant laid the foundation stone on 16 January 1977. The first set of 210 MW unit was commissioned in August 1983 and the second set in July 1984. The first unit was dedicated to the nation on 8th Oct 1984 by the then Hon. Prime Minister, Late Smt Indira Gandhi. The Station has 4 units of 210 MW and 3 units of 500 MW each and another 2 units of 500MW are under construction. Durgapur and Padmapur Collieries of WCL are pit head mines from where the coal is transported by Ropeway.

A 420 metre Masonry dam, constructed on the river Erai at a distance of about 15 km from the power station, caters to its water requirements. The dam is a composite dam with a central spillway and earth saddle dams on left and right bank of 800 and 425 meters length respectively. MSPGCL acquired 7041 hectares of land for the construction of this dam. The dam has effective storage capacity of 198 million cu. meters Of which 12 million cu. meters per year is released to Chandrapur city.

Places of Interests[link]

Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve[link]

Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve is the pristine and unique eco-system situated in the Chandrapur district of the Maharashtra State of India. The Reserve contains some of the best of forest tracks and endowed with rich biodiversity. It is famous for its natural heritage. Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve is the second Tiger Reserve in the State. Tadoba-Andhari Tiger reserve was created in 1995. The area of the Reserve is 625.40 km². This includes Tadoba National Park, created in 1955 with an area of 116.55 km². and Andhari Wildlife Sanctuary created in 1986 with an area of 508.85 km². The Reserve is constituted with 577.96 km². Reserve Forest, 32.51 km². Protected Forest and 14.93 km². other areas.

Deeksha Bhoomi[link]

The historical embracing of Buddhism, the ‘Deeksha’ ceremony, by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar and his followers took place in the city in 1956. Babasaheb Ambedkar embraced Buddhism along with his family members on 14 October 1956 at Nagpur. Soon after that, Babasaheb Ambedkar, converted millions of his followers who came from several parts of the country, to Buddhism. On 16 October 1956 Dr. B. R. Ambedkar gave Diksha of Buddhism to his followers at Chandrapur. Afterward this place is known as “Deeksha Bhoomi” Chandrapur is the birthplace of barrister Rajabhau Khobragade. Dr. Ambedkar chose only Nagpur and Chandrapur for Dharmantar (acceptance of Buddhism) and therefore Chandrapur has historical importance. Barrister Rajabhau Khobragade established “Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar college of Arts, Commerce and Science” in the Deeksha Bhoomi premises. A branch of Buddhivruksha from Buddha Gaya is planted in the premises and is growing gracefully. Two day function of “Dhamma Chakra pravartan din” is hosted on 15 and 16 October every year on this holy place. Thousands of pilgrims and monks visit Deekshabhoomi during the function.

Anandvan Ashram[link]

The seeds of social activism were sown by Murlidhar Devidas Amte, Baba Amte. Regardless of his parents's disapproval, Baba Amte often ate with servants and played with lower caste children. As a nine-year-old, he was so moved by the sight of a blind beggar that he dropped a handful of silver coins in his bowl. He studied law and started a lucrative practice in Wardha, but was appalled by the poverty in his family estate in the Chandrapur district of Maharashtra. He relinquished his robes and began working with sweepers and carriers of night soil.

"He came to be known as Baba not because he is a saint or any such thing, but because his parents addressed him by that name," reveals Sadhanatai, his wife. Manikgarh Fort One of the old fort known as Manikgarh fort is still exist in the west side of the District.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Chandrapur Website
• Comprehensive information portal about Chandrapur City

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