Davangere
| Davanagere. ದಾವಣಗೆರೆ Davangere | |
|---|---|
| Corporation City | |
|
Statue of Saraswati at Fine Arts college, Davanagere. | |
  Davanagere. Davangere in Karnataka, India | |
| Coordinates: 14°28′00″N 75°55′27″E / 14.4666°N 75.9242°ECoordinates: 14°28′00″N 75°55′27″E / 14.4666°N 75.9242°E | |
| Country |
 India |
| State |
 Karnataka |
| District | Davangere District |
| Government | |
| • Type | City Municipal Corporation |
| • Body | Davangere Mahanagara Palike |
| • Mayor | H B Goneppa |
| • MLA (North Davangere) | S S Mallikarjun |
| • MLA (South Davangere) | Shamanur Shivashankarappa |
| • District Collector | Shri. Anjan Kumar, IAS |
| Area | |
| • Total | 77 km2 (30 sq mi) |
| Population (2011-12) | |
| • Total | 435,128 |
| • Rank | 6th(Karnataka) |
| • Density | 5,700/km2 (15,000/sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Kannada |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 577001-577006 |
| Telephone code | 91 8192 |
| Vehicle registration | KA-17 |
| Spoken languages | Kannada |
| Website |
www |
Davangere (Kannada:ದಾವಣಗೆರೆ), also spelled Davanagere, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Positioned at the geographical centre of the state of Karnataka, it is the administrative headquarters of eponymous Davangere District. Hitherto being a cotton hub and hence popularly known before as Manchester of Karnataka, the commercial ventures of the city is now dominated by education and agro-processing industries. Davangere lies along on the National Highway 4, a part of the Golden Quadrilateral, at a distance of about 264 kilometres (164 mi) from the state capital, Bangalore. Davangere became a separate district in 1997, when it was separated from the erstwhile undivided district of Chitradurga for administration conveniences. Davangere is known for rich culinary traditions which encompass the diversity of entire Karnataka's dishes due to its geographical position in the state as its epicenter. Notable among them is its aromatic benne dose that is associated with the name of the city. Home to a population of about half a million, it is the sixth-largest city in the state of Karnataka.[1]
Davangere has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's ambitious flagship Smart Cities Mission. [2] It even went on to be featured in the list of first 20 cities to be developed under the mission by Urban development ministry, released on 28 January 2016, after being scrutinized stringently for several parameters.[3]
Etymology
It is believed that the Chalukyas were used to halt at this place to rest after a long horse-ride. A lake ("kere" in Kannada language) was excavated for them to quench their thirst. The place thus came to be known as "Devan giri" (an abbreviation of 'danivina kere' for lake for the exhausted and the thirsty) and eventually "Davangere". However no lake exists as of today, and no concrete historical and literary evidences exist to prove this theory apart from unconfirmed verbal folklores.
Another popular theory that revolves around, is the name of the city being derived from its previous name of Devanagari, meaning the city of divines.
Civic administration
The civic administration of the city was managed by the Davangere City Corporation (Davanagere Mahanagara Palike), before it was established as a municipality on 7 August 1951. It now has the status of a City Municipal Corporation, and gained this on 6 January 2007. It is headed by a mayor, assisted by commissioners and council members. The city is divided into 41 wards, and the council members (corporators) are elected by the people of the city.
Davanagere has been a pioneer in municipal administration with the city attaining the status of a municipality as early as 1870.[4] The Imperial Gazatteer of India (1911) says that the receipts and expenditure of the municipality, during the ten years ending 1901, averaged Rs 14,200 and Rs 12,600 respectively.[4]
History
Davanagere was originally an obscure village, forming one of the suburbs of Bethur. Sultan Hyder Ali gave it as jagir to a Maratha chief named Apoji Ram, who encouraged merchants to settle there. While Apoji Ram died without heirs, the place continued to grow, favored by Tipu Sultan.
Till the 1980s, Davangere used to be popularly referred as the Manchester of Karnataka due to its numerous cotton mills, many of which were of national and international repute. Availability of cotton led to the establishment of many cotton mills from prominent business families of the city. This fame was lost in time as cotton mills were shut down gradually. The city however continues to be a major trading center of agricultural commodities.
Geography
Davangere is the "Heart of Karnataka". Davangere is surrounded from Chithradurga, Bellary, Shimoga, Chikmagalur and Haveri districts. Davangere is at the center of Karnataka, 14°28' N latitude, 75°59' longitude and 602.5 metres (1,977 ft) above sea level. Davanagere District receives average annual rainfall of 644 mm (25.4 in).[5]
Davanagere lies in the Maidan region on the Deccan Plateau. The district is bounded by Shimoga District (Malenadu) Area of Hills, Haveri District, Chitradurga District, Chikmagalur and Bellary Districts. The southern and western parts of the district are irrigated by the waters of the Bhadra reservoir.
Demographics
As of the 2011 census, Davangere city had a population of 435,125. Males constitute 52% of the population, and females 48%. Davangere has an average literacy rate of 85%, higher than the national average of 74.04%: male literacy is 89% and, female literacy is 81%.[6] In Davangere, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Davangere is a mixed community centre. The majority are Lingayats with different sub-castes within the community. The mixed culture had previously developed very good tolerance for each other's religious practices.
Languages Spoken
Kannada is the major language spoken.The Kannada particular to Davangere has mild regional influences. Hindi and Urdu languages are spoken by certain sections of the people. English owing to the presence of a sizable student population, hailing from across India and overseas.
Transportation
Davangere is well-connected by road to Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Bangalore, Mangalore and Chennai through National Highway 4 (India) (previously Pune-Bangalore Highway and now Mumbai-Pune-Bengaluru-Chennai Highway).
Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, has a divisional office situated in Davanagere City. The city is well-connected to Bangalore and other cities in the state by KSRTC buses.
The city's railway station comes under South Western Railway Zone (India) and was constructed during the British period and has been renovated recently. The station code is DVG. The railway station is located in front of Davanagere Municipal Corporation.
The nearest airport to Davanagere is Hubli Airport (IATA:HBX), which is 143 kilometres (89 mi) from the city.
Cuisine
Davangere has mixed blend of South and North Karnataka food patterns. Jowar Roti which is common in Karnataka and Ragi mudde Chapathi, Rice, Akki Rotti, which is common in South Karnataka are seen in Davangere.
Davangere is also famous for its special cuisine, particularly Benne dosa, Benne kali dosa, Benne Open dosa, Benne masala dosa, Set dosa and Open dosa. Kara-mandakki (spiced puffed rice), Menasinakaayi, Nargis Mandakki Uppittu, Avalakki, Poori, Pulav, Rice Bath, etc. .
A unique sweet dish called “Guladiki unndi” is only made in Davangere.
Davangere benne dosa is a famous dish across the state, and it has found its own well-deserved place in the menu cards of all well-known restaurants in Karnataka. There are a few restaurants in Singapore and USA that serve this specialty of Davangere.[7][8][9]
University
A new University has been established in 2008 at Davangere named as Davangere University. All degree colleges in Davangere district, and Chitradurga district come under Davangere University.
References
- ↑ Davangere City Statistics
- ↑ http://www.firstpost.com/business/why-only-98-cities-instead-of-100-announced-all-questions-answered-about-smart-cities-project-2410576.html
- ↑ "Davanagere, Belagavi Among 1st Smart Cities". The New Indian Express-28-Jan-2016. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
- 1 2 Uchicago.edu
- ↑ NIC.in
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑ Preparation
- ↑
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