Pimpri-Chinchwad, Pune, Maharashtra

Ganpati Festival Band - Pimpri, Pune
Originally uploaded by bavzz.

Pimpri-Chinchwad is a twin city of Pune, India. It hosts one of the biggest industrial areas in Asia. The city is home to the companies like Bajaj Auto, Telco, Kinetic, and Bajaj Tempo. The city is also home to India's premier antibiotics research institute Hindustan Antibiotics Limited. The main language of the area is Marathi.

The city was once the capital of King Bhoj, the well-known King who ruled central parts of India two thousand years ago. Bhosari is one of the most important villages of Pimpri Chinchwad. The real name of Bhosari is Bhojapuri which was the capital of king Bhoj.

Pimpri Chinchwad is well known for its Ganesh devotees.

Sangli, Maharashtra

Walchand College of Engineering, Sangli, India
Originally uploaded by bipinshevade.

The turmeric capital of India, Sangli and Miraj, the twin cities are located in the Indian State of Maharashtra. The city is part of the 'Sugar Belt' with 30 sugar factories, which makes it amongst the highest sugar-producing districts of India. Sangli is also known for high quality of grapes.

Sangli city known as Natyapandhari, the birthplace of Marathi drama. It has a historic Ganpati temple built in 18th century by ruling Patwardhan dynasty of Sangli, appointed by Peshwas of Pune. The temple attracts thousands of devotees year around.

Pune, Maharashtra

Mumbai Pune expressway
Originally uploaded by Amit K.

Pune (formerly Poona) is the 8th largest city in India with a population of 4.5 million people. It is the 2nd largest city in the State of Maharashtra. Pune is home to some very reputed educational institutions and many software and IT companies. The city is considered the cultural capital of Maharashtrians. Pune is fast developing into a very cosmopolitian city.

Mumbai Pune expressway is a six lane highway connecting two major metropolis. Once the entry to the highway is cleaned up on both sides, this could usher in a new age of development to the region.

Pune is inextricably linked to the life of the great Maratha hero and King, Chhatrapati Shivaji. The era of Pune's fame began when Chhatrapati Shivaji came to stay here with his mother Jijabai in 1635-36. They lived in a mansion known as "Lal Mahal," a replica of which still can be visited at its original location in the city. According to local lore, the Kasba Ganapati Mandir, regarded as the presiding deity of the city (gramadevata), was built by Jijabai.

Nanded, Maharashtra

Nanded is a Sikh holy city, located on the banks of River Godavari in Maharashtra, India. It is the resting place of Shri Guru Gobind Singh, tenth guru of Sikhism who played a monumental part in the development of the Sikh faith. Nanded is one of the historical places in Marathwada Region in Maharashtra State.

Virar, Maharashtra

Inside Indian Railways
Originally uploaded by dbtorp.

Virar, the last station on the Western Suburban local train route of Mumbai, was connected with the mainland by an electric train way back in 1925. Seventy percent of the population of Virar is below 30 years of age because of migration from mainland Mumbai.

Arnala is an excellent beach in Virar. Jivdani temple, situated atop a hill with some 1375 steps, offers a very picturesque view of Virar.

Nashik, Maharashtra

kumbh_mela_19
Originally uploaded by Amit K.

Located in the Western Ghats on the banks of Godavari River, Nashik or Nasik is a city of 1.2 million people in the State of Maharashtra. Historically, the city has been a religious center - it is one of the four cities in India that hosts the massive Sinhastha Kumbh Mela once in twelve years. Temples and ghats (steps) on the banks of Godavari River have made Nashik one of the holiest places for Hindus all over the world.

The third most industrialised city of Maharashtra, after Mumbai & Pune, is famous for its grapes, and ongoing efforts are underway to promote the growth of an export-oriented wine industry in the district.

Mumbai (Bombay), Maharashtra

Juhu Beach sunset
Originally uploaded by Sanjay Shetty.

Mumbai is the state capital of Maharashtra as well as the financial capital of India. No one picture can capture the soul of Mumbai. Yet this one atleast makes you think of so many evenings spent on Juhu Beach.

Dhule, Maharashtra

village10
Originally uploaded by paroma7.

Dhule city in northwestern Maharashtra has a population of approximately 225,000 people. The city was designed by Sir Vishveshwarraya along the banks of Panzara river. Dhule city is famous for its quality of educational institutions. It is also an important center for cotton-textile manufacturing.

Dhule came under the Mughal rule in 1601, during the reign of Akbar. Marathas took over the rule over Dhule in the 18th century. In 1818, the British annexed the city and consolidated it under the Bombay Presidency.

Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra

Navi Mumbai (New Bombay) is the largest planned new city in the world. Covering an area of 344 km, the city lies on the mainland on the eastern seaboard of the Thane Creek. The length of the city is almost the same as Mumbai. Navi Mumbai was created in 1970s to cater to the rising demand in real estate.

CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation) was formed on 17th March 1971 and was given the mandate of converting about 344 km of marshy land lying between village Dighe in Thane district and Kalundre village of Raigad district into a new city. It consisted of 150 km creek line of the total 720 km of the Konkan coast.

Satara, Maharashtra

basket maker in satara
Originally uploaded by vasu bhai.

Satara is a town located in the State of Maharashtra and is home to the first Sainik School of India.

The city of Satara was the seat of the former Maratha Maharajas, the nominal rulers of the Maratha empire until its conquest by Britain in 1818. The Maratha empire was founded by Shivaji in the 17th century. His descendants had lost effective control of the Maratha State by the mid-18th century, which had passed to the Peshwas, who moved the capital to Pune in 1749. After their victory in the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818, the British annexed most of the Maratha territory to Bombay Presidency, but restored the titular Raja Pratap Singh, and assigned to him the principality of Satara, with an area much larger than the present district. As a result of political intrigues, he was deposed in 1839, and his brother Shahji Raja was placed on the throne. This prince died without male heirs in 1848, and Satara was annexed by the British government and added to Bombay Presidency.

Dombivli, Maharashtra

Dombivli Platform
Originally uploaded by denzdm.

A city of 1.5 million people could be considered a suburb of Mumbai. It is the first fully literate city in Maharashtra and the second in India. Old Dombivli which forms the west flank is embraced by the river Ulhas.

Today, Dombivli is well known for its rapid industrial growth with major companies like Lloyd Steel, Deepak Fertilizers, Vicco Labs and Gharda Chemicals.

Kolhapur, Maharashtra

Kolhapur 144
Originally uploaded by snagesh.

Famous for its Kolhapuri Chappals (leather footware), Kolhapur has lot more to offer. It is part of a major sugar belt and therefore has a poweful sugar lobby in the state politics. Kolhapur has a national stadium for wrestling known as Khasbag. The city is also popular for its Mahalaksmi temple, situated on the banks of Panchganga river.

Kolhapur was a princely state under British India with Bhonsle dynasty as its rulers. The states of Satara and Kolhapur were created in 1707.

Shegaon, Maharashtra

Outter View of the main dome.
Originally uploaded by Mayuresh.

Located on the 'Mumbai Bhusawal Nagpur' route of the Central Railway, Shegaon is a town in the Buldhana district of the State of Maharashtra.

Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj took "Samadhi" at Shegaon and a temple is built on the Samadhi. It is the biggest temple trust in Vidharbha region. Hindus consider Gajanan Maharaj a saint with miraculous powers.

Aurangabad, Maharashtra

Entrance (वेस "Vaes" in Marathi)
Originally uploaded by Harshad Sharma.

Aurangabad is located in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra and is the closest city to the famous Ajanta and Ellora caves. The city is named after the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. In 1610, Malik Amber, the Prime Minister of Murtaza Nizam Shah II of Ahmednagar, founded the city at Kirki (Khadki) called Fatehpura. Aurangzeb was sent to the city in 1634 as Governor of Deccan. He moved back to Agra in 1644.

Aurangzeb returned to the city in 1681 as Emperor and used this location as a base for his campaigns to conquer the last remaining sultanates in the Deccan. He lived in Aurangabad till his death in 1707. His tomb is situated at Khultabad, a small town near Aurangabad. The city took its name after his death.

Osmanabad, Maharashtra

Fort of Naldurg.....
Originally uploaded by avinash dhanave.

Located on the east side of Marathwada Region, Osmanabad lies on the Deccan plateau in the State of Maharashtra. Parts of the Godavari and Bhima Rivers flow through the district.

Osmanabad District has a population of 1.5 million people.

Wardha, Maharashtra

Lone tree - silhouette
Originally uploaded by Indyblue.

The city was founded in 1866 on Wardha River in the state of Maharashtra. Wardha is part of the cotton belt in the state politics. It is a sister city of Sevagram, and both were used as major centers for the Indian Independence Movement. Wardha was the headquarters for the annual meet of the Indian National Congress in 1934.

Yavatmal, Maharashtra

FESS workshop. yavatmal 027
Originally uploaded by Bittoo.

This city of 125,000 people was once a part of the legendary kingdom of Vidarbha, mentioned in Mahabharata. Yavatmal, along with Berar province, was also a part of the Mauryan Empire. The Nizam of Hyderabad seized control of the southern provinces in 1724, including Berar. In 1853, the whole area came under the administration of the British East India Company.

Yavatmal is also known as cotton city. The town is also the chief trading centre for cotton-ginning and pressing. Cotton and teakwood are the main exports of the district.

Thane, Maharashtra

Hiranandani Thane
Originally uploaded by Premshree Pillai.

The first railway train in India ran from Bombay VT (Victoria Terminus) to Thane in 1853. Thane or Thana means "station" in local language. Thana was the only other station besides Victoria Terminus.

The Portuguese ruled over Thane for 200 years, from 1530 to 1739. The city was then known as Cacabe de Tana. Work on the Thane Fort began in 1730. The Marathas conquered Bassein and Thane in 1739 and held on to the region till 1784 when the British captured the Fort and ruled Tana (Thane).

The city of Thane is situated on the western banks of Thane creek with Parsik hills to the east and Yeour hills to the west. The creek not only provided a natural protection to the city but also facilitated transport of big and small ships since ancient times.

Vasai-Virar, Maharashtra

More arches, Bassein Fort
Originally uploaded by bardosaurus.

The city is located on the north bank of Vasai Creek and Ulhas River. Vasai-Virar is part of Thane District in Maharashtra and has three railway stations on the Western Railways. The 3 suburban stations are, Vasai Road, Nala Sopara and Virar.

The ancient city of Sopara and the town of Vasai were important trading centers for horses, fish, salt, timber, and quarried basalt and granite. Vasai came under the control of the Sultans of Gujarat in the 15th century. The Portuguese captured it in 1532.

Nagpur, Maharashtra

Diksha Bhoomi, Nagpur
Originally uploaded by ashtarhalkar.

Nagpur is the winter capital of the State of Maharashtra. Located in the eastern Vidarbha Region, Nagpur has a population of 2.1 million people. It is the third largest city in the western State of Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune. Nagpur is considered the 'Orange City' because of huge trade of high-quality oranges grown in the region.

TATA, one of the most respected industrial houses in India, started the country's first textile mill at Nagpur, formally known as Central India Spinning and Weaving Company Ltd. The company was popularly known as "Empress Mills" as it was inaugurated on 1st January 1877, the day queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India.

Akola, Maharashtra

Hanuman
Originally uploaded by Gauravb.

The second Anglo-Maratha war took place in Akola District of Maharashtra in November, 1803. The British were led by Governor Arthur Wellesley and the Marathas under Bhonsle of Nagpur.

Gadchiroli District, Maharashtra

Butterfly Roost
Originally uploaded by rajukasambe.

Gadchiroli has a population of over a million people. The district is considered a tribal and undeveloped district and most of the land is covered with forest and hills. Gadchiroli is well known for Naxalite activities.

Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra

Arthur's Seat
Originally uploaded by Pothik Chatterjee.

This summer capital of the British Raj was established in 1829 as Malcolm Peth, today it is known as Mahabaleshwar. It is also one of the few Evergreen Forests of the world.

Located near Pune and Mumbai (Bombay), Mahabaleshwar is a vast plateau with tremendous potential to develop as a major hill resort.

Ratnagiri, Maharashtra

Tillak Janmasthan
Originally uploaded by Janmejay A.

The birth place of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Ratnagiri is located in the south-western part of Maharashtra. The city is a part of the long coastline of Konkan tract, along the Arabian Sea coast. The surrounding area is bordered by the Sahyadri Hills on the West. The fertile alluvial soil is good for the production of rice, coconut and cashew cultivation. Ratnagiri is famous for its golden Haapus (Alphonso) mangoes.

The Ratnagiri fort was built by the Bijapur dynasty and was strengthened by Maratha King Shivaji in 1670. This is the fort where Veer Savarkar was confined during the freedom struggle.

Ulhasnagar, Maharashtra

View of Ulhasnagar and Kalyan congestion
Originally uploaded by hari_1983.

Popularly known as the Sindhi City, Ulhasnagar is home to some half a million people. After the partition of India, over 100,000 Sindhi refugees from the newly created West Pakistan were relocated in military camps five kilometers from Kalyan. The area was converted into a townshop in 1949 and named Ulhasnagar..

In 1955, a suburban railway station was built and that transformed Ulhasnagar into a major business district. It is home to some 350,000 Sindhis, the largest enclave of this ethnic group in India.

Pandharpur, Maharashtra

On the walls of Temple.. Colors of India
Originally uploaded by Chendur.

The birth place of the famous painter M. F. Hussain, Pandharpur is a town in the State of Maharashtra. Located on the banks of Bhima River, Pandharpur is one of the most respected pilgrimage sites in Maharashtra. It hosts the Vithoba temple, on the banks of the river. Vithoba is supposed to be Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu.

This temple, covering a vast area, has a total of six gates. The eastern entrance to this temple is known as the Namdev gate. The sanctum enshrines a standing image of Vithoba also known as Panduranga, Pandhari or Vitthala.

Solapur, Maharashtra

Solapur is one of the biggest cities in Maharashtra, situated near the borders with Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It is an ancient historical and religious place with Shri Siddharameshwar as its "Gramadaiwata". Shri Siddharameshwar was a historical figure of the 12th Century whose "Karmayoga" on his own native land-Solapur, turned him into a God-figure over the course of time. He composed more than 65,000 Vachanas and consecrated 68 "Lingas" in Solapur. He belonged to the Virashaiva movement inspired by the saint and revolutionary Basavanna. He had gained the "Siddhi". As Solapur was a drought prone area, Shri Siddharameshwar dug a lake with the help of 4000 "Sharanas" to solve the problem of portable water, which was open to use for people of all castes, races and religion. He entombed himself alive (Shivyogsamadhi) at Solapur.

During the Indian independence movement, the people of Solapur enjoyed full freedom on 9th, 10th and 11th May 1930.However, this resulted in the executions of Shri Mallappa Dhanshetti, Shri Kurban Hussein, Shri Jagannath Shinde and Shri Kisan Sarda who were hanged on 12th Jan 1931, in the prison at Pune. This resulted in the city becoming recognized as "The City of Hutatmas".

Solapur is 433 km away from Mumbai and 244 km from Pune. By rail, it is 456 km from Mumbai. Solapur is well-connected with metro-cities like Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bangalore.

Being an important industrial city, Solapur is a leading center for cotton mills and power looms. Solapur bed-sheets, terry-towels and chaddars have earned international fame and reputation due to their novel designs and durability.

Jalgaon, Maharashtra

Camions de coton sur la route de Jalgaon
Originally uploaded by eleonor.

The city is famous for its gold market, reputed to be pure. Jalgoan is a significant agricultural region of Kandesh. The district is well known for banana production. Formerly, a territory of the Holkar family, Jalgaon became part of British India's Bombay Presidency in 1818.

The region's rich volcanic soil is particularly well-suited for cotton production. Jalgaon is an important center for cotton-textile and vegetable-oil mills.

Chiplun, Maharashtra

Chiplun - sunset on Vashishti river
Originally uploaded by Road Blog.

Chiplun is a city of 60,000 people, located in the konkan region of Maharashtra. The city lies on the banks of river Vashishti. The reign is hilly and the city is situated in the valley, and is surrounded on all four sides by hills.

Chiplun is an industrial town catering to mostly the top pharmaceutical and chemical industries. It also has Rajaram Shinde College of Engineering affiliated to the University of Mumbai.

Kangla Fort, Imphal, Manipur

Kangla Fort
Originally uploaded by tabish_q.

The capital of Manipur, Imphal has a unique bazaar where all the shops are managed by women. The place is called 'Ima Keithel' at Khwairamband Bazaar. Imphal is full of small rivers draining from the surrounding hills.

In 1944, during World War II, the Battle of Imphal, along with simultaneous Battle of Kohima, was the turning point in Burma Campaign. For the first time in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II the Japanese lost the initiative to the Allies which they then retained until the end of the war.

In the heart of the town and surrounded by a moat, are the ruins of the old Palace of Kangla.

Shillong, Meghalaya

Vegetable Vendor - Bara Bazar Shillong
Originally uploaded by mansa.g.

Shillong is the capital of Meghalaya and has a population of 250,000 people. The city was also the capital of undivided Assam until the creation of the new State of Meghalaya in January 1972.

The city boasts of many beautiful churches and cathedrals. The colonial hangover of Shillong is not yet over. People still do not feel emabarrassed to describe their city in terms of Scotland of the east or Glen Eagle of the east. Picinic spots in and around Shillong include Elephant falls in upper Shillong, Spread Eagle falls, Ward Lake, Bara Pani.

Aizawl, Mizoram

Aizawl
Originally uploaded by tzadeng.

Aizawl is the capital of Mizoram, an eastern state of India, and is situated on top of a hill. The city is surrounded by slopes and valleys and has breathtaking views. The city has a population of 250,000 people and it offers plenty of tourist attractions.