Welcome to www.mykaradcity.com
Karad is a city in Satara district in the southern part of Indian state of Maharashtra. It lies at the confluence of
Koyna River and the Krishna River. The two rivers originate at Mahabaleshwar, which is around 100 km from Karad.
They diverge at their origin, and travel for about the same distance to meet again in Karad. The rivers meet exactly
headon, thus forming letter "T". Their confluence is called Preeti Sangam, meaning Confluence of Love. Karad is well
known for sugar production and is known as the sugar bowl of Maharashtra owing to the presence of many sugar factories
in and around Karad. It is considered as an important educational hub in Western Maharashtra due to the presence of many
prestigious educational institutes.
Karad has an adjoining small town named Malkapur, Karad which has its own municipal council and a population of 31,671.
Karad city was awarded a prize under "Sant Gadagebaba Gramswachatta Abhiyan" started by Indian Government.
Karad is a small but upcoming town in Satara Dist. It is situated on the banks of the confluence of Krishna & Koyna Rivers.
It is on Pune- Bengluru national highway no. 4 and is well connected to other cities by road & rail. It is surrounded by
many places of tourists interest like Koyna Dam, Ozarde water falls, Shri Ram temple at Chaphal and Satara etc.
Radhanagari Dam, Dajipur Bison Sanctury, Gokak Falls are few other places on 2-3 hours drive from Karad. Mahabaleshwar,
a hill station is 80 kms north from Karad. It is one of the few evergreen forests of India. It reaches a height of
4,718 ft at its highest peak above sea level, known as Wilson/Sunrise Point. It is a source of five rivers, the longest
being the Krishna. The Venna lake, city market, strawberries and honey are themajor tourist attractions. Mahabaleshwar
is known for its points, from where tourists can enjoy the scenery
Panchgani, surrounded by five hills of Sahyadri, is all season hill station elevated at 1305 meters above sea level and
18 km east of Mahabaleshwar. The magnificent scenery of Krishna Valley with its numerous hamlets, cultivated fields and
picturesque view of the backwater of Dhom Dam can be seen along the whole northern ridge of the mountain. The five hills
are topped by a volcanic plateau, which is the second highest in Asia after the Tibetan plateau.
Aundh, 40 kms northwest of Karad, is known for its hill temple, the Devi Yamai temple. The temple is very old but very
attractive. The top of the temple has images and idols of various Hindu Gods. The temple complex contains the Shri Bhavani
Museum, with paintings drawn by various well-known Indian artists including Raja Ravi Varma and the famous "Mother and
Child" stone structure by Henry Moore.
Kolhapur, 'Dakshin (south) Kashi', 'historical capital of Maharashtra state', 'door of konkan', 'city of wrestlers',
'city of arts' and 'city of palaces and temples' is 70 kms south of Karad. It is situated on the banks of the river
Panchganga and is the location of the Temple of Mahalakshmi, a Hindu goddess. Besides Mahalaxmi temple, the city has
temples, lakes, amusement parks, museums, forts which are attractions for the tourists.
Shri Kshetra Siddhagiri Math, Kaneri is known for the Siddhagiri Gramjivan Museum, a unique project, perhaps the only
project in India. The place is near Kolhapur. The history of self-sufficient village life before invasion of Mughals in
Maharashtra is depicted in this museum in the form of sculptures. Each sculpture is lifelike and has a multi dimensional
effect and lifestyle theme.
Karad is also known as "Dakshin Kashi". It was originally known as "Karhatak" which later evolved to be known as Karad. Karad is historical city, according to epic Mahabharata, Sahadeva one of the Pandava lived in the city also known to be pious as Lord Rama stepped his feet on this land.
Karad is well known for Mogal architectures like twin minar. It was also meeting point of Haji holy pilgrim "HAJ" in mogal period. The Jama Masjid of Karad is very notable and has twin towers that can be seen from a distance.
It was originally known as "Karhatak", meaning "elephant market". Karad is also a city of historical importance.
According to Mahabharata, Sahadeva one of the Pandavas lived in the city also known to be pious as Lord Rama stepped his
feet on this land[citation needed]. Located to the south west of Karad is Karad Caves.[1]
The first capital of the Shilaharas was probably at Karad during the reign of Jatiga-II as known from their copper plate
grant of Miraj and Vikramankadevacharita of Bilhana. Hence sometimes they are referred as 'Shilaharas of Karad'. The
capital was later shifted to Kolhapur. Among the Silaharas of Kolhapur who ruled over Satara and Belganv districts from
1000 to 1215 A. D., Gonka deserves mention here, as he is described as the Lord of Karhad (Karad), Mairifvja (Miraj) and
Konkan.[2]
Features:
Major spots in the city include Kolhapur Naka, Stand area, Krishna Naka, Karve Naka, Chawadi Chowk, Krishna Ghat, Mandai, Bheda Hospital Chowk.
Upcoming suburbs include: Vidyanagar, Gajanan Housing Society, Wakhan.
Geography:
Karad is located at 17.28°N 74.2°E.[3] It has an average elevation of 566 metres (1856 feet). Karad is located near Agashiva 17.237506°N 74.15205°E. It has been referred in great epic Mahabharata. It has the shape of an "Aum" (Devanagari?) when viewed aerially.
Politics:
Karad has two constituencies due to its large population: Karad North, Karad South.
Karad North constituency has a voter list of 274526. Currently Balasaheb Patil from NCP represents this constituency in Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha.
Karad South constituency has a voter list of 275391. Currently Prithviraj Chavan from Congress represents this constituency in Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha.
Karad has given two chief ministers to Maharashtra till now. Maharashtra's first chief minister Yashwantrao Chavan came from Karad. The ancestors of Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant, who became the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, are from Ound village in Karad. This village still boasts of a school in Pant's name. Shriniwas Dadasaheb Patil was a member of the 13th and 14th Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Karad constituency of Maharashtra and is a member of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Currently he is the Governor of Sikkim.
Premalabai Chavan was a member of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The Founder-President of the All India Women's Cricket Association, she was involved in various other activities that contributed to the welfare of women in Indian society. Premalakaki Chavan is notable for holding the record for the most number of representations (four) in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, by a female M.P. from Maharashtra. She hails from Karad.
Dajisaheb Chavan was a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha for 16 years. A member of the Indian National Congress, he was the former Union Deputy Minister for Defence and Law. He hails from Karad. His son Prithviraj Chavan was Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 2011 to 2014.
Every year the chief minister of Maharashtra and various political leaders visit the samadhi of Yashwantrao Chavan in Karad on the occasion of his death anniversary.
Climate:
Karad belongs to the subtropical category of climate characterized by medium to heavy rainfall and moderate temperature. Three main seasons in the region are:
The Rainy Season (June to Sept)
The winter season (Oct to Jan)
The summer Season (Feb to May)
Average maximum temperature is 36 c and Minimum temperature is 11 c. May is the hottest and December is coldest month of the year.The rainfall varies widely in different parts of the tehsil. Climate of Karad is temperate. The maximum rainfall is in June to Aug from south-west monsoon. The average rainfall is 540.40 mm in Karad.
The dryness is marked in the plains than in the hills. During the south- west monsoons seasons the sky is heavily clouded to over cast. Winds are generally light to moderate receiving during the south-west monsoon season, when they are stronger particularly on hills. Fogs occur occasionally in the valleys in the cold season.
Cityscape:
The city boasts many important government offices and other institutions of significance. With the vision of great leader Yashwantrao Chavan the city was one of the few in India to have a well- planned underground drainage system well before in the 1960s. By end-2010, Malkapur, Karad, on the outskirts of the city of Karad, is delivering water 24x7 to all its residents as a result of concrete steps taken by the Malkapur Nagar Panchayat (MNP) with support from the Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran (MJP), a state government entity. This is the first of its kind by a public body in India. Major offices and institutions in Karad are as follows:
Karad Court, Karad
Diwani -Foujdari Court, Karad
Doordarshan Kendra, Karad
Fire- Brigade, Karad
Division Office, Karad
Tehsil Office, Karad
Nagarpalika, Karad
Panchayat Samiti, Karad
Government Rest House, Karad
City Police Station, Karad
Taluka Police Station, Karad
Head Post Office, Karad
Railway Station, Karad
Airport, Karad
MSRTC Depot, Karad
Cottage Hospital, Karad
RTO Office, Karad
Taswade MIDC, Karad
Demographics:
As of 2011 India census,[4] Karad town and surrounding villages had total population of 74,355. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Karad has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 72%. In Karad, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. People are well educated and sophisticated having very high per capita income and high living standards.[citation needed]
People from different religions live here but majority belongs to Hindu and Muslim community.
Transportation:
Railways:
Karad- 4 km from city
Karad has railway station and is onroute from Mumbai to Miraj, Sangli, Kolhapur, and Bangalore (some trains). You can reach Karad from Mumbai or Pune easily by road or rail (Mahalaxmi Express, Koyna Express, Sahyadri Express or Chalukya Express).
Recently, Railway minister Suresh Prabhu has allocated funds for a plan to build a new 112 km railway line between Karad and Chiplun.
National Highways:
The National Highway 4 goes by Karad city. National Highway 4 (NH 4) is a major National Highway in Western and Southern India. NH 4 links four of the 10 most populous Indian cities - Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, and Chennai.
State Highway MH SH 78 with route Guhagar - Chiplun - Koyana - Patan - Karad - Vita - Jath - Bijapur(Karnataka) goes via Karad.
Airport:
An Airstrip was constructed in the 1955 by the Public Works Department to facilitate the Koyna dam project. It is currently being used for General aviation and pilot training.The airport is spread on 65 acres and the acquisition of more than 100 acres has been proposed. Runway 10/28 is 1280 meters long and 30 meters wide with a 60 meter by 60 meter apron. No navigational aids nor night landing facilities are available on the airstrip. The State run Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) plans to extend the 1,250 meters airstrip by another 1,500 m and widen it by 150 m.
Economy:
Karad has the Taswade MIDC in its vicinity which boasts many industries giving employment to people in the Satara District. Karad is famous for its Jaggery and Cattle markets in entire Maharashtra. Jaggery of very high quality is traded here. There is a big Market yard where various commodities are traded and the geographical location of the city add to its benefit since its known as the gateway to Konkan region from Western Maharashtra. Karad is well known for sugar production and is known as the sugar bowl of Maharashtra owing to the presence of many sugar factories in and around Karad. Major sugar factories are:
YASHWANTRAO MOHITE KRISHNA S.S.K. Ltd.
SAHYADRI S.S.K. LTD
RAYAT S.S.K. LTD
Education:
High schools:
Sadguru Gadage Maharaj (SGM) Prathamic Shala, Vidyanagar, Karad
Shri Shivaji Vidyalaya, Karad
Shri Shivaji Vidyalaya, Masur
Shri Shivaji Vidyalaya, Karve
Maharashtra High School, Karad
Adarsh Primary School, Karad
Deshbhakta Bhikoba Appaji Salunkhe Vidyalaya, Kival
Venutai English Medium School, Karad
Keshavrao Pawar English Medium School, Karad.
Yashwant High School, Karad.
Vithamata High School, Karad.
Tilak High School, Karad.
Kanya Prashala, Karad.
Anandrao Chavan high School, Karad.
Holy Family Convent High School, Vidyanagar, Karad.
Sant Tukaram High School, Karad.
Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Karad.
Palkar Highschool, Karad.
S.M.S English Medium School,Karad.
KCT's Krishna English Medium, Malkapur, Karad.
Husen Kasam Danekari Anglo Urdu High School, Karad.
Shaheen Urdu Medium School,Karad (Primary).
Shaheen Urdu Medium School, Karad.
Star English School, Karad.
Rotary School, Malkapur, Karad.
Kalyani English Medium School, Karad.
Podar International School, Karad.
Bachpan English Medium School,Karad.
Anandrao Chavan Vidyalaya, Malkapur,Karad
Engineering colleges:
Central Government's Earthquake Engineering Research Centre, Karad (Coming soon)
Government College of Engineering, Karad
Doulatrao Aher College of Engineering, Karad
Shri Santkrupa College of Engineering, Ghogaoan, Karad
Dadasaheb Mokashi College of Engineering, Karad
Architecture College:
Smt Premalatai Chavan College of Architecture, Karad
Arts, Science, and Commerce colleges:
Yashwantrao Chavan College of Science, Karad
Venutai Chavan Art,Commerce college, Karad
Sadguru Gadge Maharaj (SGM) Arts, Science, Commerce College, Karad
Anandrao Chavan Arts, Science, Commerce College, Karad
Shikshan Maharashi Bapuji Salunkhe Arts, Science, Commerce College, Karad
Mahila Maha Vidyalay Arts, Science, Commerce College, Karad
KCT's Jr. College of Science Malkapur,Karad.
Vithamata Vidyalaya and Junior College, Karad
Polytechnic colleges:
Government Polytechnic, Karad
Premalatai Chavan Polytechnic, Karad
Doulatrao Aher Polytechnic, Karad (Coming soon)
Dadasaheb Mokashi Polytechnic, Sadashivgad, Karad
Shivajirao Desai Polytechnic, Daulatnagar, Patan, Karad
Shri SanShri Santtkrupa Polytechnic, Ghogaoan, Karad
Ramrao Nikam Polytechnic, Indoli, Karad
Chatrapati Shahu Polytechnic, Atit
Other colleges:
Government Pharmacy College, Karad
Government Agriculture college (Coming soon)
Government ITI, Karad
Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences, Karad
Bharti Vidyapeeth Law College, Karad
Yashavantrao Mohite Institute of Management, Karad
Mahila College, Karad
Late.Adv. Dadasaheb Chavan college of pharmacy, Masur Karad
Vishwakarma-Dadasaheb Chavan Institute of Management & Research,Malwadi, Masur, Karad
Ligade-Patil Junior college of science, Vidyanagar, Karad
IIJT Institute, Karad
Shri Santkrupa Pharmacy College, Karad
Dadasaheb Mokashi Food Managenant College, Karad
Computer Software and Hardware Institutes:
C-DAC's SunBeam Institute of Information Technology, Karad
Sunbeam Infocom Pvt. Ltd.
ECSsoft Technologies, Karad
Datapro Computer Institute, Karad
DiSHA COMPUTER INSTITUTE,KARAD
Jetking Computer Hardware & Networking Institute
Easy software solutions
Webgagan technologies, Karad
Diniti Technical Solutions
Ashirwad Computers, Karad.( Udyog Prashikshan Mandal.)
City Computers,Karad
Culture:
Performing arts:
They city has a major hall for cultural activities and exhibitions namely Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial - Town Hall. Cultural events of various organizations and gatherings of schools are also held here.
Literature:
Karad has a tradition of literature lovers. The prestigious 76th Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan was held at banks of Krishna river in Karad in 2003.
Museums and historic areas:
In the honor of his contribution to building modern Maharashtra a small visiting museum is created in the residence of Late Shri Yashwantrao Chavan in Karad. An ancient Well named Naktya Rawalchi Vihir is located near Krishna river in Karad which shows the well planned construction techniques followed during the ancient times.
Vijay Divas:
“Vijya Diwas’’ is celebrated every year since 1998, as Victory Day, by Trishakti Foundation in the town of Karad. It is usually celebrated in the month of December. Col. Sambhaji Patil (Retd), the Founder President of Trishakti Foundation, is leading from the front, to ensure total success of this event. The main event is the Military tattoo at the Shivaji Stadium, Karad. It is a grand show of military valor, bravery, physical fitness and endurance by Defense Forces and Police. The school children perform tattoos demonstrating their potential, spirit and youthfulness. The stadium is full to its capacity of more than 40,000 spectators.
Yashwantrao Chavan Agricultural Industrial Cattle show:
The late Yashwantrao Chavan Agricultural Industrial Cattle Show is mega regional Agricultural event of global standards held at Karad, Maharashtra by Krishi Uttpanna Bajar Samiti Karad since 2001. The event of around 500 exhibitors provides an excellent platform under one roof for showcasing the latest technology in agriculture, poultry and livestock, dairy, agro services and food processing and technology etc.
Tourism:
Some famous tourist points near Karad are:
Preeti Sangam (Confluence of Koyna & Krishna River)
Krishna Mai Temple
Late Yashwantrao Chavan's Samadhi.
Koyna Dam 65 km
Chandoli Dam 55 km west
Uttarmand Dam 38 km
Sadashivgad
Agashiv Caves
Naktya Rawalchi Vihir (Ancient Well)
Masjid Built by Sultan Ali Adilshah (1557- 1580)
Ram Mandir Chaphal 35 km
Talbid (Ram Mandir and Vasant fort) 12 km
Sagareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary
Valmiki Temple & Big Wild Area(45 km from Dhebevadi Fata)
Pachawadeswar(Narayanwadi)8 km
Kaas plateau 75 km
Thoseghar Waterfall 75 km
Walmiki 45 km
Sports:
The Shivaji Cricket Stadium is situated at the heart of Karad city and is a famous sightseeing spot visited by tourists. The cricket stadium has an international standard turf wicket. Apart from cricket, this stadium is used for organizing local events and political rallies. This stadium is renowned for holding two Ranji Trophy matches. It also has an indoor badminton court.
Notable people:
Yashwantrao Chavan (12 March 1913 – 25 November 1984), an eminent Congress party politician, hailed from Karad. He was the first Chief Minister of Maharashtra and also served as the defence minister, finance minister, home minister, foreign affairs minister, and as the Deputy Prime Minister of India and became the first and only person from Maharashtra to reach up to this political level. Tembhu, one of the mega-projects under the Krishna Valley scheme, is situated near Karad.
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar (1856–1895) Village Tembhu near Karad is the birthplace of Agarkar. Agarkar was a social reformer from Maharashtra, India during the British rule. He was the first editor of Kesari, a well-known Marathi weekly at that time. He left Kesari after ideological differences with Lokmanya Tilak and started his own periodical named Sudharak. The difference of opinion was about the primacy of political reforms versus social reforms. Agarkar, Tilak and Vishnu Shastri Chiplunkar were the founder members of 'Deccan Education Society'.
Khashaba Jadhav (15 January 1926 – 14 August 1984) Born in a very poor farming family at Goleshwar Tal. Karad, the only Olympic Medal Winner for India until 2000. He was honored by individual Bronze medal on 23 July 1952, in the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games for wrestling in bantamweight, which is the unbeaten record for India in wrestling until today.
In 1993, Maharashtra State awarded him the Shiv Chatrapati Award posthumously. In 2001, the Central Government also awarded him the Arjuna Award posthumously.
Govind Ballabh Pant - He was a veteran Indian freedom fighter and politician who alongside Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru was a key figure in the movement for India's independence and subsequently was a pivotal figure in the independent Indian Government. He was one of the foremost political leaders from Uttarakhand (then in United Provinces) and of the movement to establish Hindi as the official language of India. Mr. Pant received India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 1957. His family have their roots in Karad.
Prithviraj Chavan: He was the 17th Chief Minister of Maharashtra. Chavan served as the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions. Chavan was also General Secretary of the All-India Congress Committee (AICC), in-charge of many states, including Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Haryana, Gujarat, Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh.
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