Yavatmal ( is a city and municipal council in the Indian state of

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

. It is the administrative headquarters of Yavatmal District. Yavatmal is around 90 km away from divisional headquarters Amravati while it is away from the state capital Mumbai. The name is derived from the

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

''Yavat'' (mountain) and ''mal'' (row). Another theory is as the city is located on a plateau, which is comparatively higher altitude than its other tehsils.

History

Formerly known as "Yeoti" or "Yeotmal", Yavatmal was the main town of the Berar Sultanate and according to old writings "the safest place in the world". The then region of Yavatmal (now Yavatmal district), was part of the dominion of

Aladdin Hassan Bahman Shah Ala-ud-Din Hasan Bahman Shah (; died 10 February 1358) whose original name was Zafar Khan, was the founder of the Bahmani Sultanate. His original name was Zafar Khan titled with "Alauddin Bahman Shah Sultan – Founder of the Bahmani Dynasty" ...

who founded the

Bahmani Sultanate The Bahmani Sultanate, or Deccan, was a Persianate Sunni Muslim Indian Kingdom located in the Deccan region. It was the first independent Muslim kingdom of the Deccan,

in 1347. In 1572,

Murtaza Shah Murtaza or Morteza or Mortaza, a Persianate form of the Arabic Murtada or Murtadha ( ar, مرتضى, translit=Murtaḍā, lit=One Pleasing to God, label=none), is a common Muslim name. Pronunciation varies with accent, from native Arabic speakers ...

, ruler of the

Ahmadnagar Sultanate The Ahmadnagar Sultanate was a late medieval Indian Muslim kingdom located in the northwestern Deccan, between the sultanates of Gujarat and Bijapur. Malik Ahmed, the Bahmani governor of Junnar after defeating the Bahmani army led by general Ja ...

(current day Ahmadnagar District), annexed the Yavatmal district. In 1596,

Chand Bibi Sultana Chand Bibi (1550–1599 CE) was an Indian ruler and warrior. She acted as the Regent of Bijapur Sultanate during the minority of Ibrahim Adil Shah II in 1580-1590, and regent of Ahmednagar Sultanate during the minority of her great nep ...

, warrior queen of Ahmadnagar, ceded the district of Yavatmal to the Mughal Empire, then rulers of a large part of India. Following the death of the sixth Mughal Emperor

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

in 1707, Yavatmal was passed on to the Maratha Empire. When

Raghoji I Bhonsle Raghoji Bhonsle or Raghoji I Bhonsale or Raghuji the Great (1695 – February 1755) of the Bhonsale dynasty, was a Maratha general who took control of the Nagpur Kingdom in east-central India during the reign of Shahu I. His successors ...

became ruler of the Nagpur kingdom in 1783, he included the Yavatmal district in his territory. After the British East India Company created

Berar Province Berar Province, also known as the Hyderabad Assigned Districts, was a province in British India, ruled by the Nizam of Hyderabad. After 1853, it was administered by the British, although the Nizam retained formal sovereignty over the provin ...

in 1853, Yavatmal became part of East Berar District in 1863 and later part of the South East Berar district—both districts of the

Central Provinces and Berar The Central Provinces and Berar was a province of British India and later the Dominion of India which existed from 1903 to 1950. It was formed by the merger of the Central Provinces with the province of Berar, which was territory leased by the B ...

. Yavatmal remained part of Madhya Pradesh until the 1956 reorganization of states when it was transferred to the

Bombay State Bombay State was a large Indian state created at the time of India's Independence, with other regions being added to it in the succeeding years. Bombay Presidency (roughly equating to the present-day Indian state of Maharashtra, excluding Sou ...

. With the creation of the Maharashtra state on 1 May 1960, Yavatmal district became a part of the same. Yavatmal Municipal Council was constituted in 1869 but was dissolved shortly thereafter. It was established again in 1894 and thus forms the oldest municipal council in the district. Mr. Eliot was first mayor and Lieutenant, W. Hege was deputy mayor. Govind Punaji Bari was the first Indian president of the Yavatmal Municipal council (02-Jan-1914 to 31 May 1932). The first elections conducted for the position of president of municipal council were held on 22 December 1934. Prior to that the same was appointed. The mini-train called ''Shakuntala'' is a historic remark built by the British government to transport cotton which is now closed.

Demographics

As of

2011 Indian Census The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...

, Yavatmal had a total population of 116,551, of which 58,549 were males and 58,002 were females. The population within the age group of 0 to 6 years was 11,360. The total number of literates in Yavatmal was 96,726, which constituted 82.9% of the population with male literacy of 85.1% and female literacy of 80.9%. The effective literacy rate of 7+ population of Yavatmal was 91.9%, of which the male literacy rate was 94.8% and the female literacy rate was 89.1%. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes population was 19,816 and 6,543 respectively. Yavatmal had 26173 households in 2011.wadgaon;lohara,umarsara,bhosa,waghapur,pimpalgaon,moha,& yavatmal rural population 1,65000 + 1,16000 =2,81000/

Language

The principal language of the Yavatmal district is

however Varhadi dialect of

majorly spoken by people of Yavatmal. However, since the district has numerous Scheduled and Nomadic Tribes, other languages such as Gormati or Banjari, Gondi, Urdu,

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

and Kolami are also spoken in parts of the district. In 1973, the '' Marathi Sahitya Sammelan'' (Marathi Literature Conference) was hosted in the city for the first time which was presided over by Gajanan Digambar Madgulkar. The second time, it was hosted on 11 January 2019 chaired by Vaishali Yende, widow of a suicide victim farmer, to highlight the issue of farmer suicides in the area.

Culture

Yavatmal is known for its unique Navratri festival celebration, the whole city is known for organizing huge celebration events for Navratri. Festivals like Gudi Padwa,

Diwali Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is ...

, Dussehra, Christmas, Easter Sunday and almost all

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

occasions are celebrated. The district is also home to a Buddhist community.

Climate

This city has a tropical climate. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is Aw. In Yavatmal, the average annual temperature is 26.8 °C. The rainfall here averages 946 mm.

Economy

During British rule, Yavatmal city was classified as a

hill station A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia (particularly in India), but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges ...

. Both cotton-ginning and pressing are carried on in Yavatmal, while the town is also the chief trading center in the district and connected by road with Dhamangaon station, away. Major business establishments in Yavatmal include the Raymond UCO mill that produces denim fabrics for jeans. There are establishments related to the cotton, and textile industries. There is a textile Special Economic Zone (SEZ) under construction while HLL Unilever has also decided to restart the plant they currently have in the city. Other local businesses in the town are dominated by the presence of

agricultural supply Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit ...

facilities used by the nearby farming community. Banking services are available in the Yavatmal, Arni, Ner, Pusad,

Digras Digras is a city and a municipal council in the Yavatmal district located in the state of Maharashtra, India. Digras is 638 km from state capital Mumbai and 221 km from winter capital Nagpur. Places of Interest Mallikarjun Temple Ghanti Ba ...

, Ghatanji and Kelapur(Pandharkawada) and Wani areas. The major industrial centres are at: MIDC Lohara, Darwha, Digras, Pusad, Umerkhed, Wani, Umari, Kelapur ,

Ralegaon Ralegaon is Tehsil place town in Yavatmal District of Maharashtra (India). It is located in Vidarbha region of Maharashra. Geographically it is located northwest from Yavatmal. It is located 42 km away from Yavatmal and 21 km away f ...

and

Babhulgaon Babhulgaon is a village and tehsil in Sengaon subdivision of Hingoli district in the state of Maharashtra, India. Demographics India census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about th ...

, Ner, and Wani-Maregaon with the main market places in: Yavatmal City, Arni, Wani, Darwha, Digras, Ghatanji, Mohada, Pusad, Umerkhed and Kelapur.

Transport

Roads

*New Shaktipith Expressway will pass through Yavatmal city and disctrict Nagpur-Yavatmal-Goa Express * The National Highway NH 44 (Varanasi–Kanyakumari) passes through the district at Vadki, Karanji, Pandharkawada, Patanbori, and Kelapur. * New National Highway is been proposed from Khandwa(MP)- Dharni- Amravati-Yavatmal- Karanji on NH 44. * The state highway (Amravati–Chandrapur) passes through Ner, Yavatmal, Jodmoha, Mohada, Umari, Karanji and Wani. * The (Nagpur–Tuljapur) National highway 361 passes through Kalamb, Yavatmal, Arni, and

Umarkhed Umarkhed is a Municipal council in Yavatmal district of Indian State of Maharashtra. Geography Umarkhed is located at . It has an average elevation of 416 metres (1364 feet). Umarkhed is a municipal town near the Painganga river. ...

. * Mumbai–Nagpur Expressway will directly connect to Yavatmal City with feeder roads.

Railways

* Yavatmal is the southern terminus of the

narrow gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...

known locally as the Shakuntala Railway. This line is composed of two legs intersecting with the

Broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...

Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line at Murtijapur – the northern leg to

Achalpur Achalpur, formerly known as Ellichpur and Illychpur, is a city and a municipal council in Amravati District in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the second most populous city in Amravati District after Amravati and seventh most populou ...

and the southeastern leg to Yavatmal. Darwha Station lies on this line. *Another line, Majri–Mudkhed line, passes through the district. Wani is a railway station on this line. The state cabinet has approved Wardha–

Nanded Nanded is a city in Maharashtra state, India. It is the tenth largest city in the state and the seventy-ninth most populous city in India. It is the second largest city in Marathwada region. It is the district headquarters of Nanded distric ...

rail link project. This railway line will connect Wardha–Yavatmal in

Vidarbha Vidarbha (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, �id̪əɾbʱə is a geographical region in the east of the Indian state of Maharashtra and a Proposed states and union territories of India#Maharashtra, proposed state of central India, comprising th ...

with

in Marathwada. * India's First broad-gauge Metro will run From Nagpur to Yavatmal on Nagpur- Wardha, Wardha-Yavatmal-

line. *SURVEY REPORTS SUBMITTED TO BOARD for approval for new broad gauge line between Yavatmal- Adilabad Via Ghatanji,

Pandharkawada Kelapur (also called as Pandharkawda) is a census town, tehsil and subdivision of Yavatmal district in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is located on Srinagar - Nagpur - Hyderabad - Bangalore - Kanyakumari National Highway 44. It is fam ...

, Chankha *

Airport

International

* Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, Nagpur is 150 km away From Yavatmal City.

Regional

* Yavatmal airport is located east of the city of Yavatmal and has been taken up by Reliance Airport Developers Ltd for development.

Education

Prominent educational institutes: * Shri Vasantrao Naik Government Medical College *Technical: Government College of Engineering, Government Polytechnic, Government Residential Women's Polytechnic, Jawaharlal Darda Engineering and Technical Institute (private), Jagdamba College of Engineering, *Other: Amolakchand Mahavidyalaya (Science, Arts and Commerce), Babaji Datey Kala & Vanijya Mahavidyalaya (Arts and Commerce College), St. Aloysius English School

Notable people

* Keshav Baliram Hedgewar,Founding Sarsanghachalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh *

Aajibai Banarase Aajibai Banarase (1910 – 3 December 1983), born Radhabai Dahake, was an Indian community leader in London. ("Ajibai" is not a personal name, but an address of familiar respect by which she was generally known; she was also called "Londonchya A ...

, community leader and president of Maharashtra Mandal London. *

Vijay Darda Vijay Jawaharlal Darda (born 14 May 1950, Yavatmal) is a politician from Indian National Congress party, and a Member of the Parliament of India representing Maharashtra in the Rajya Sabha since 1998, having been elected for three consecutive t ...

, former MP ( Rajya Sabha), Chairman Lokmat media Pvt. Ltd * Jambuwantrao Dhote, politician and founder of

Vidarbha Janata Congress {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 Vidarbha Janata Congress (Vidarbha Peoples Congress) is a political party in the Indian state of Maharashtra. VJC was launched on 9 September 2002 by a former Member of Parliament Jambuwantrao Dhote. The party w ...

* Nachiket Mor, banker and National Director for Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. *

Sudhakarrao Naik Sudhakarrao Rajusing Naik (21 August 1934 – 10 May 2001) was an Indian politician from Indian National Congress party who served as Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 25 June 1991 until 22 February 1993 following the communal riots. He had ...

, former Chief Minister of Maharashtra. * Vasantrao Naik, former Chief Minister of Maharashtra. *

Sanjay Rathod Sanjay Dulichand Rathod is a Shiv Sena politician from Yavatmal district, Maharashtra. He is a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from Digras-Darwha Assembly Constituency.Rathod belongs to the Banjara community. He won 2014 assembl ...

, former Guardian minister Yavatmal *

Manikrao Thakre Manikrao Govindrao Thakare (born 22 August 1954) is an Indian politician from the state of Maharashtra. He is a senior leader of Indian National Congress & He is the most trustworthy OBC leader in Maharashtra. He was previously a member of the M ...

, former President Maharashtra State Congress Committee * Madan Madhukarrao Yerawar, former Guardian minister Yavatmal *

Wasudev Waman Patankar Wasudev Waman Patankar (Marathi: वासुदेव वामन पाटणकर; 29 December 1908 – 20 June 1997), popularly known by the name Bhausaheb Patankar (Marathi: भाऊसाहेब पाटणकर), was a prominent M ...

, Marathi poet and advocate (1908–1997) *

Akash Chikte Akash Anil Chikte (born 24 July 1992) is an Indian field hockey player who plays as a goalkeeper. He was part of the Indian squad that won the gold medal at the 2016 Asian Men's Hockey Champions Trophy The 2016 Men's Asian Champions Trophy was ...

, Indian field hockey player *

Suryakanta Patil Suryakanta Patil (born 15 August 1948) was a member of the 14th Lok Sabha of India. She represented the Hingoli & Nanded constituency of Maharashtra and was a member of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Later in 2014, resigned from party a ...

, Indian politician * Lalit Yadav, Vidharbha cricketer *

Alind Naidu Alind Shriniwas Naidu (born 11 October 1983 in Yavatmal, Maharashtra) is an Indian cricketer who plays for Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharas ...

, Vidharbha cricketer *

Ashok Uike Prof.(Dr).Ashok Ramaji Uike (born 1 January 1964) is an Indian politician & two term MLA. He was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from the Ralegaon constituency in the 2014 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election as a member o ...

, Former Minister of Tribal Development * Vasant Purke, Politician and former Minister of Education *

Jawaharlal Darda Jawaharlal Amolakchand Darda (2 July 1923 – 25 November 1997), known popularly as Babuji, was an Indian freedom fighter and a senior Indian National Congress politician. He was the founding editor of Lokmat group of newspapers (now Lokmat Med ...

, Freedom Fighter * Madhav Shrihari Aney(

Loknayak Bapuji Aney Dr. Madhav Shrihari Aney (29 August, 1880 – 26 January, 1968);Sen S.N. (1997). ''History of the Freedom Movement in India (1857–1947)'' New Delhi: New Age. p. 354. popularly referred to as Loknayak Bapuji Aney or Bapuji Aney, was an ardent ...

)( Padma Vibhushan) Ardent educationist, freedom fighter, statesman, a modern Sanskrit poet and a politician *

Rajendra Darda Rajendra Jawaharlal Darda is the Editor-in-Chief of Lokmat Media Group, a well-known author and social worker. He was a three-time Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from Aurangabad, Maharashtra. He was a Cabinet Minister for Educati ...

, Politician *

Shivajirao Moghe Adv. Shivajirao Shivaramji Moghe is an Indian politician. He is the Indian National Congress Party member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly representing Arni, Yavatmal. Adv. Shivajirao Moghe is a senior from Maharashtra and is a committed ...

, Former Minister of Social Justice in Maharashtra Cabinet *

Faheem Hussain Faheem Hussain (31 July 1942 – 29 September 2009), was a Pakistani theoretical physicist and a professor of physics at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). A research scientist in the field of superstring theory at the N ...

, Pakistani physicist *

Harising Nasaru Rathod Harising Nasaru Rathod (born 4 February 1954) is a member of the 14th Lok Sabha of India. He represents the Yavatmal constituency of Maharashtra and is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a ...

, Politician

References

External links

Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of agriculture of Government of India
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Yavatmal district Talukas in Maharashtra Cities in Maharashtra Yavatmal