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Kolar or Kolara is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Kolar district. The city is known for its milk production and gold mines. It is also known for
Someshwara temple Someshwara Somanatha Temple is situated on the banks of Arabian Sea at the Western Ghats of South India away from Mangalore. The temple is known as Rudrapada Kshetra, and is also a pilgrimage centre for performing Pitrakrayas (last rituals of d ...
and Kolaramma temple.


History

The
Western Gangas Western Ganga was an important ruling dynasty of ancient Karnataka in India which lasted from about 350 to 1000 CE. They are known as "Western Gangas" to distinguish them from the Eastern Gangas who in later centuries ruled over Kalinga (mo ...
sovereignty lasted from about 350 to 550 CE, initially ruled from Kolar as their Capital City. The founder of the Western Ganga dynasty was Konganivarman Madhava, who built Kolar as his capital around 350 and ruled for about twenty years. He was succeeded by his son Madhava I. Kolar, the headquarters of the Kolar district, was earlier known as Kuvalalapura, also known as Kolahala Pura. Historically, Kolar is said to be associated with the epic age, which recalls many legends associated with Avani in Mulbagal Taluk, which was also called Avani Kshetra. It was once known as Avantika - Kshetra, a sacred place in Kolar district in Karnataka State. It was famous for its religious establishments from ancient times. It was once known as Aavanya which was under the Ganga prince Madhava Muttarasa, who governed several districts. In about AD 890, its earliest grant relates that Tribhuvana Kartara Deva, who held the title of Kali Yuga Rudra, ruled over the Avaniya Thana for 40 years. During this period he constructed 50 temples and two large tanks. Maharshi Valmiki, the author of the epic Ramayana, lived here. The legend goes further to establish that Seetha Devi, after being sent to exile, gave birth to her twins Lava and Kusha at Avani. The Avani continued to survive as a religious establishment from the 9th to 11th centuries. There are temples dedicated to Lord Rama. The hill to the west of Kolar called the ''Shatasringa Parvata'' or 'Hundred-Peaked Mountain' is 'Antharagange', associated with the story of Parasurama and his fight with King Kartaviryarjuna over Surabhi, the divine cow. As the story goes, King Kartavirya Arjuna (Sahasrarjuna) and his army visited Jamadagni, Parasurama's father, when the king demanded the magical cow from Jamadagni. When Jamadagni refused, the King sent his soldiers to take the cow, but Parashurama killed the entire army and the king with his axe. In return, the princes beheaded Jamadagni. Thus, Parasurama took an oath to behead the entire Kshatriya race, which is said to have taken place on the hills. It is said that the 'kolahala' on the death of Kartaviryarjuna gave its name to the town, which later become Kolar. Kannada and tamil (tamils worked in Gold mines) languages are widely spoken. Gangas built the temple of Sri Uttameshwara temple in ''
Uttanur Uthanur or Uttanur is a village located in Mulbagal Tehsil of Kolar district in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about 85 km east of the state capital, Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the ...
'' Mulbagal Taluk. Antaragange is one of the tourist attractions Of Kolar. It is also known as "Dakshina Kashi Kshetra". In the temple is a pond which gets a continuous flow of underground water from the mouth of a Basava (stone bull).


Geography

Kolar is located at . with an average elevation of . It is located at a distance of about from
Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
, from Kempegowda International Airport, from
Hogenakkal waterfalls Hogenakkal Falls (' ஒகேனக்கல் அருவி', ' ಹೊಗೇನಕಲ್ ಜಲಪಾತ') is a waterfall in South India on the Kaveri river on the border between Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu and Chamrajnagar district o ...
& from Kolar Gold Fields. The city is located on the southern ''maidan'' (plains) region of Karnataka. The Ammerallikere, a tank, forms its eastern boundary. To the north is the Kodikannur tank, the main source of water supply to the city. The nearest railway junction is
Bangarapet Junction railway station Bangarapet Junction railway station, also known as Bangarapete Junction railway station History Madras Cantonment to Jolarpettai as a branch on the newly constructed Chennai–Beypur line in 1864. The station was then known by the name as Kola ...
. Kolar is having good road transportation than, Rail amenities. It is situated on the
Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
- Chennai National Highway-75. Kolar is also The gateway for Tirumala and Chennai via
National Highway 75 The following highways are numbered 75: International * Asian Highway 75 * European route E75 Afghanistan * Kandahar-Boldak Highway (A75) Australia * Cobb Highway, NSW * Northern Highway, Victoria Brazil * SP-75 Canada * Manitoba Highway ...


Demographics

2011 census, Kolar city municipality had a population of 138,462 and has 30,506 households. The population of scheduled castes in the city is 16,536, while that of
scheduled tribes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
is 2094. The city has grown at the rate of 21.56% in the last decade. The municipality had a sex ratio of 978 females per 1,000 males and 11.5% of the population were under six years old. Effective literacy was 84.02%; male literacy was 87.28% and female literacy was 80.69%.


Governance and politics

Kolar city is governed by Kolar City Municipal Council. The municipality covers an area of 18.3 square km and is divided into 35 wards, each represented by a councillor. It is headed by the Municipal Commissioner, R. Srikanth. The president is the elected head, currently incumbent B.M. Mubarak. The executive wing has 8 departments: Engineering, Health, Revenue, Town planning, Finance, Birth and death, Election and Day-NULM. The city is represented by Member of Parliament elected from the
Kolar Lok Sabha constituency Kolar Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies in Karnataka. This constituency is reserved for the Scheduled Castes. Jurisdiction The places under Kolar ( ಕೋಲಾರ / कोलार ) Lok Sabha Constituency : 19 ...
is Muniswamy of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Srinivas Gowda is the MLA elected from the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.


Civic utilities

The masterplan of the city is developed by the Urban Development Department, State of Karnataka. Kodikannur tank in the north of the city is its main source of water supply. The city has a shortage of drinking water, being an area with a 'permanent drought', and pipes being over 35 years old. Water is also supplied from four borewells at Maderahalli tank, and five more borewells that were revived in April 2020. According to the city municipality's website, the city receives a total of 56.20 MLD water, at 125 LPCD per capita. The city has both open and closed drains. Kolar receives wastewater from Bengaluru as part of the KC project, which was expected to increase groundwater levels but has received criticism when it started contaminating the area. In 2017, it was reported that non-clearance of garbage by the municipal council had caused unhygienic conditions in the city.


Tourist attractions


Transportation

Kolar has transportation amenities such as Buses, Taxis, and Auto Rickshaws. Kolar also has a local transportation facility " Antaragange Kolara Nagara Sarige" which was inaugurated in July 2012 but Govt has stopped this services and utilising these buses for rural areas.


Railways

The district headquarters has a railway station connecting two destinations: 1.
Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
- Via
Bangarapet Junction railway station Bangarapet Junction railway station, also known as Bangarapete Junction railway station History Madras Cantonment to Jolarpettai as a branch on the newly constructed Chennai–Beypur line in 1864. The station was then known by the name as Kola ...
The nearest junction to Kolar is
Bangarapet Junction railway station Bangarapet Junction railway station, also known as Bangarapete Junction railway station History Madras Cantonment to Jolarpettai as a branch on the newly constructed Chennai–Beypur line in 1864. The station was then known by the name as Kola ...
. It is the first railway junction in Karnataka on
Chennai Central– Bengaluru City line Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Tamil Nadu, the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and territories of India, Indian state. The largest city ...
2.
Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
- Via Srinivaspura, Chinthamani, Sidlaghatta, Chikkaballapura, Devanahalli, Yelahanka


Educational institutes

*
Bengaluru North University Bengaluru North University (BNU) is a state university located in Tamaka, near NH 75 in Kolar, Karnataka, India. The university was established in 2017 by the Government of Karnataka through the ''Karnataka State Universities (Amendment) Ac ...
, Sri Devaraj Urs Extension, NH 75, Tamaka, Kolar-563103. * Sri Devaraj Urs Medical College (SDUMC) - Next to Horticulture college, NH 75, Tamaka, Kolar-563103.


Notable people

*
M. Visvesvaraya Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (15 September 1861 – 12/14 April 1962), also referred to by his initials, MV, was an Indian civil engineer, administrator, and statesman, who served as the 19th Diwan of Mysore from 1912 to 1918. Visvesvaraya ...
– Celebrated Indian Engineer and Statesman, also known as "Father of Indian Engineering" and "The architect of modern Karnataka". *
D. V. Gundappa Devanahalli Venkataramanaiah Gundappa (17 March 1887 – 7 October 1975), popularly known as DVG, was an Indian writer, poet and philosopher in Kannada-language. He is one of the stalwarts of modern Kannada literature. His most notable work is th ...
– was an Indian writer, Kannada poet and philosopher . * Masti Venkatesha Iyengar – Kannada poet and recipient of Jnanpith Award *
B. K. S. Iyengar Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar (14 December 1918 – 20 August 2014) was an Indian teacher of yoga and author. He is founder of the style of yoga as exercise, known as " Iyengar Yoga", and was considered one of the foremost yoga guru ...
- Founder of the style of yoga as exercise known as " Iyengar Yoga", considered one of the foremost yoga gurus in the world. *
N. R. Narayana Murthy Nāgavārā Rāmarāo Nārāyana Mūrthy (born 21 August 1946) is an Indian billionaire businessman. He is the founder of Infosys, and has been the chairman, chief executive officer (CEO), president, and chief mentor of the company before ret ...
- is an Indian
billionaire A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least one billion (1,000,000,000, i.e., a thousand million) units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. The American busin ...
businessman and the founder of Infosys. *
K. C. Reddy Kyasamballi Chengaluraya Reddy (4 May 1902 – 27 February 1976) was the first Chief Minister of Mysore State (Now Karnataka). Reddy later served as the Governor of Madhya Pradesh. Early life K.C. Reddy was born on 4 May 1902 into a Vokkaliga f ...
– First Chief Minister of Karnataka, (then Mysore State) * Hyder Ali – Ruler of Mysore Kingdom, Father of
Tippu Sultan Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...
. * Prashanth Neel- Renowned Indian Movie Director of K.G.F: Chapter 1 and K.G.F: Chapter 2 fame. *
A. N. Prahlada Rao A. N. Prahlada Rao (born 24 July 1953) is an Indian author and Kannada-language crossword compiler/ Constructor. Career A. N. Prahlada Rao was born at Abbani in the Kolar district of Karnataka, India. He started his career as a journalist and was ...
highest Crossword writer in India. *
K. H. Muniyappa Kambadahalli Hanumappa Muniyappa (born 7 March 1948) is an Indian politician who was the Minister of State for Independent charge of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises of India and a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha representing Kolar L ...
– is an Indian Politician.He is a member of the Indian National Congress (INC) political party. *
Mallikarjuna Reddy Mallikarjuna Reddy (born 24 August 1981) is a miniature sculptor, Guinness World Record Holder, and the creator of the world's smallest monolithic sculptures. He constructed 18 sculptures on a single rice grain, without using magnification lens ...
– Guinness World Record holder, Micro Artist , Miniature artist. *
S. Muniswamy Sadappa Muniswamy (b 1975) is an Indian politician, a member of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He was elected to the Lok Sabha, lower house of the Parliament of India, from Kolar in Karnataka in 2019 as a BJP candidate after causing massive upse ...
- is an Indian politician, a member of
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the List of ruling p ...
and MP of Kolar.


References


External links


City Official Website
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Kolar district Cities in Karnataka