Ponda (; pt, Pondá), also known as ''Fondya'', is a city and a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

in the north Goa district of

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Located in the central area of Goa, Ponda lies 28 km (17 miles) southeast of

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

, the capital of Goa and 17 km (10.6 miles) northeast of

Margao Margao or Madgaon is the commercial capital of the Indian state of Goa. It stands on banks of the Sal river and is the administrative headquarters of Salcete sub-district and South Goa district. It is Goa's second largest city by population ...

, the district headquarters. Ponda is also known as "Antruz Mahal" because of the presence of numerous famous temples and rich cultural heritage.

Geography

Ponda is located at . It has an average elevation of . Ponda lies along the National Highway 4A, which connects

to Belgaum in the neighboring state of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

Demographics

According to the

2011 census of India 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 ...

, Ponda had a

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 22,664. Males constituted 51.8% of the population and females 48.2%. Ponda had an average literacy rate of 85.2%, higher than the national average of 74.0%, with male literacy at 86.7% and female literacy at 83.5%. In Ponda, 9.9% of the population was under 6 years of age.

Religion

Hinduism

There are many Hindu temples in and around Ponda. The Temples of Shri Manguesh (Shiva), Shri Nagesh, Shri Ganapati, Shri Ramnath and the Goddesses Shri Shantadurga, Shri Mahalasa, Shri Mahalaxmi are all located nearby.Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - Ponda
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Christianity

St. Anne Church, Ponda, Goa is called ‘Santa Ana Igreja em Ponda, Goa’ in Portuguese. The St. Anne Church, Ponda, Goa is popularly called ‘The Ponda Church’ locally in Goa. The original Church of Ponda, dedicated to St. Anne and St Anthony, was founded in 1700. Ponda was then a mission station administered by the Jesuits. The present Ponda Church was built later. The parish of Ponda was entrusted to the pastoral care of members of the Order of Franciscans Minor in 1957. The present parochial residence of the Ponda Church was built in 1967 and the church sanctuary was enlarged and remodeled in 1987. Chapel (with Chaplain) in the Parish of St. Anne Church, Ponda, Goa Our Lady of Mount Carmel Chapel, Ponda, Goa Chapels (without chaplains) in the Parish of St. Anne Church, Ponda, Goa St. Sebastian Chapel, Durbhat, Ponda, Goa St. Rock chapel , Bandora, Ponda, Goa St. Anthony chapel, Khandepar, Ponda, Goa

Islam

The historic Safa Masjid is a mosque built in 1560 by the Bijapur ruler

Ibrahim Adil Shah I Ibrahim Adil Shah I ( fa, ; 1534–1558) was a Sultan and later Shah of the Indian kingdom of Bijapur. He succeeded his elder brother, Mallu Adil Shah, through the machinations of the Afaqi faction at the court. He was the first Adil Shahi ru ...

about 2 km from the center of Ponda. It is one of two sixteenth-century Islamic monuments in Goa that survived the

Portuguese Inquisition The Portuguese Inquisition ( Portuguese: ''Inquisição Portuguesa''), officially known as the General Council of the Holy Office of the Inquisition in Portugal, was formally established in Portugal in 1536 at the request of its king, John III. ...

Jainism

The

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

Bandivade in Ponda was established by King Sripala. He also built a Jain temple of Neminatha in Ponda.

Government and politics

Ponda is part of

Ponda (Goa Assembly constituency) Ponda Assembly constituency is one of the 40 Goa Legislative Assembly constituencies of the state of Goa in southern India. Ponda is also one of the 20 constituencies falling under the South Goa Lok Sabha constituency. Members of Legislative ...

and

South Goa (Lok Sabha constituency) South Goa Lok Sabha constituency (Mormugao prior to 2008) is one of two Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Goa in western India along with North Goa. Assembly segments Presently, South Goa Lok Sabha constituency comprises 20 Vidhan S ...

Transport

Ponda is connected by road to the capital of Goa

, to the main railway junction of

and to the International Airport at

Dabolim Dabolim is a village, with a total population of around 6700, in Mormugão, Goa, India. It is located about 30 km from the state capital Panjim, 23 km from the South Goa district headquarters Margão and 5 kilometres from Vas ...

. Regularly scheduled bus services to Panaji(Panjim),

and Vasco (near

) depart from the

Kadamba Transport Corporation Kadamba Transport Corporation ( Konkani: कदंब येरादारी म्हामंडळ) abbreviated as KTC is a Government of Goa road transport undertaking. It was set up in 1980 by then Chief Minister Pratapsingh Rane. Goa has ...

bus stand on the outskirts of the town. Buses to nearby villages and towns, as well as interstate buses, also depart from the same bus stand. There are buses regularly between Ponda and

Dharwad Dharwad (), also known as Dharwar, is a city located in the north western part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Dharwad district of Karnataka and forms a contiguous urban area with the city of Hubballi. It was merge ...

Hubballi Hubli, officially known as Hubballi, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin cities Hubli–Dharwad form the second largest city in the state by area and population and the largest city in North Karnataka. Hubli is in Dharwad distr ...

and Belagavi run by the

and the

Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation - (Karnataka SRTC), is a state-owned public road transport corporation in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is wholly owned by the Government of Karnataka. It serves routes to towns and cities in ...

. The National Highway 566 connects Ponda to Vasco via Verna. The National Highway 4A connects to Belgaum/

Hubli Hubli, officially known as Hubballi, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin cities Hubli–Dharwad form the second largest city in the state by area and population and the largest city in North Karnataka. Hubli is in Dharwad distr ...

and Panaji(Panjim).

References

External links

National Institute of Construction Management and Research

{{Authority control Cities and towns in North Goa district