Dharwad

Dharwad District is an administrative district of the state of Karnataka in southern India. Dharwad is the cultural headquarters of North Karnataka.

The administrative headquarters of the district is the town of Dharwad. Dharwad, also known as Dharwar. Dharwad is famous for its Dharwad Peda – a milk based sweetmeat. Dharwad is the administrative seat of the district of the same name. The municipality (resulting from a merger with neighbouring Hubli in 1961) covers 191 km². Dharwad is located 425 km northwest of Bangalore and 421 km south of Pune, on the main highway between Bangalore and Pune in Maharashtra. KREIS North Unit of National Projects Construction Corporation has its headquarters here. Karnataka High Court circuit Bench is also based here.

History :

The word "Dharwad" means a place of rest in a long travel or a small habitation. For centuries, Dharwad acted as a gateway between the Malenadu region and the plains, and it became a resting place for travellers. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word 'dwarawata', 'dwara' meaning "door" and 'wata' or 'wada'meaning "town".

Another theory is that during the Vijayanagara rule of Dharwad there was a ruler by name "of Dharav" (1403), and Dharwad got its name from him. There are some inscriptions that refer to Dharwad as Kampana Sthana.

The Chalukyas ruled Dharwad during the 12th century. A stone inscription indicates that there was a ruler by the name of BhaskaraDeva in 1117.

In the 14th century, the district was first overrun by the Bahmani Sultanate, after which it was annexed to the newly established Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar, an official of which named Dhar Rao, according to local tradition, built the fort at Dharwad town in 1403.

After the defeat of the king of Vijayanagar at Talikot (1565), Dharwad was for a few years practically independent under its Hindu governor; but in 1573 the fort was captured by the sultan of Bijapur, Adil Shah, and Dharwad was annexed to his dominions.

In 1685, the fort was taken by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, and Dharwad, on the break-up of the Mughal empire, fell under the sway of the Maratha Peshwa of Pune. In 1764, the province was overrun by Hyder Ali of the Mysore, who in 1778 captured the fort of Dharwad. The fort was retaken in 1791 by the Marathas.

After the final defeat of the Peshwa by the British in 1818, Dharwar was incorporated into the territory of the British East India Company's Bombay Presidency.

After India's independence in 1947, the Bombay Presidency was reconstituted as India's Bombay State. In 1956 the southern, Kannada-speaking districts of Bombay State, including Dharwad, were added to Mysore and renamed Karnataka in 1972.

Dharwad district devided into 5 talukas : Dharwad, Hubli, Kalghatgi, Navalgund and Kundgo

Dharwad is a major city in the state of Karnataka of India.  The twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad, collectively referred to as "Hubli-Dharwad", is the second-largest conurbation in Karnataka after Bangalore.Dharwad is the administrative headquarters.

Hubli also called Hubballi, is a major city in the state of Karnataka of India. The name Hubballi literally means "flowering creeper" in Kannada. the city of Hubli, situated about 20 km south-east of Dharwad, is the commercial centre and business hub of North Karnataka. Crops like cotton and peanuts are grown aplenty in the surrounding rural areas, and Hubli is a major trading center for both commodities. It is also an important city for the Indian Railways, being the headquarters for South Western Railway Zone and the Hubli Railway Division.

Rayara Hubli, also called 'Eleya Purvada Halli' or 'Purballi' was the old Hubli, where there is a Bhavani Shankara temple and Jaina basti. Under Vijayanagara Rayas, Rayara Hubli grew as a commercial centre, famous for trade in cotton, saltpetre and iron.

The British opened a factory here when it came under the Adilshahis. Shivaji looted the factory in 1673. The Mughals conquered it and the place came under the Savanur Nawab who built a new extension named Majidpura and trader Basappa Shetty built new Hubli around the Durgadabail (fort maiden).

There is the famous Moorusavira Matha, and the Matha authorities claim that it was begun by a Sharana of Basaveshwara's period.

Hubli was conquered by the Marathas from the Savanur Nawab in 1755-56. Later Hyder Ali conquered it, but it was recaptured by the Marathas in 1790, and the old town was administered by one Phadke under the Peshwa and the new town by Sangli Patwardhan.

The British took old Hubli in 1817 and the new town with 47 other villages was handed over to the British by the Sangli Patwardhan in lieu of the subsidy in 1820. Hubli is a prosperous handloom weaving centre and has a textile unit.

Kalaghatagi also known as Kalghatgi is a panchayat town in Dharwad district in the Indian state of Karnataka.Gram devi jatra is famous in kalaghatagi.Benni family is one of the oldest families in kalaghatagi. Currently there are around 100 members in benni family.and it is the most oldest family in Kalghatagi.

Navalgund is a panchayat town in Dharwad district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Navalagunda or Navilagunda means hill of peacocks. Navalagundais famous for Navalagunda durries. Navalagunda durries hsa been accorded Geographical Indication (GI) tag. Its GI tag number is 51.It is situated 35 km from Hubli.

Kundgolalso spelled as Kundagol is a panchayat town in Dharwad district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Kundgol is Located in Dharwad District of Karnataka is about 14 km south-west of Hubli and 32 km south-west of Dharwad. This town is the birth place of Rambhau Kundgolkar (popular as Pandit Sawai Gandharva), a well known Hindustani musician. Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi were his disciples. Kundagol also comes under the core area of Western Chalukya Empire. The existence of 11th century Shri Shabhulingeshwara temple supports this claim. Prior to 1948, Kundgol was a non-contiguous part of the princely state of Jamkhandi.