Hubballi

Hubballi (formerly Hubli Kannada- ಹುಬ್ಬಳ್ಳಿ)is a city in the state of Karnataka in India. It is the second-largest conurbation in Karnataka, after Bangalore. Dharwad is the administrative headquarters of Dharwad District. city is situated about 20 km south-east of Dharwad, is the commercial centre and business hub of North Karnataka. Cotton and peanuts (called groundnuts locally) are grown aplenty in the surrounding rural areas, and Hubballi is a major trading center for both commodities. Sea food from Karwar, a coastal town 165 km away, is packed and shipped from Hubli. It is also an important city for the Indian Railways, being the headquarters for South Western Railway Zone and the Hubballi Division. On the occasion of celebration of golden jubilee of formation of Karnataka state called Suvarna Karnataka, the Hubli city was named as Hubballi. The name Hubballi literally means "Hu" - flower and "Balli" - creeper in Kannada.

Demographics

The population of the twin cities is 786,000, as per 2001 census and it is estimated more than 900,000 now. Hubli-Dharwad's population increased 22.99% between 1981 and 1991, from 527,108 to 648,298, and by 21.2% between 1991 and 2001. The municipality covers 191 km². Hubli-Dharwad is located 425 km northwest of Bangalore, on the National Highway 4 between Bangalore and Pune. The City is governed by the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation , having an elected council.

Climate

The climate of the city is extremely good throughout the year and especially Dharwad is known for its salubrious climate.

The M.S.L. of Hubli is 626.97 meters and that of Dharwad is 696.97 meters. The average yearly rainfall is 838mm.

History

Reference :

Rayara Hubli, also called 'Eleya Puravada 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 Mughuls 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 maidan).

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 Haider 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.

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.

The Railway Workshop started here in 1880, made it a reckonable industrial centre.

The Bhavanishankar temple in old Hubli and the impressive Chandramauleshwara / Chaturlinga temple in Unakal are of Chalukyan times. The Siddharudhaswamy (1837-1929) Matha in Old Hubli is visited by hundreds. In addition to the impressive Moorusavira Matha, Rudrakshi Matha and Hanneradu Yattina Matha. There is Mahdi mosque at Bandiwadagase and Mastan Sofa Mosque in Old Hubli. Of the churches, the Church of Ascension (1905), Church of Holy Name (1928), St. Joseph's (1858) and the St. Andrew's (1890) are notable. Unakal has a church of the Basel Mission and there is a Gurudwara of the Sikhs in Vidyanagar. The place has Medical (Govt.), Engineering and other colleges having all educational facilities. It has Indira Gandhi Memorial Glass House and Nripatunga Park on a Hillock.

Kundgol, 15 km. south of Hubli, has the huge Shambhu Linga temple of Chalukyan times.

Hubli is an important industrial centre

Hubli is an important industrial centre, with more than 1000 allied small and medium industries already established. There are machine tools industries, electrical, steel furnitures, food products, rubber and leather industries and tanning industries. With the establishment of K.E.C, Bhoruka textile Mill, Universal Group of Industries, Microfinish Group, N.G.E.F, K.M.F, BDK Group of Industries and Murudeshwar Ceramics. It has gathered momentum in industrial development. Popular group of hotels, Kamat Group, started off in this very city. IT Park Hubli - situated in the heart of the City and is promoted by the Government of Karnataka IT Department and KEONICS acts as the modalagency for maintaining and marketing of IT Park Hubli. Inetsystems Hubli is a Web solutions provider in its infancy n thriving hard to put Hubbali on world map. Sankalp Semiconductor and Aalpha Information Systems India Pvt. Ltd. are well known companies in the field of software & semiconductor and chip design currently operational in BVB Engineering College campus. STPI-Hubli Software Technology Parks of India(Organization under the Dept of IT,Govt of India)has been operational from May 2001 and it is located in the 4th Floor of IT Park, to provide the Data communication, Industry promotion and Incubation services to IT/ITES industry.

Culture and Education

Kundgol, den for renowned Hindustani classical music singers, is a town situated about 20 km south-east of Hubballi. Panchakshri Gavai, Pandit Putturaj Gawai, Pandit Sawai Gandharva, Pandit Mallikarjun Mansoor, Pandit Basavaraj Rajguru, Pandit Kumar Gandharva, Gangubai Hangal, Pandit Arjunsa Nakod and Pandit Bhimsen Joshi are some of those exponents from this part of the region who have enriched the Hindustani music with their contributions. To continue the tradition of Guru-Shishya parampara, endorsed by such legendaries, the government will set up a Rs 5-crore centre for excellence in the field of Hindustani music — Centre for Hindustani Music — on a sprawling five-acre serene land near Unkal Lake. Greatly influenced by neighbouring educational-centre (Dharwad), the city has numerous colleges and schools in all streams providing quality education like Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) and KLE Society Belgaum's BVB College of Engineering & Technology. This is one of the oldest engineering colleges of the state, and was established in 1947. Also a center of learning, Hubli is home to many premier schools like Rotary English Medium, Lions English Medium School, Basel Mission Eng. Med. School, M.R.Sakhare School, St. Mary's, Sacred Heart Convent etc. Hubli also boasts of a Kendriya Vidyalaya No.1 which has been imparting quality education since 1965 and has been a declared a 'MODEL KENDRIYA VIDYALAYA' by KVS. KV No.1 Website

Dharwad

Dharwad, a district headquarters on the Pune-Bangalore Road, 437 km. from Bangalore is the cultural headquarters of North Karnataka. It was the home of Alur Venkatrao, the father of Karnataka Unification Movement, poet Dr. D. R. Bendre and outstanding Hindustani Vocalists Mallikarjuna Mansur. Now a part of Hubli - Dharwad Corporation, Dharwad became the district headquarters when it came under the British from the Marathas in 1818, and grew to be a centre of learning due to the English School opened in 1848, high school opened by the Basel Mission in 1868 and the Training College was initiated in 1867 which became the centre of Kannada Movement. The Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha (1890) sowed the seeds of Kannada Renaissance. Mentioned as Dharawada in a record of the 12th century of the Kalyana Chalukyas, the place came under the Sevunas, Vijayanagara, Bijapur, Mughuls, Marathas, and Haider and Tipu. The Vijayanagara rulers built a fort here which was strengthened by Bijapur rulers. Its door-frame alone remains now. The Durgadevi temple near the fort is renovated now and the Someshwara on Kalghatgi Road has a Chalukyan temple and a tank. The Mailara Linga temple at Vidyagiri is a Kalyana Chalukya monument converted into a mosque by Bijapur army but again changed as a temple by the Peshwas.

The place has many temples like Venkataramana, Nandikola Basavanna, Dattatreya, Ulavi Basavanna etc. The Murugha Matha is a centre of religious activity. The Sanskrit College is a four-storeyed building of the late 19th Century. The Karnataka University (1949), the Agricultural University (1986) and the All India Radio Station gave new life to the educational and cultural life of the city. Dharwad played a prominent part in the freedom movement. Dharwad firing in 1921 which killed three Khilafat Workers caused a stir in the country. Dharwad has churches of the Basel Mission and the Catholics.

Dharwad is the seat of learning and culture. Along with large number of Arts, Science, Commerce and Law colleges, the city also hosts Karnataka University and University of Agricultural Sciences. A Law university has been proposed near Rayapur, between the twin-cities.In the year 2008 a Circuit Bench of Karnataka High Court was established in Dharwad. Due to these educational and industrial facilities, the city attracts considerable student population. The city has serene and pleasant localities with lot of greenery. The cost of living is quite low as compared to the figures of Hubballi. These reasons facilitate the pensioners to make their home at Dharwad. Thus comes the name "Pensioners's Paradise" to the city.

Dharwad is also known to be cultural capital of Northern Karnataka. It has been home of great maestros of Hindustani classical music and schools of music.

It is a centre of learning with numerous famous high schools and colleges. To name a few, Nehru Science College, Anjuman Arts College, Sana College of Nursing & Medical Sciences, J G College of Commerce,SDM College of Engineering and Technology, SDM College of Dental Sciences, SDM College of Medical Sciences, Karnatak College - Dharwad, Kittel College, Basel Mission, St.Joseph's, Dakshina Bharata Hindi Prachar Sabha, Ayurveda Mahavidyalaya, D.V.Halbhavi School Of Art Nehru college, K.E.Board's,

It is home of many poets such as Da Ra Bendre, Chennaveer Kanavi, V K Gokak, NK etc., and artists like D.V. Halbhavi, Minajagi, Madhu Desai, Gayatri Goudar to name a few.

Dharwad is also known for Dharwad Pedha, a sweetened milk-product.

The city has an advantageous location being surrounded by a number of important historical and mythological places within a radius of about 200 km. There are important tourist and historical places such as Ghataprabha, Gokak Falls, Soundati Yellamma Temple, Kittur, Badami, Pattadkal, Aihole, Kudalasangam, Bijapur, Bagewadi, Basavakallyan on northern side, on the western and southern sides there are Dandeli, Port-town of Karwar, Gokarn, Magod falls, Ulavi, Banavasi, Jog-falls, Shimoga and Bhadravathi, Laxmeshwar and Tungabhadra Dam and on eastern side Hampi, Lakkundi and Mantralaya.

Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation

Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) was constituted in the year 1962 by combining two cities separated by a distance of 20 kilometers. This is a unique experiment in urban development history. The area of this Corporation is 181.66 km². spread over 45 revenue villages. The population of the city as per the 1991 Census was 7 lakhs. The present population is 8 lakhs.

Hubli: Under the Government of India Act of 1850, the Hubli-Municipal council was established on August 15, 1855.
Dharwad: The Dharwad Municipal Council first came into existence on 1st January 1856. The first non-official President of the Council was S.K. Rodda in 1907, and Shri S.V. Mensinkai, was nominated in the following year. But the credit of being the first elected President goes to Shri S.G. Karigudari, who took office in 1920.

Hubli is well known as a commercial as well as industrial centre, where as Dharwad is seat of learning. Popularly believed that, it is this diversity and geographical positions that the state government amalgamated the two cities. The twin-city Corporation occupies unique place in Karnataka State. After the capital city of Bangalore, this is the largest city Corporation in the State. Off late, HDMC has seen numerous positive changes. The administration has become more transparent and public-friendly. The processes have been streamlined and developmental projects have been taken up on all fronts. With all the standards and policies set, HDMC has been awarded with ISO certification.

Trade

The city is situated in the dividing line between Malenadu and planes. The Malenadu is well known for its forests and forest based industries and the other three side region are known for their agricultural products like cotton, groundnut, oilseeds manganese ore and granite stones. The value of agricultural products coming into Hubli market runs into multiple crores. The Cotton Market of Hubli is one among the five biggest markets in India.

Transportation

Hubli is well connected by road, rail and air. NWKRTC (North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation) is a state run corporation headquarted at Gokul Road, Hubli. There is excellent inter-city transportation between Hubli and Dharwad as NWKRTC and Bendre Nagara Sarige (a consortium of private bus-owners) healthily compete to cater to the large number of commuters between Hubli and Dharwad daily. Bus services from the twin-cities exist to every part of Karnataka and neighbouring states and other popular destinations. There are many private bus operators who render services for overnight travel between Hubli and Bangalore, Mangalore, Pune, Mumbai.

Several express and passenger trains ply between Hubli and Bangalore everyday. Hubli being an important railway junction has daily trains to Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Vijayawada, Mysore and weekly services to Chennai, Howrah and Thiruvanantapuram.

Air Deccan and Kingfisher Airlines provide daily flights to Belgaum, Bangalore and Mumbai. With night-landing facilities being constructed at Hubli Airport, the traffic is expected to grow.

Culture

See Main Article Notable people from Hubli Dharwad Carnatic music, also known as karnātaka sangītam is one of the two styles of Indian classical music, the other being Hindustani music. Even though the earlier writers Matanga, Sarangadeva and others also were from Karnataka, the music tradition was formally named Karnataka Sangeetha for the first time only in the 13th Century when the Vijayanagara empire was founded. Around the 12th century.

Hindustani classical music diverged from the principle which eventually came to be identified as Carnatic classical music. Karnataka is unique in the sense that it offers rich traditions in both Hindustani as well as Carnatic music. Carnatic music being prevalent in Old mysore, Hoysala Karnataka and parts of Dakshin and Uttara Kannada regions.

Hindustani music is patronized in the regions of Hubli-Dharwad, Hyderabad Karnataka, Belgaum region.

Kundgol, den for renowned Hindustani classical music singers, is a town situated about 20 km south-east of Hubli. Sawai Gandharva, Kumar Gandarva, Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi, etc. have had their birth as singers from the very place.

Tourism

Chandramouleshwara temple Unkal (Hubli-Dharwad)

A temple of chalukya times, dedicated to god Chandramouleshvara (another name of Shiva),

with impressive architecture can be seen in Hubli.

Bhavanishankar Temple This Chalukyan temple with the image of Sri Narayana is flanked by the ten incarnations of God.

Asar It was built by Mohammed Ali Shah in about 1646 to serve as a hall of justice. The building was also used to house two hairs from the Prophet's beard. Women are not allowed inside.

Nrupatunga Hill This is a beautiful Hilly picinic spot in the Hubli

Siddharoodha Math is the eminent religious institution, a centre of Advaita philosophy as preached by Swami Siddharoodha, is located at near outskirts of Hubli

Unkal Lake A pictorial water spot with a magnificent sunset view, this perfect picnic spot has green garden, recreational facilities for the children, boating facilities, etc. The lake is 3 km away from Hubli.

Glass House As the name suggests, this is a palace of glass, inaugurated by the former Indian Prime Minister, Smt.Indira Gandhi.

Banashankari Temple Amargol Between Hubli and Dharwad, Conservation and restoration work is in progress

Cuisine

The North Karnataka Cuisine can be primarily found in the northern districts of Karnataka, including Bidar, Kalburgi, Vijapura, Bagalakote,Belagaavi, Raayachooru, Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, Koppala, and parts of Ballari.

The following are typical items in a typical vegetarian Northern Karnataka meal :

rotti or bhakri, Rice, Saaru, Happala, kosambari
Badane kaayi gojju/enne-gai/tumbu-gai - Stuffed and/or sauteed
Shenga/Ellu dry chutney in powder form - sometimes called hindi (not hindi language). kempu khaara - hot chutney paste made with/of red chillis, consumed as a condiment
Bele palya - cooked split or whole beLe, chana, moong with greens such as methi and spinach, or spring onion
mosaru bajji or raitha - salad involving yogurt, Mosaru and majjige, beNNEe or tuppa. Raw Salads - of spring onion, onion, green chili, methi leaves, sometimes with oggaraNe of sasive and/or jeerige

Dharwad pedha

Hubli-Dharwad is famous for its Dharwad pedha - a milk-based sweetmeat.

Rich Folk Heritage

Dollu Kunitha

It is a popular drum dance. The large drums are decorated with coloured cloth, and are slung around the necks of men. The dances are at times accompanied with songs relating to religious praise or wars.

Veeragase

Veeragase is popular folk dance. It is a symbolic presentation of the heroism and valour of God Veerabahadhra. Its exponents are called Lingadevaru and they perform the dance with religious fervour at festival time especially during the months of Shravana and Kartika.

Nandikolu kunitha

This art form is the domain of male devotees of Lord Siva. The Nandi pole is about 18 cubits in length, each cubit representing a 'dharma'. The length of the pole is fitted with brass pots and plates, and ornate silver or brass umbrella at the top with a silk tassel, which is the flag. The performer on a sling balances the pole; this requires skill as well as strength. The sight of the devotee's inspired dance, to the background beat and the resulting symphony of sounds, from the pots and plates on the pole, is truly breathtaking.

Jodu halige

Halige meaning two percussion instruments used by two artists to produce rhythmic notes of astounding energy and power. Their movements along the stage expressive of their physical energy harmonizes with the notes produced by the instrument. The Haligi (wood) circular in shape is made of buffalo hide. A short stick is used on it. The notes combined with the bodily movement pervade the stage and overflow to the audience.

Lambani nruthya

Lambani women dressed colourfully and move circularly with clapping and singing. This dance is out of the common. In dress, mode of living and dwelling, they dance on important festivities in a free manner.

Veerabhadra kunitha

The dance form depicts the story of Veerabhadra, the legendary minor god created by Lord Siva to teach a lesson to his father-in-law Daksha. Veerabhadra to go to the place of the yaga and destroy the ceremony.

The folk art forms of Karnataka need to be revived at the earliest, failing which they will disappear without a trace. Now a days there is no attempt to perform or encourage in North Karnataka, especially with regard to Doddata, Sannata and Gombeyata.

IT Industries in North Karnataka Region

Below are the few SME IT/ITES companies opearting at Hubli and Belgaum region.
1. ClickHubli.com-Website design/development company Hubli
2. Aalpha Information Systems India Pvt Ltd-Hubli

3. Nashyar Technologies Private Limited-Hubli
4. Esoftzone Belgaum/USA
5. Sankalp Semiconductor-Hubli
6. Neilsoft Ltd-Pune - Hubli
7. EQuest SEZ Belgaum (EQeust Bangalore /USA)
8. Leadingminds Ltd Belgaum
9. Katwa Infotech Ltd-Belgaum/Hubli
10. Gokulscribe Pvt Ltd-Belgaum /Kolhapur
11. Transparent Technologies Pvt Ltd -Hubli
12. Ritescribe Medinfo Pvt Ltd-Hubli
13. Deltra software Belgaum/USA
14. Penarbour Infotech Pvt Ltd-Hubli
15 . Rachanasoft Belgaum- Belgaum
16. Able Design Engineering Services Pvt Ltd-Dharwad
17. triams.com.com-Hubli
18. IBSI India Pvt Ltd-Bangalore/Hubli.
19. BTP infoserve Pvt Ltd-Belgaum
20. G5 Solutions Pvt Ltd Belgaum
21. N S Infotech Ltd-Hubli
22. First Source(ICICI One source)-Hubli.
23. Vayavya Labs Pvt. Ltd -Belgaum
24. Prosoft Solutions Belgaum - Belgaum
25. K2 Technology Solutions helathcare division -Bangalore/Belgaum
26. Inetsystems Hubli-Web SOlutions
27. Conquest Infotech & Software ServicesMumbai/Belgaum/Hydarabad
27. Shrinivas Technologies Leaders In MLM/Network Marketing softwares

Best Computer Institutes In Hubli Dharawd 1) Liberty Software Solutions 2) NIIT 3) Aptech