Osmanabad

This article is about the municipality in Maharashtra, India. For its namesake district, see Osmanabad district.

"Dharashiv" redirects here. For its namesake caves, see Dharashiv Caves.

City in Maharashtra, India

Osmanabad

City

Dharashiv

Osmanabad in Maharashtra

Coordinates: 18°19′10″N 76°04′25″E﻿ / ﻿18.31944°N 76.07361°E﻿ / 18.31944; 76.07361
Country| India
State| Maharashtra
Region| Marathwada
District| Osmanabad
Named after|

* Mir Osman Ali Khan
* Dharashiv Caves

Government

• Type| Municipal Council
• Body| Dharashiv Nagarpalika
• Chairman| Makarand raje Nimbalkar
Elevation

| 653 m (2,142 ft)
Population

(2011)[1]

• Total

| 112,085
Demonym(s)| Osmanabadi, Osmanabadkar
Language

• Official| Marathi
Time zone| UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN|

413501(City)

Telephone code| (+91) 2472
Vehicle registration| MH-25
Website| dharashiv.maharashtra.gov.in

Osmanabad, officially known as Dharashiv,[2] is a city and a municipal council in Osmanabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the seventh largest city in Marathwada, and the 39th largest city in Maharashtra by population.

Naldurg Fort in Naldurg,Osmanabad district, Maharashtra

## Etymology and history

[edit]

Osmanabad derives its name from the last ruler of Hyderabad, the 7th Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, of which the region was a part of until 1948.[3] As per historical evidence, the district was ruled by the Mauryas, Satavahanas, Rashtrakutas, and Yadavas. In early centuries the city belonged to the Hindu Chalukyas and Devagiri Yadavas, but later became a part of the Bahmani and Bijapur kingdoms.

Osmanabad was officially renamed Dharashiv in February 2023.[4] The name derives from the Dharashiv Caves.[3]

## Geography

[edit]

The city of Osmanabad has an elevation of 653 metres (2,142 ft).[5] Osmanabad is located in the west-central part of Osmanabad Tahsil. Nearby towns include Tuljapur, Bhoom, Paranda, Washi, and Kalamb. Solapur, located southwest of Osmanabad in Solapur district, is the nearest sizeable city. Osmanabad is on the Balaghat Pathar. The Bhogavati River flows through the city and meets the Sina River near Mohol in the Solapur district.

### Climate

[edit]

The climate of the Osmanabad district is generally dry. The rainy season starts from mid-June and continues until the end of September. From October to November, the climate is humid while from February to March the climate is dry. Winter runs from mid-November to January and summer from April to June. During summer the temperatures of Osmanabad district are low compared to other districts of the Marathwada region.

Climate data for Osmanabad (1991–2020, extremes 1976–2020)

Month  | Jan  | Feb  | Mar  | Apr  | May  | Jun  | Jul  | Aug  | Sep  | Oct  | Nov  | Dec  | Year
Record high °C (°F)  | 35.2
(95.4)  | 38.6
(101.5)  | 43.7
(110.7)  | 43.9
(111.0)  | 45.1
(113.2)  | 43.9
(111.0)  | 35.6
(96.1)  | 34.2
(93.6)  | 35.2
(95.4)  | 39.4
(102.9)  | 35.6
(96.1)  | 35.4
(95.7)  | 45.1
(113.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)  | 30.7
(87.3)  | 33.0
(91.4)  | 36.5
(97.7)  | 38.7
(101.7)  | 39.3
(102.7)  | 33.3
(91.9)  | 29.9
(85.8)  | 28.7
(83.7)  | 30.2
(86.4)  | 31.6
(88.9)  | 31.2
(88.2)  | 30.8
(87.4)  | 32.9
(91.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)  | 14.5
(58.1)  | 16.5
(61.7)  | 20.6
(69.1)  | 23.0
(73.4)  | 23.9
(75.0)  | 21.8
(71.2)  | 20.9
(69.6)  | 20.1
(68.2)  | 20.3
(68.5)  | 19.4
(66.9)  | 16.5
(61.7)  | 13.9
(57.0)  | 19.3
(66.7)
Record low °C (°F)  | 7.6
(45.7)  | 10.2
(50.4)  | 12.4
(54.3)  | 14.1
(57.4)  | 16.4
(61.5)  | 14.2
(57.6)  | 15.4
(59.7)  | 14.6
(58.3)  | 13.6
(56.5)  | 10.0
(50.0)  | 9.0
(48.2)  | 8.1
(46.6)  | 7.6
(45.7)
Average rainfall mm (inches)  | 1.8
(0.07)  | 1.5
(0.06)  | 9.2
(0.36)  | 21.1
(0.83)  | 31.5
(1.24)  | 121.5
(4.78)  | 173.2
(6.82)  | 182.4
(7.18)  | 179.8
(7.08)  | 85.9
(3.38)  | 18.5
(0.73)  | 2.7
(0.11)  | 829.2
(32.65)
Average rainy days  | 0.4  | 0.1  | 0.7  | 1.9  | 2.3  | 7.7  | 10.3  | 11.2  | 8.6  | 4.8  | 1.2  | 0.3  | 49.5
Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST) | 42  | 37  | 34  | 33  | 35  | 63  | 73  | 77  | 71  | 61  | 52  | 44  | 51
Source: India Meteorological Department[6][7][8]

## Demographics

[edit]

In the 2011 Indian census, the city of Osmanabad had 111,825 inhabitants, with 41,982 males (52.1%) and 38,643 females (47.9%), for a gender ratio of 920 females per one thousand males.[9] In 2001, Osmanabad had an average literacy rate of 74%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. Male literacy was 80% and female literacy was 67%. In 2001, 14% of the population was under 6 years of age.[10]

Religions in Osmanabad City (2011)

Religion |  | Percent
Hinduism |

| 61%
Islam |

| 24%
Buddhism |

| 10.6%
Jainism |

| 3.7%
Christianity |

| 0.4%
Others† |

| 0.3%
Distribution of religions
†Includes Sikhs (0.2%), .

## Tourism

[edit]

### Dharashiv Caves

[edit]

There are two groups of rock-cut caves in the city. The first is Chamar rock-cut caves and the other is the Dharashiv Rock-cut caves group. Chamar Caves are two km away from the city. There are two caves dedicated to Hinduism. According to Burgess, these are dated to the 6th century CE. There are six Dharashiva Caves. Four are of Jainas, and two are of Vaishnava caves. According to scholars, these caves dated to the 6th to 8th century CE.

Dharashiv Caves are four km (2.5 mi) from Osmanabad city and two km (1.2 mi) from Hatladevi Hill Station. Dharashiv Caves are dating back to 7th Century A.D. It is a major tourists attraction in Osmanabad. The Railway bridge near the tunnel near Osmanabad City is also becoming a tourist destination nowadays.[11]

### Other places

[edit]

* Tuljapur: Tulajpur is home to Aai Tulja Bhavani, the most visited palace by devotees from all over Maharashtra.
* Naldurg Fort
* Paranda Fort: a protected monument by the Archaeological Survey Of India. It is an example of military architecture and engineering in Maharashtra and was erected by Mahmud Gawan Vazir of Bahamani Sultanate.
* Dhoki is a major village that is nearby Osmanabad
* Kond is the village that has the historical Bhimashankar Mandir. It is about 35 km (22 mi) from Osmanabad.
* Ter is the birthplace of Sant Gora Kumbhar, having the historical Mandir. It is about 17 km (11 mi) from Osmanabad.
* Shri Datta Mandir Sansthan Ruibhar, Osmanabad: There is a temple of Lord Dattatreya amidst the quiet, serene natural surroundings at the village Ruibhar, 12 km (7.5 mi) from Osmanabad city.
* Hathladevi Temple, about two km (1.2 mi) from Osmanabad[12]
* Shri Yedeshwari Temple, Yermala: In this temple, the architecture is in the Hemadpanti style. It has two entrance doors, in front of the principal one are three dipmals or lamp pillars, the central one being a little taller than the flanking ones. Supported on two rows of solid pillars, the mandap has two rooms at one end, with the vestibule at the other end. The vestibule contains an idol of the goddess with a brass prabhaval around and a small linga symbol nearby.[13]

## Transport

[edit]

### Air

[edit]

Osmanabad Airport (IATA: OMN) lies about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) from the city centre. There are no scheduled commercial air services to the airport. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to reach the airport by car from the bus stand. Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation has leased the airport to Reliance Airport Developers, Ltd. for 95 years.[14] Reliance paid Rs. 63 crore in the agreement, which includes four other airports of Maharashtra.[15] The nearest operational airports are Aurangabad Airport and Nanded Airport.

### Rail

[edit]

A railway bridge near Osmanabad Station

Osmanabad railway station (station code UMD) is an important railway station situated on Latur \- Miraj railway route of the central railway.[16] Before 2004, a narrow gauge track connecting Latur to Kurduvadi passed through the Osmanabad district. The station nearest to the city at Yedshi was 18 km (11 mi) away from Osmanabad City. During the conversion from narrow gauge to Broad Gauge, the track alignment was changed and directed towards Osmanabad City. In the first stage, the broad gauge track between Latur-Osmanabad was completed and became functional in 2007. The first train to arrive at Osmanabad railway station was the Mumbai-Osmanabad Express that ran via Aurangabad and Manmad. The Osmanabad-Kurudvadi section was completed and put into service in 2008. Latur-Osmanabad-Mumbai Express was started via Kurduvadi, Pune in 2008. Osmanabad railway station operates under the Solapur Mandal of Central Railway (CR) zone. On the line there are Many bridges and a Big Tunnel, about 1.5 km (0.93 mi) long near Osmanabad city.

Osmanabad has connections to Pune, Mumbai, Kolhapur, Sangli, Pandharpur, Nagpur, Parbhani, Latur, Nanded, Miraj, Parali Vaijnath, Hyderabad, and Nizamabad.

### Road

[edit]

National Highway 52 passes through Osmanabad city.[17] This National Highway connects cities such as Sangrur (Punjab), Hisar, (Haryana), Kota (Rajasthan), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Dhule, Aurangabad, Beed, Osmanabad, Tuljapur, Solapur, Vijayapura, Hubballi, and Ankola (Karnataka).

Maharashtra State Highway 67 also passes through Osmanabad City.

National Highway 65 passes through Omerga city. It also has a bypass to the city to avoid city traffic. It starts from Pune and runs until Vishakhapatnam.

## Education

[edit]

Osmanabad has one Government BAMS College, known As Ayurvedic College, one Government Polytechnic College, Osmanabad[18] Government Polytechnic College, Osmanabad (GPO), three private pharmacy colleges, and three private engineering colleges (Notably TPCT's College of Engineering, Osmanabad[19]). Another engineering college in Osmanabad District is located in Tuljapur. The Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, a university of international repute has begun a B.A., M.A., Mphil. and PhD program located in Tuljapur.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Cities having population 1 lakh and above, Census 2011" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 July 2013. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
2. ^ Malik, Faisal (16 September 2023). "Aurangabad formally renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Osmanabad as Dharashiv". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
3. ^ a b "Dharashiv, new name for Osmanabad, dates back to eighth century: expert". ThePrint. PTI. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
4. ^ "Aurangabad formally renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Osmanabad as Dharashiv". Hindustan Times. 16 September 2023.
5. ^ "Worldwide Elevation Finder". elevation.maplogs.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
6. ^ "Climatological Tables of Observatories in India 1991-2020" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
7. ^ "Station: Osmanabad Climatological Table 1981–2010" (PDF). Climatological Normals 1981–2010. India Meteorological Department. January 2015. pp. 575–576\. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
8. ^ "Extremes of Temperature & Rainfall for Indian Stations (Up to 2012)" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. December 2016. p. M150. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
9. ^ "Census 2001 Population Finder: Maharashtra: Osmanabad: Urban Agglomerate (UA)". Office of The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Archived from the original on 3 May 2013.
10. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
11. ^ "Dharashiv Caves – Osmanabad | Osmanabad District | India".
12. ^ "Maharashtra Forest Department". Archived from the original on 10 March 2017.
13. ^ "Shri Yedeshwari Temple (Yermala)". Archived from the original on 28 March 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
14. ^ "Reliance Airport gets five projects on lease". The Times of India. 6 August 2009. Archived from the original on 27 September 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
15. ^ "MIDC-run airports set for makeover". Indian Express. 1 July 2008. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
16. ^ "Usmanabad Railway Station (UMD) : Station Code, Time Table, Map, Enquiry". NDTV. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
17. ^ "Details of National Highways (NHs) as on 31.03.2019" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 August 2019. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
18. ^ "Government Polytechnic, Osmanabad". www.gposmanabad.org. Archived from the original on 3 December 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
19. ^ "College of Engineering Osmanabad". coeosmanabad.com. Archived from the original on 12 February 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

## External links

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* Osmanabad Business Directory
* Osmanabad Online Archive