Kolad Tourism

Kolad is a village, in Raigad district, Maharashtra State, India. It is 117 km from Mumbai on the National Highway no 17 (Mumbai-Goa). It lies on the banks of River Kundalika. The village post office Postal Index Number (PIN code) is 402304 & 402109.

Contents

• 1 Weather
• 2 Demographics
• 3 Geography
• 4 Transport
  • 4.1 Kolad Railway Station
• 5 Infrastructure
• 6 Places to visit
• 7 Fast Facts
• 8 References

Weather

Kolad has a varied climate; spring (March to May) is hot and sultry, while the monsoon season (June to September) is accompanied by heavy rainfalls. Winters are during November and February and are characterized by medium level of humidity and cool weather. The best time to visit here is from June to March.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census,^[1] Kolad had a population of 12116.

Geography

Some of nearby villages are dagadwadi, Gove, Pugaon, Pui, Pahur, Suttarwadi, Kudali, Ambewali, Kamat, Jamgaon, Durtoli, Bhira, Ville, Tise, Bhuvan, Talavali, Yeral
Nearby towns are Roha, Indapur, Mangaon, Nagothane
Dam of Kundlika river is situated in dagadwadi village to roha.

Transport

Kolad Railway Station

Kolad is located on NH 17, popularly known as the Mumbai - Goa highway. Kolad can also be accessed from the Mumbai Pune Expressway, via the Khopoli exit.and State highway 60. The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) operates regular bus services between Roha and Kolad. Auto rickshaws also ply from Roha to Kolad.

Kolad Railway Station

Kolad Railway Station is the first station on the Konkan Railway line. Several express and mail trains that halt at this station connect Kolad to Mumbai. Train journeys from Mumbai take approximately three hours. Kolad is the starting point for the Roll On Roll Off (RORO) service of the Konkan Railway, a unique road-rail synergy system, where loaded trucks are directly carried by railway wagons and delivered to their destination by rail. This service was introduced in January 1999.^[2]

Infrastructure

Most of the infrastructure in Kolad are maintained by Gram Panchayat, which include paving the roads, provision of water supply and other essential serives like garbage disposal and beautification. Electricity is provided by state run Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB). Telecom services are handled by the state run BSNL telecom and other private players. Broadband is provided by BSNL. BSNL & TATA are the only service providers with complete network.

Places to visit

Kolad is fast gaining recognition due to resorts which provide river rafting opportunities on the Kundalika River.^{[citation needed]}

• Resorts: in wilderness near / around the river and dams.
• Kundalika river: river rafting and camping throughout the year.
• Waterfalls: on state highway 60 towards pune in the rains.
• Adventure sports: Rafting, Rappelling, Jungle camping, kayaking, Para sail, Aeromodelling & all kind of outdoor activities.
• Gaimukh
• Devi Kedar Janani Hill
• Kolad Dam
• Bhira Dam (Tata Powerhouse Dam)
• Dholwal - Pui Dam
• Sutarwadi Lake
• Tala Fort
• Kanal Avenue
• Tamhini Falls
• Ghosala Fort
• Kuda Caves

Fast Facts

• District: Raigad
• Taluka: Roha.
• Famous for: River Rafting
• Languages: Marathi, Hindi, English.
• Best Season: Feb–Aug
• Weather: Summer 28–40 °C, Rainy 25–30 °C, Winter 12–33 °C
• Altitude: 60 m
• Pincode: 402304
• STD code: 02194

Shegaon Anand sagar

 

Geography

Shegaon is located around 300 km west from the city of Nagpur and 550 km east from the city of Mumbai. It is located on the Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line of the Central Railway of Indian Railways. It has direct train connectivity to Mumbai CST, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Jamshedpur, Ahmedabad, Okha, Kolhapur, Amravati, Wardha, Nagpur, Gondia, Bilaspur, Howrah-Kolkata, Shalimar-Kolkata, Ballarshah, Chennai Central. From Mumbai several trains halt at Shegaon. Prominent being Vidarbha Express, Amravati Superfast Express, Mumbai Howrah mail and express, Sewagram express, Nagpur-Pune express, Navjivan Express, Gondwana Express, Maharashtra Express, Okha-Puri Express and Gitanjali express.^[1]
By road it is well connecting by neighbouring cities like Khamgaon, Balapur, Malkapur and Akola which are located on Hajira (Surat)- Dhule - Howrah (Kolkatta) National Highway 6. It is quite close to the industrial cities of Aurangabad and Nagpur.

Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan

Shegaon is popular as a pilgrimage destination as it is believed that Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj (see picture) lived here. Hindus consider Gajanan Maharaj a saint with miraculous powers. The origins of Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj are untraceable in history. Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj took "Samadhi" at Shegaon. Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj Temple is built on the Samadhi of Gajanan Maharaj. Sant Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan is the largest^{[citation needed]} temple trust in the Vidarbha region and is so called as "Pandharpur of Vidarbha". It attracts pilgrims from all over Maharashtra.
The Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan (Institution) Temple Trust runs the day-to-day affairs of the Temple; is headed by the Managing Trustees who normally comes from the linage of Patil's. Trust runs many services in the spiritual, religious, medical and educational fields. In particular, it runs Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj College of Engineering (SSGMCE) and Shri Gajanan Maharaj English School.
Thursdays, being the holy day of Gajanan Maharaj, and weekends witness huge crowds from all over Maharashtra. A new type of well-constructed, air conditioned darshan baari (queue) is constructed.

Anand Sagar entrance.

.At a time lots of bhakt can take darshan by this queue.

A temple at anand sagar

Anand Sagar

Shegaon has a tourist attraction called "Anand Sagar", a INR 3000 million project^{[citation needed]}. It is maintained by the The Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan. It surrounds a big artificial lake. It has a meditation centre, an aquarium, temples, play grounds, lush green lawns and open theatre where fountain-show is conducted for entertainment. It has been beautifully decorated with state of art artefacts and carvings all over. An amusement park has also started with a toy train encircling the entire place.

Education

Shri. Burungale High School, Shegaon

Shegaon has colleges offering degree in the area of Commerce and Arts. For skill building, Shegaon has an ITI (Industrial Training Institute). There are 10 schools and 4 junior colleges. It has an engineering college, Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj College of Engineering (SSGMCE), The engineering college is affiliated with Amravati University. SSGMCE ^[3][4] is known for its spiritual activities and compulsory uniform. It also has a MBA program affiliated to Amravati University. The Sansthan also runs other institutes such as Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj English Medium School, Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj Warkari Shikshan Sanstha, Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj Adiwasi Ashram School and Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj Mentally Retarded School. Mauli college of Engineering,Siddhivinayak Technical Campus, Saraswati college of Computer Application.
It also has Mauli Institute Of Technology and Siddhivinayak Technical Campus School of Engineering & Research Technology commencing from 2011-2012 and Sarsawati College 2009-10.