Pulgaon

Pulgaon Bridgetown
town
Highway bridge over Wardha river near Pulgaon
Pulgaon Location in Maharashtra, India
Coordinates: 20.726°N 78.317°E / 20.726; 78.317
Country	India
State	Maharashtra
Region	Vidarbha
District	Wardha
Government
• Type	Municipal Council
• Body	Pulgaon Municipal Council
Elevation	285 m (935 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	33,925
• Density	959/km2 (2,480/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Pulgaonkar, Bridgetowner
Languages
• Official	Marathi
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	442302 (town) * 442303 (CAD)
Telephone code	91-7158
Vehicle registration	MH32 (Wardha District)
Website	www.collectorwardha.nic.in

Pulgaon is a municipal council in Wardha district in the India state of Maharashtra. The nearest city is Wardha, 32 kilometres (20 mi) away via the Mumbai–Nagpur Expressway.

History

Pulgaon was created as a municipality in 1901 and has an area of 14 km² (5.3 sq mi) under its jurisdiction. The old town lies south of the railway station and is relatively new; it grew from a collection of hutments of workers employed for the nearby railway bridge over the Wardha river. It is therefore unofficially called "Bridgetown" (from Marathi: पुल, romanized: pul, lit. 'bridge' and Marathi: गाव, romanized: gaon, lit. 'village/town'). The town's rapid rise in importance was partially due to its favorable position in the center of a cotton-growing area.

The town is built on rocky soil and derives its water supply mainly from the Wardha river, and more recently, from wells. In dry years, water scarcity has occurred.

In 2005, Pulgaon was a B-grade municipal council, with boundary limits of 5.29 square miles (13.7 km²). Like many small towns across India, Pulgaon's limits have been expanded and the majority of the population are actually legally within either Nachangaon or Gunjkheda.

Demographics

Religious places

Shiva temple, Panchadhara

Shiva temple, Panchadhara

Panchadhara point

Pulgaon has places of worship representing Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, and Islam.

The major Hindu temples in the town are of Madan Mohan, Balaji, Shiva, Hanuman, Ram, Datta, Bhavani-Mata, Katheen-Mata, Bhairav-Baba, and Vitthal. The Bhavani temple was the first temple built in Pulgaon. The Balaji temple is reported to be 80 years old and is looked after by a trust. The Shiva temple at Panchadhara is one of the oldest too. The temple of Madan Mohan Vallabh Sampraday Haveli was built approximately 110 years ago by Ishwardasji Mohata. Madan Mohanji (Krishna), Shyaminiji (Radha), and Laddu Gopal in Astha Dhatu are celebrated there. Datta Mandir, which is very ancient, was built by Shrimati Bramhlin Santinbai.

The town's Buddhist temple contains a bronze bust of the Buddha, reported to have been brought from Thailand. The temple has a spacious sabhamandap (Marathi: सभामंडप, lit. 'auditorium'), and was built by the neo-Buddhists of Pulgaon.

The town's Jain temple is one of the oldest temples and is the only Jain temple in the region. The "Mahavir Jayanti Utsav" is celebrated every year, with a huge procession through the town.

Year	Male	Female	Total Population	Change	Religion (%)
					Hindu	Muslim	Christian	Sikhs	Buddhist	Jain	Other religions and persuasions	Religion not stated
2001	18978	17544	36522	-	62.962	8.556	0.528	0.244	26.335	1.358	0.000	0.016
2011	17573	16352	33925	-7.111	62.388	11.163	0.584	0.336	24.212	1.259	0.027	0.032

Education

Pulgaon as the Jr. & Sr. Colleges of all the streams viz., Science, Commerce, & Arts.

The R. K. High School & Jr. College is the top-ranked school in town and the oldest. Additional high schools include the Aadarsh High School & Jr. College, Labour Camp High School, St. John High School, Central School, Dr. Zakir Hussain Urdu High School, and Lalitabai Muraka Girls High School and Jr. College.

Pulgaon is home to the Industrial Training Institute, Pulgaon, which was established in 1963 by the government of Maharashtra.

A town library is operated by the Siddharth Navyouvak library.

Sports

Established in 1952, the Liberty Club is a local sports club that coordinates most indoor games. Additionally, the club engages in social and cultural work. In 1961, it helped organize a mahila mandal, tailoring classes, and the construction of a vyayamshala (Marathi: व्यायामशाळा, lit. 'gymnasium'). Since 1962, it has also put out a weekly magazine called Shiv Prerana, in both Hindi and Marathi.

Economy

Pulgaon is one of the leading cotton trade centers in the district. Pulgaon Cotton Mills, founded in 1890 by the British, is an old industry in central India. The Mill was closed by the state government in March 2003. The loss of this major source of income in the region put almost 2,000 families in trouble. Other industries include cotton ginning and pressing factories, hand-loom textiles, and BEC fertilizers.

Central Ammunition Depot

Located near Pulgaon is the Central Ammunition Depot, a military area and the second-largest ammunition depot in Asia. It was a place of minimal security risk until around 1999–2000. Following the September 11 attacks and the Indian parliament attack in 2001, the security of the area was increased, and all types of leisure activity in the area were stopped. Visiting Bhairav-Baba temple, which resides inside the premises, is strictly restricted due to security risks.

There are two schools inside this military area: Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pulgaon; and Army Primary School, Pulgaon. The students are primarily children of military personnel.

On 31 May 2016, a major fire broke out in the ammunition depot. At least 2 army and 18 DSC personnel were killed, and 19 more were injured.

Transportation

There is an Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus depot and workshop in Pulgaon. In 2007, it had a capacity of 38 buses. Cities and towns connected by buses to Pulgaon include Nagpur, Wardha, Gondia, Yavatmal, Akola, Amravati, Chandrapur, and Mahur.

Pulgaon railway station lies on the Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line, and is a major stop due to the nearby Central Ammunition Depot. A narrow-gauge railway line connected Pulgaon to Arvi; it is now abandoned.

Municipal Council

The municipal council is composed of 19 elected councilors. A president is elected by the councilors from among themselves to preside over its meetings. In 1961–62, the total municipal receipts were ₹287,337 of which ₹112,347 came from municipal taxes.

The results of the 2016 Municipal Council elections are given in the following table:

Party name	Party flag or symbol	Number of Corporators
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)		8
Indian National Congress (INC)		2
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)		5
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)		0
Shiv Sena (SS)		0
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)		0
Independents		3