Daund


Daund is a city, municipal council and headquarters of Daund taluka in Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India. In ancient times a sage, 'Dhaumya Rishi' used to stay here, hence people started calling this place after him: 'Dhaum'. Gradually 'Dhaum' became 'Dhoand', then 'Dhaundh', and before it getting corrupted to the present name 'Daund'. According to the Epic Mahabharata Krishna's wife Rukhmini had gone in the 'Dhindir forest', this ancient 'Dhindir Van' is today's Daund.
Daund is major railway junction in central railway, Daund is located on bank of Bhima river.

History

Shivaji era

was a sardar in the Nizam Shahi. He had been given Daund as a jagir, including the Bahadurgad fort in Pedgaon.

Peshwa era

In 1739 the Bajirao - Mastani affair had brought clashes among the Peshwa family, hence Bajirao Peshwa took Mastani away from Pune and made her stay in Patas. Hence forth Bajirao and Mastani met at the Firangai Devi temple in Kurkumbh. Water of the rivers Bhima, Nira, Pravara, Ghod and Godavari are best suited to the horses, hence the horses breeding on these waters used to be strong, quick and loyal. The area of 'Bhimthadi' which is close to Daund was famous for getting good breed of Horses and people preferred to get a pony only from this place. This breed was supposed to be the best of all. Hence the Horse business in Daund has flourished. At the end of the Peshwa Era due to heavy loans on them Daund and some villages from Pune had gone in control of 'Girgosavi'.

British rule

Daund was extensively developed during the British rule. When railways were started during the British rule in 1870, the Bombay-Solapur railway passed via Daund, and the Daund-Baramati narrow gauge track was constructed. Daund became a junction after the Daund-Manmad connection was established. Daund got connected to Srigonda when in 1928 the bridge over river Bhima was constructed. In the British period Daund was an important center for coal engines. There were more than 125 coal engines in Daund of this coal ash was found in abundance. Hence the brick making business started and it went to various big cities.
A receiver station of the Imperial Wireless Chain was installed three kilometers outside the city. From 1942 to 1945 two Military camps were set up in Daund. The first motion picture theater, called 'Hind Cinema', was started in 1938 which was first of its kind during that period, it was owned by a family named Sonone which lived besides the theater in a small bungalow called Jai Palace. The first hotel in Daund, called 'Maharashtra Khanaval', was established in 1930, followed in 1940 by the 'Jogalekar Upahar Gruh'.

Geography and climate

Daund is located at, about above sea level on the western margin of the Deccan plateau. It is situated about east of the Sahyadri mountain range, which forms a barrier from the Arabian sea. The town is mostly flat terrain, with hills rising to the south of the town near Kurkumbh. Daund is located on the southern bank of Bhima river, a major river in Maharashtra. The river creates the Ujjani reservoir around southeast of the town.
The climate of Daund is generally hot and dry, and the area receives scant rainfall. Lakes like Warvand, Kasurdi and Motoba fall in this Taluka.
Daund lies very close to the seismically active zone around Koyna Dam, about southeast of the town, and has been rated in Zone 3 by the India Meteorological Department.

Economy

Primary crops include wheat, sugar cane, oranges and sweet limes. Daund has a large working class population, and the primary occupation is farming. MIDC provides employment for the people. Daund is currently being developed as a hub for Pharmaceutical Industries. Pharmaceutical majors such as Cipla, Emcure, Dia Ichi already have their base here.

Transportation

Rail

Daund is served by rail at the Daund Junction. Daund is a very important railway junction, serving as a halt for south bound trains from Mumbai, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan as the origin/destination for trains to north India. Trains going north wards to New Delhi, Jammu from Pune and Goa have to pass through Daund. Daund is also an access point to one of the Ashtavinayak Ganpati, Siddhatek. Daund is the important station for devotees who visit Meherabad, and Shiridi from south India via Ahmednagar and Kopargaon.

Roads

Both public and private transport are popular in Pune. Daund is just north of National Highway and National highway NH160 passes through Daund.

Demographics

, Daund had a population of 49,450 of which 25,117 were males and 24,333 were females. There were 5,721 children of age below 6 years. Daund had an average literacy rate of 77.34%, higher than the national average of 74.04%. Male literacy was 80.44% and female literacy was 74.13%.
Daund acts as a base for the State Reserve Police Force of the Maharashtra Police. The town has a significant population working as an employee of the Indian Railways and SRPF.

Religion

The historical place in Daund is the Ancient Vitthal Temple. There are 9 mosques in Daund. The Norton Memorial Church and Churches of Christ are two main churches, including 10 more churches in Daund. Narayan- Bet near Chaufula in Daund is a popular picnic spot. Firangai Mata Temple in Kurkumbh is one of the Ancient temples and a picnic spots just away from Daund. Balaji temple in heart of the town celebrated 100 years of completion. Ram Navamiis the largest religious event, marked by Lord Rama's sculpture carried throughout the town on a palanquin. At Malthan which is at a distance of 22 km from Daund is the Palace of Dadoji Kondhdev, teacher of Shivaji Raje Bhosale. Ancient temple of Bhuleshwar is located at Yavat which is 15 km from Daund.
The town has a beautiful Jain Digambar temple known as the 1008 Chandraprabhu Bhagwan Mandir which is known for its architecture and no use of iron. The temple is built by marble and is situated Behind Reliance Petrol pump on SH10 Ahmednagar road. This temple was completed on 7 February 2013 under the guidance of Munishri 108 Suvirsagarji Maharaj. The temple has a beautiful Manasthambh which is also made from Marble. The temple is built only using Makrana marble. The railway tracks to Solapur, Ahmednagar and Pune lie exactly on the backside of the temple. People can see the temple when passing by it due to its high peak. The Pratishta of the Temple was done in the month of February 2013. The occasion was attended by people from various parts of India.