Yelahanka


Yelahanka is a suburb of Bangalore in the state of Karnataka and one of the zones of BBMP. It is older than the Bengaluru city which has now overgrown engulfing many of its neighboring villages and towns.

History of Yelahanka

The city of Yelahanka had been in existence prior to 12th century. The region was called 'Ilaipakka Naadu' during the rule of Cholas. A stone tablet of 1267 A.D found in Doddaballapur mentions Dechi Devarasa, ruling the region with Yelahanka as his capital under the aegis of Hoysala monarch 'Narasimha '.
Later, during Hoysala rein, the city came to be known as 'Elavanka' and gradually shifted to 'Yelahanka'. It was also known as Elavank.
Of the numerous Rulers of different dynasties who ruled with Yelahanka as their Capital, the Kempe Gowdas are the most acclaimed. Hiriya Kempe Gowda built a fort in the adjoining village of Bengaluru and developed it as his new capital, probably due to its strategic location and slightly cooler climate being at a higher altitude. It was his son, Immadi Kempe Gowda, who had the famous watch towers built in the four directions of the new city.
Some Temples in Yelahanka—like the Venugopala Swamy Temple—have remained as a testimony to its rich past. Although a Fort's remnant could not be traced, a street nearby the Venugopala Swamy Temple is still known as 'Kote Beedi' or 'Fort Street'.

Modern Yelahanka

Yelahanka lies to the north of Bengaluru. It was a Municipal council and Taluk headquarters prior to formation of BBMP and now forms a part of Greater Bengaluru. A well planned township was developed during early 1980s to the north of the city by the Karnataka Housing Board and is identified by several names like 'Yelahanka Upanagara', 'Yelahanka Satellite Town', 'Yelahanka New Town' or simply 'Housing Board'.
National Highway NH 44 passes through Yelahanka. The newly constructed Navayuga Devanahalli KIAL Expressway also passes through the suburb and the north eastern fringes of Yelahanka, acting as a bypass road to avoid the Yelahanka suburb. State Highway 9 passing in the south of Yelahanka bisects the suburb into Old Town and New Town. Yelahanka's business areas are Hospital Main Road and BB road in Yelahanka and in New Town are 16th 'B' Cross and Mother Dairy Cross and Yelahanka New Town, 4th phase.
Yelahanka has several lakes surrounding it, adjoining: Old Yelahanka, Puttenhalli, Attur, Ananthapura and Allalasandra. The lake at Puttenahalli has been declared a bird sanctuary. Most of these are either dry or are in bad condition due to emptying of untreated sewerage effluents into them.
Yelahanka is on the verge of being the prime real estate hub in North Bengaluru owing to its vast undeveloped areas and easy access to the Kempegowda International Airport. Yelahanka has seen remarkable developments since its inception.
Most major retail brands have a presence in Yelahanka. Major ones include Yelahanka Central, RMZ Galleria Mall and Dmart in Yelahanka New Town.

Geography

Yelahanka is at a height of about 915 metres above mean sea level. Due to its higher altitude from mean sea level, it is lush green and has pleasant weather year round.
India census, Yelahanka had a population of 93,263. Males constituted 54% of the population and females 46%. The literacy rate was 75%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy was 80%, and female literacy was 68%. Eleven percent of the population were under 6 years of age.
As per recent estimates, the population of Yelahanka has risen to about 300,000 in 2011. Most are North Indians.

Connectivity

Yelahanka has an excellent connectivity be it road, rail and air. The road network to Yelahanka is one of the best in entire Bangalore. Yelahanka railway station is one of the oldest stations setup in Bangalore area and has railway lines connecting KR Puram and Bayappanahalli in the east and Yeshwanthpur in the northwest. If these tracks are improved and daily city passenger trains introduce, a big part of traffic congestion will be eased as more people will use trains. Since the tracks are already existing, it is better to use the existing infrastructure rather than investing in new activities like Metro. Kempegowda International Airport is located off Yelahanka.

Roadways

Yelahanka is connected with downtown Bangalore through a network of roads and a six lane dual carriageway highway. The same highway connects Yelahanka with Kempegowda International Airport. BMTC, KSRTC serve Yelahanka with its network of buses. There are regular BMTC Volvo A/C Bus services and other buses to Bangalore from Yelahanka.
National Highway 44 also passes through Yelahanka.
Yelahanka is also served by host of private taxi companies operating in Greater Bangalore area and also the Auto Rickshaw services within the Bangalore Metropolitan Area.

Rail

Yelahanka Jn. is a junction railway station of South Western Railway Zone, served by Indian Railways. Yelahanka Jn. comes under the jurisdiction of Bangalore Division and is about 15 km north of Bangalore City Railway station.
The station lies on the train line connecting Bangalore with North, West and Central India via Guntakal Junction. There are four routes merging at the station - one from Yeshwantpur and the other from Byapanahalli – KR Puram. one from Chikkballapur and the other from Doddballapur connecting all major cities in country.
The station is served by regular scheduled train services originating, terminating and passing through Bangalore Metropolitan region. The majority of express and passenger trains halt at Yelahanka Jn. station, connecting it to all major cities and towns in the country. There are passenger train services which connect Yelahanka Jn. to nearby towns and other suburbs of Bangalore.
Yelahanka Jn. has a computerized Indian Railway ticket booking office.
is situated in Yelahanka. It is a state-of-the-art plant, meeting bulk of the requirement of wheels, axles and wheel sets for the Indian Railways. The spare capacity available is profitably utilized to meet the domestic demands for non-railway customers and exports.

Administration

Crops like paddy, rice and Raagi were being cultivated at small scale in the area with irrigation from numerous lakes in the area. The villages surrounding Yelahanka, especially Allalasandra, was famous for Guava fruit and grapes. Alas, now the agriculture and farming exist no more due to urbanization and industrialization.
Governmental research facilities exist around Yelahanka in the form of Gandhi Krishi Vigyana Kendra under the University of Agricultural Sciences www.uasbangalore.edu.in/ and Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants under Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.

Education

There are many schools and colleges in Yelahanka. Schools in Yelahanka include WHITE PETALS SCHOOL, Brite English school,Ryan International School, Agragami Vidya Kendra, Delhi Public School, Canadian International School, Bhavan's, Bhuvan Institutions, Vishwa Vidyapeeth, Nagarjuna Vidyanikethan, Kendriya Vidyalaya RWF & CRPF, Seshadripuram Public School, Poornaprajna Education Centre, National Public School, Chrysalis High, Presidency School, NewAge World School, Bharath English High School, Cambridge School, MEC public school, Yelahanaka Government School, Jnana Jyothi School and Goodwill English High School,
The Japanese Weekend School of Bangalore, a Japanese weekend educational programme, serves Japanese nationals living in Bangalore. It holds its classes in the Canadian International School.
There are many technical education institutions in and around Yelahanka. Some of the prominent engineering colleges in the vicinity are REVA University, Sir M. Visvesvaraya Institute of Technology, BMS Institute of Technology, Bhuvan Polytechnic, Brindavan College of Engineering, Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology, Sai Vidya Institute of Technology, Reva Institute of Technology and Management, HKBK College of Engineering and Sri Venkateshwara College of Engineering, Bangalore.
VIBGYOR, a brand name in quality education, has come up with its 20th branch in Yelahanka.
New Age World School is an ICSE curriculum school is located in Mylappanahalli, Yelahanka.
Srishti Institute of Art, Design & Technology, one of India's premier art and design institutes, has six campuses across Yelahanka New Town.
WHITE PETALS SCHOOL is located in 4th Phase Yelahanka, has one of the best pre-school campus in North Bangalore and has been awarded as "Best Upcoming School" by Education Today. WPS caters from Pre-Nursery to Grade-5, follows International standards CCC- Child Centric Curriculum.

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