PLACES

PANDHARKAWDA.

Pandharkavda is a municipal town and headquarters of the Kelapur tahsil settled on the left bank of the Khuni river and lying 67.60 km (about 42 miles) from Yavatmal. It is situated in the south-east of the tahsil and is connected with the Yavat-mal-Wani main road by a branch road at Umri. From an insignificant village in 1875 when the tahsil was formed and Pandharkavda made its headquarters, it has grown into a substantial town having; besides the mamlatdar's office, civil and criminal courts and panchayat samiti office. Its population in 1961 was 10,605 and thus formed the largest town of the tahsil.

Pandharkavda was constituted a municipality in 1931, its jurisdiction extending over an area of 3.9 square miles. The municipal council is composed of fifteen councillors who elect a president from among themselves. With the aid of the necessary staff the president discharges the municipal duties and functions.

The municipal receipts in 1965-66 including an opening balance of Rs. 47,188 but excluding Rs. 44,423 as income due to extraordinary and debt heads amounted to Rs. 2,94,733. Source-wise the receipts were: revenue from municipal rates and taxes Rs. 1,60,956; realization under special acts Rs. 176; revenue from property apart from taxation Rs. 11,822; grants Rs. 73,103 and miscellaneous sources Rs. 1,488. Expenditure during the same year excluding Rs. 26,820 as expenditure due to extraordinary and debt heads amounted to Rs. 2,17,775. It comprised heads like general administration and collection accounting for Rs. 59,938; public safety Rs. 10,096; public health and convenience Rs. 97,742; public instruction Rs. 45,328; contributions Rs. 500 and miscellaneous heads Rs. 4,171. Thus at the end of the year a sum of Rs. 94,561 remained as the closing balance.

Almost the entire drainage system of the town consists of either stone-lined gutters or cement concrete open surface drains. The sewage is collected in cess pools and then removed to the municipal compost depot where compost manure is prepared out of it. The town has no municipal managed medical institution but the municipality bears 20 per cent of the annual cost of the primary health centre conducted by the Zilla Parishad. There is a well-equipped hospital with X-ray facilities conducted by some Christian Missionaries. The town has also a veterinary dispensary with an artificial insemination centre, and family planning and leprosy eradication centres. There being no special water supply scheme for the town, people depend upon wells and the river.

Primary education is conducted by the municipality. The town has two high schools, one of which is maintained by the Kelapur Education Society and the other by the Zilla Parishad. A Balak Mandir is managed by the town's Mahila Samaj

A grand building with a large hall and four rooms and estimated to cost Rs. 69,000 is being built by the municipality for social and cultural activities. The building would also accommodate a badminton court besides the theatre, and would receive Rs. 40,000 as government grant towards its construction. A cremation ground is maintained by the municipality for Hindus. Khoja and Musalman communities maintain a burial ground. It is managed by panchas drawn from both the communities.

The town owes its importance to the cotton and grain trade, there being an agriculture market produce committee. There are also one or two cotton ginning and pressing factories here. Under the programme of supplying improved seed varieties with a view to increasing the agricultural yield, a seed multiplication farm has been set up. A large weekly market is held on Sundays. Pandharkavda has a police station, post and telegraph facilities and a rest house.

There is little of interest in the town excepting a rather fine temple of Muralidhar or Gopalkrishna, built more or less in the Hemadpanti style, and a large well of about 35' x 35' dimensions. ft is reported by the local people that the shrine and the well were constructed by one Yakambari from the Komptee. community some 350 years ago. ft is further told that the idol in the sanctuary was installed some 60 years ago after the original was broken by robbers some 70 years ago in the hope of recovering precious stones and metals from its hollow inside. A tunnel is believed to lead from this well into the Kelapur gadhi in which Peshva Bajirav II had taken refuge, and as proof of this three arch-shaped passages are pointed out in the well. On April 2, 1818 Peshva Bajirav was signally defeated here by Colonels Scott and Adams, and his flight to Nagpur to aid Appa Saheb was thus effectively prevented.

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