Ulhasnagar

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Ulhasnagar उल्हासनगर
Ulhasnagar उल्हासनगर Location of Ulhasnagar उल्हासनगर in Maharashtra and India
Country	India
State	Maharashtra
District(s)	Thane
Parliamentary constituency	Kalyan
Population	472,943 (2001[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area • Elevation	• 19 m (62 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 421001-5 • Telephone • +STD code 0251 • Vehicle • MH-05
Website	www.umc.gov.in

Ulhasnagar (Marathi : उल्हासनगर) (Sindhi آلهاسنگر ) is a small city located on coast of the West India, approximately 60 kilometres (37 miles) northeast of the city of Mumbai, in the Thane district in the state of Maharashtra. This city is part of Mumbai Metropolitan Region managed by MMRDA.

Ulhasnagar, also referred to as Sindhunagar (سنڌوُنگر), has an estimated population of 472,943 people (2001).^[1] The name derives from the Ulhas river which flows through it. Kalyan is situated near Ulhasnagar. Over the years, the city has grown a reputation for all types of business ^[2].

Geography and Demographics

Ulhasnagar is located at 19°13′N 73°09′E / 19.22°N 73.15°E / 19.22; 73.15.^[3] It has an average elevation of 19 metres (62 feet).

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[4] Ulhasnagar had a population of 472,943. (Current Estimate : One million). Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Ulhasnagar has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 90%. In Ulhasnagar, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

History

Ulhasnagar is a municipal town and the headquarters of the Tahsil bearing the same name. It is a railway station on the Mumbai-Pune route of the Central Railway. Ulhasnagar, a colony of migrants in the aftermath of Partition, is 61 years old. Situated 58 km from Mumbai, the once-barren land has developed into a rich town of Thane district. Originally, known as Kalyan Military transit camp, Ulhasnagar was set up especially to accommodate 6,000 soldiers and 30,000 others during World War II. There were 2,126 barracks and about 1,173 housed personals. The majority of barracks had large central halls with rooms attached to either end. The camp had a deserted look at the end of the war and served as a ready and ideal ground for Partition victims. Sindhis, in particular, began life anew in the new land.

After the partition of India, over 100,000 Sindhi-speaking refugees from the newly-created West Pakistan were relocated to deserted military camps five kilometres from Kalyan. The area was converted into a township in 1949, and named Ulhasnagar by the then Governor-general of India, C. Rajagopalachari (literally 'city of joy'; ulhas=joy; nagar=city). On August 8, 1949 the first and last Governor-General of India, C. Rajagopalachari, laid the foundation stone.

A suburban railway station was built in 1955. In January 1960, Ulhasnagar Municipality was formed, with Arjun K. Ballani as first chief, and a municipal council was nominated. In 1965, elections to this council were held for the first time. Now this 22 square kilometre area has 350,000 people of Sindhi descent, the largest enclave of Sindhis in India. The town lies outside Mumbai city but within the Mumbai Conurbation.

Although Sindhis had nothing with them, but they used their brains and made the business grow, and the Ulhasnagar turnover was estimated at Rs. 1,000 crores (US$ 200 million) in 1995.Consequently, politicians started to charge money to look the other way, and by 1999, each corporator in the municipality was said to be making 5 to ten lakhs in "protection money".^[5]

In 1986, Pappu Kalani was elected president of the Ulhasnagar Municipal Council (UMC), and the same year, Ulhasnagar elected him to the state legislature as a candidate of the Indian National Congress.

Politics

In 2005, the Bombay High Court ordered to stop the demolition of 855 illegal structures and Pappu Kalani, passed a law permitting most of them to be legalized saving most of the people from being homeless.^[6]

In the municipal elections of 2007, despite very little electioneering by opposing groups, Pappu Kalani's group mustered only 15 seats (out of 76) in the election.^[7] In 2009 Kumar Ailani of BJP won the assembly elections, against Pappu Kalani with 7,538 Votes

Transport

One can reach Ulhasnagar by road or railway. By using Mumbai suburban railway (Central branch) one can reach Ulhasnagar by alighting at either of Kalyan and Shahad station which are near camp 1 and 2 or Ulhasnagar and Vithalwadi railway stations which are close to 3 and 4 or Ulhasnagar and Ambernath railway stations are near to camp 4 and 5. The city is serviced by City Bus and autorickshaw for travel from Mumbai and Thane as well as intra city transport. There is no bus service from Ulhasnagar municipal corporation.

References

External links

• First online reference to Ulhasnagar
• Ulhasnagar Online Business Directory
• Very Informative site for Ulhasnagar
• Ulhasnagar Maps
• Ulhasnagar Business Directory Yellow Pages