Bhadravati, Karnataka
Bhadravati or Bhadravathi is an industrial city or Steel Town and taluk in the Shivamogga District of Karnataka state, India. It is situated at a distance of about from the state capital Bengaluru and at about from the district headquarters, Shivamogga. The town is spread over an area of and has a population of 151,102 as per the census held in 2011. History. Bhadravati derives its name from the Bhadra River which flows through the city. It was earlier known as Benkipura, which in English means "city of fire", and earlier "Benki Pattana'. At some point in history , it was probabbly also known as Venkipura ('venki' means 'turn' in Sanksrit), as it is situated at the place where Bhadra rever takes a 90 degree turn to the west, and then to the east. Hoysalas ruled the city. The Goddess "Haladammadevi & Antaragattammadevi" guard the city from past time. The sacred temples are still present in the city. In 1413, Yerelakka nayaka (ಎರೆಲಕ್ಕನಾಯಕ) who was ruling the two citities called Dumma and Banuru (ದುಮ್ಮ, ಬಾಣೂರು), built two more cities, after clearing some of the wild forest, and named them, Narasimha Pura and Lakshmipura. Subsequently, these two cities became Benkipura or  Venkipura and then Bhadravathi, as it is situated on the banks of Bhadra river. Iron ore from the hill station of Kemmannugundi and water from the Bhadra River helped the establishment of an iron mill in 1918 Known as Mysore Iron and Steel Limited (MISL). Bhadravathi's reputation as an industrial town was further enhanced with the establishment of a paper manufacturing firm, the Mysore Paper Mills Limited in 1936. Demographics. Based on the 2011 Indian census, Bhadravati has a population of 160,392, of which males constitute 51% and females 49%. Bhadravati has an average literacy rate of 86.36%, higher  than the national average of 59.5%; with 91.39% of the males and 81.46% of the females literate. 10% of the population is under 6 years of age. Kannada is the main language spoken in this city. Geography. Location. Bhadravati lies in the central part of the Karnataka State, in the south-east corner of the Shivamogga district. The latitude and longitude coordinates of Bhadravati town are . Bhadravati is at an altitude of above sea level. The Bhadra River flows from the Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary through the Bhadravathi city, there are many mugger crocodile(Vulnerable) species present in the river Bhadra. Bhadravati  lies between Western Ghats (Malnad) and AreMalenad region. The Bhadravati Taluk has a total area of , a population of 338,611, and a population density of . The taluk borders five other taluks, the Shimoga Taluk to the west, the Honnali Taluk to the north, the Channagiri Taluk to the east, the Tarikere Taluk to the south-east, and the Narasimharajapura Taluk to the south-west. Climate. The average temperature in the summer is between and . The average winter temperature is between and . The annual precipitation in the city is around . Regional. There are 5 hobli headquarters in Bhadravathi: Transport. Road. One  national highways passes through the city; NH-69(former NH-206); Two state highways pass through the city as well. Buses that go from Bangalore to Shivamogga stop at Bhadravati and take around six hours to complete the journey. Rail. The Shivamogga–Bangalore train, the Birur–Shivamogga train, and the Mysuru–Shivamogga train all go through Bhadravati. It is well connected by rail to the Bengaluru city. Air. The nearest airport is in Hubli, around from Bhadravati and the next nearest airport is at Mangalore, around from Bhadravati. Bengaluru International Airport is at a distance of . Another airport is under construction in Shivamogga  near Sogane. Economy. Bhadravati has two major factories that take up a large part of the city: the Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant factory, started by Sir M. Visvesvarayya, and the Mysore Paper Mills factory. Tourist Places. Bhadravati lies in the border of two Malnad districts Shimoga and Chickmagalur. Major Tourist attractions around the city include; 1. Lakshmi Narasimha Temple : The temple built in 13th century in Hoysala architecture situated in the heart of the city. 2. Bhadra Dam : Bhadra Dam is situated across Bhadra river which is20 km from the city. 3. Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary : BWS is a protected  area and a tiger reserve as part of Project Tiger, located 23 km south of Bhadravathi 4. Gondi : Gondi is situated at the foothills of western ghats, Check dam is the major tourist attraction of the place. 5. Kenchammanna Gudda and Gangur : situated amidst the western ghats, which is a major tourist attraction in monsoon. Sports. Vishveshwarayya Iron & Steel Plant Ground is located in Bhadravati. The stadium was built in 1960 and can hold 25,000 spectators. The ground has played host to Ranji Trophy cricket matches on two occasions for home team Karnataka. Notable personalities. 'Pauline Lucia Aracle' Freedom Fighter  from Bhadravathi Sports: Entertainment: Technology: The common denominator of all the above people is they believed in themselves, worked hard and dedicated themselves to achieve their dreams.