Washim
Washim is a city and a Municipal Council in Washim district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Washim is the district headquarters of Washim district. Etymology. Washim was known earlier as Vatsagulma and it was the seat of power of the Vakataka dynasty. Sarvasena the Second son of Pravarsena I was the founder of Vatsagulma or Washim of today. His fourth-generation, Harishena was one of the main patrons of the Ajanta Caves World Heritage Site. The house of Vakataka & their last generations supported Buddhism and supported all Buddhist arts. History. Washim is the same place where great Vatsa  rishi performed penance and were many Gods came to bless him as a result of which it came to be known as Vatsagulma in Sanskrit or. Its mention as Vatsagulma is traced in Padma. In the Treta Yuga, the second age, this country was a part of the Dandakaranya or Dandaka jungle, and the rishi Vatsa had his ashram hermitage at this place. Vakatakas which is known as the Vatsagulma branch of the Vakatakas dynasty. The existence of this branch of the Vakatakas was unknown until the discovery of the Washim plates in 1939. The founder of this family was  Sarvasena mentioned in the Washim plates as the son of Pravarasena I. Sarvasena made Vatsagulma i.e. Washim, the capital of his kingdom. In the course of time, the place became a great centre of learning and culture. It was, however, known as a holy place long before it became the capital of Sarvasena who flourished in the period circa C.E. 330–355. He was followed by Vindhyashakti II. A reference to Washim is found in Kavyamimansa by Rajashekhara, the celebrated poet and dramatist of the Yayavara brahmana family of Maharashtra who flourished from 875 to 925 CE. He has mentioned therein  Vatsagulma as situated in Vidarbha region. But even earlier references to Vatsagulma or Vatsa-gulma are found in Mahabharata and Kamasutra, which in their present form are assignable to a period before the age of the Vakatakas. The Karpuramunjari, a play written by Rajashekhara and staged at Kanauj under the patronage of the Gurjara-Pratiharas also mentions it as situated in the Dakshinapatha (Deccan). Vachchhoma (Vatsagulma) was the name of the Prakrit style current in Vidarbha. Vashima is derived from Vachchhoma the Prakrit name of Vatsagulma. The Sanskrit treatise Vatsagulmyamahatmya also gives traditional information about this town. Medieval History. During  the middle of the 18th century, Washim was a famous centre of cloth production along with Balapur. It is clearly brought out by one of the articles of the treaty of Kanakpur entered into between Janoji Bhonsle and the Peshwa Madhavrao I after the battle between the two in 1769. The article states that the Bhosle's should send annually to the Peshva cloth manufactured at Washim and Balapur worth Rs. 5,000. Mint was also in existence at Washim. The town was looted by the Pindaris in 1809 along with some other places in Berar region. When in 1768–69, the  Peshva attacked the Bhosle, his army had come from Aurangabad through the pass to Washim from which place it moved forward on its expedition. Afterward, it was decided that the Peshva Madhavrav and Janoji Bhosle should meet at Washim and accordingly the terms of the treaty were finalized there and the treaty was signed at Kanakpur. The temple of Balaji at Washim was constructed by Bhavani Kaloo who was the Divan of Sabaji Bhosle. However, before the establishment of the Vakataka rule with Washim as their capital, the place was an important center from the religious point of view and  it even now contains many old temples and tirthas which are revered by the people. Demographics. India census, Washim had a population of 78,387. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Washim has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 76%, and female literacy is 62%. In Washim, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age. Civic administration. The municipal council was established at Washim in 1869 and is now governed under the Maharashtra Municipalities Act, 1965. It covers, according to the Census of 1961, an area  of 42.16 square km. The municipal council is composed of 18 members with two seats each being reserved for the scheduled castes and women. With a view to providing various facilities to the town's people, the municipality conducts primary schools and a high school and maintains a dispensary. The underground drainage system is present in the town. Also, there are stone-lined gutters and sewage. The meeting hall of the municipality is used by the town's people as a town hall. Protected piped water is supplied to the town, but wells and Ek Burji Dam form the main  source of water supply. Places of interest. The antiquity of the town has given rise to a number of objects and places of interest in the town. The chief among them is Padmatirtha, Balaji temple, Rama temple, Madhyameshvara temple, Godeshvara temple, two Jain temples and Narayana Maharaja Temple. The Vatsagulmamahatmya mentions that the town contains 108 holy tanks and tirthas. A few of them can still be identified in the town. Transport. Road. Washim is connected by State Highways to all the important cities of Maharashtra. Important Roads include Washim-Mangrul Pir-Karanja-Ner-Yavatmal, Washim-Karanja-Amravati-Nagpur, Washim -Malegaon-Akola, Washim-Risod-Lonar-Sindhkhed Raja-Jalna-Aurangabad-Ahmednagar-Pune-Mumbai, Washim-Kanergaon Naka-Hingoli-Nanded and Washim-Ansing-Pusad. In future Maharashtra's Nagpur or Chandrapur to Pune expressway if propose can be pass via Yavatmal, washim, Lonar, Paithan, Ahmednagar. Rail. Washim is a railway station on Purna-Khandwa section of South Central Railway (SCR). It was in the Hyderabad division of SCR and now is in the Nanded division after bifurcation of the Hyderabad division. Washim was connected to the Broad Gauge Railway Network in 2008 when tracks were extended from Purna to Akola. 17639/17640 Kachiguda Akola  express can be accessed by the passengers arriving from Nagpur or Mumbai route while Hyderabad and Nanded can be accessed from the south. Weekly, Bi-weekly, Special, Daily, Intercity trains connecting to major stations like Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Tirupati, Agra, Mathura, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Ambala, Ludhiana, Shri Ganganagar, Jaipur, Ajmer, Kota, Hyderabad, Nangaldam (Himachal Pradesh) Aurangabad, Nagpur, Indore, Yeshwantpur (Bangalore), Nashik, Nanded, Amravati, Bhopal, Khandwa, etc. from Washim. Washim has 3 platforms. After the New Construction Of Railway Station, All railway department authorities try to keep it neat and clean making it an ideal railway station.