Belgaum district

The Belgaum district is a district in the state of,. The city of is the district headquarters. By the 2001 Census of India, it had a population of 4,214,505 of which 24.03% were urban. The district has an area of 12,000 square kilometers, and is bounded on the west and north by state, on the northeast by, on the east by , on the southeast by , on the south by  and  districts, and on the southwest by the state of. The languages spoken in this district include and.

History
Belgaum is the Divisional Head quarter of North Karnataka The ancient name of the town of Belgaum was Venugrama, meaning Bamboo Village. The most ancient place in the district is Halsi; and this, according to inscriptions on discovered in its neighborhood, was once the capital of a dynasty of nine Kadamba kings. It appears that from the middle of the 6th century to about 760 the area was held by the s, who were succeeded by the s. After the break-up of the Rashtrakuta power a portion of it survived in the (875-1250), who from 1210 onward made Venugrama their capital. Inscriptions give evidence of a long struggle between the Rattas and the s of, who succeeded in the latter years of the 12th century in acquiring and holding part of the district. By 1208, however, the Kadambas had been overthrown by the Rattas, who in their turn succumbed to the s of in 1250. After the overthrow of the Yadavas by the (1320), Belgaum was for a short time under the rule of the latter; but only a few years later the part south of the  was subject to the Hindu rajas of. In 1347 the northern part was conquered by the, which in 1473 took the town of Belgaum and conquered the southern part also. When overthrew the  sultans in, Belgaum passed to the s. In  the country was overrun by  of , but was retaken by the  with British assistance. In it was handed over to the .In 1836 the southern district continuing to be known as Dharwad, the northern as Belgaum.

in Belgaum district is a place of historical importance. of Kittur (1778-1829) is known for her resistance to British rule; another person in the history of Belgaum known for his resistance to British rule is.

There are several names available for Belgaum city. Kannada people call it Belgaavi, Marathi people call it Belgaon, North Indians call it as Belgaum.

The British had a sizable infantry post here, having realised the military importance of its geographic location. It is one of the reasons for Belgaum's sobriquet The Cradle of Infantry. Development of a rail network for movement of resources and later troops was one of the means employed by both the British East India Company and the British to exert control over India. Belgaum's railway station, the Railway Station was established by the British. A signboard declaring the sobriquet can be seen hung on Platform 1 at the station.

Border dispute

 * Main article: .

Belgaum district was incorporated into the newly formed (now Karnataka) with the passage of the  (1956), which reorganised India's states along  lines, despite having a large Marathi-speaking population ; about three-fourths of the total population. . Since then, has been claiming the district and the case is now in the  of India.

Belgaum division
Belgaum is also the Divisional Headquarter ,it includes the districts of, Belgaum , , , , and.

Administration
Administration of Belgaum District has been divided into 10 s. Athani taluka is the largest with an area of 1,995.70 and Raybag taluka is the smallest with an area of 958.8 sq km. The district comprises three revenue sub-divisions and six police sub-divisions. Apart from the Belgaum City Corporation, there are 17 municipalities, 20 towns, 485 s, 1,138 habitated villages and 26 non-habitated villages. Belgaum is also the headquarters of the Belgaum Revenue Division.

Education
Visveswaraiah Technological University is located in Belgaum. All technical and engineering colleges in the Karnataka State come under this University. Belgaum is also known for the Airmen Training School, an training centre located at Sambra. The Maratha Light Infantry has its regimental headquarters in Belgaum. The Commando School and School of jungle warfare and the Indian Army is also situated in Belgaum. The Karnataka Lingayat (K.L.E.) Education Society is in Belgaum. The K.L.E.S. Hospital of Belgaum is the second-largest hospital in Asia. The has one of its regional research centre here, and the  and  are also situated here. Military School Belgaum (Principal - Lt Col Sudhanshu Arya) is one of the five Military Schools in India. The School was set up in 1945 by King George VI for the wards of VCOs (present day JCOs) and NCOs of Indian Army.

Tourism and attractions

 * , 20 km south-west of Belgaum, is a popular tourist spot with its evergreen hilltop forests.
 * , where the plunges 60 meters, is a beautiful waterfall in Belgaum district.
 * which is in the heart of the city. The is also a beautiful lake to visit. Inside the fort we can find an ancient  of black stone. Just few metres walk to this temple you can find  where you can relax. There is an ancient  also in the fort.
 * with both Portuguese and British style, and.
 * with both Portuguese and British style, and.