Bagalkot district

Bāgalkot district (ಬಾಗಲಕೋಟೆ in ) pronounced //, sometimes spelled as Bāgalkote is an administrative in the n state of. The district headquarters is located in the town of. The district is located in northern Karnataka and borders, , , and. The new Bagalkot district was carved out of Bijapur in 1997 via directive  . The bifurcated district consists of six s &mdash; Badami, Bagalkot, Bilagi, Hunugund, Jamakhandi and Mudhol. Historically, Bagalkot was the capital of the of  under, who conquered the district in 550. Bagalkot's taluk remained the seat of the throne of the Chalukyas from 550 CE &mdash; 753 CE, when Chalukya king  was overthrown by the s. The 12th century , known for his crusade against  exploitation was born in , a town in the taluk of.

Remnants of Chalukyan art and architecture are important tourist attractions in Bagalkot. has many  temples built by, while , which lies on the banks of the , is an important temple town with over 140 temples belonging to both the early and later Chalukya times. The cave temples of and the  temples of  at Lokapura and Bilgi are also famous. occupy a predominant position in Bagalkot. The district is popular for its and handloom industries. , and  flow through the district. Koodalasangama lies at the point of confluence of rivers Krishna and Malaprabha. Like most districts in India, Bagalkot is headed by a, with various s heading individual taluks in the district.

Origin
Stone inscriptions identify Bagadige as the ancient name of Bagalkot. According to legend, the area was gifted by the, lord of  to his musicians. Other taluks in Bagalkot also have mythological origins. Badami, formerly known as, was named after an ' king who, according to the ', ruled the area along with his brother. Legend has it that both asuras were vanquished by the. The northwestern taluk of Jamkhandi derives its name from an old Chalukyan dedicated to, a form of the Hindu. The town of Aihole, formerly the capital of the Chalukyan Empire of Banavasi was previously known as Ayyavole and Aryapura meaning Noble city. The western taluk of Mudhol was traditionally known as Muduvollal &mdash; literally translating into lovely town. The ancient town of Pattadakal was previously known as Raktapura &mdash; red town and later as Pattadakal Kisuvoval''.

The astronomer  previously identified many towns in the district of Bagalkot. Pattadakal was referred to as Petrigal, while Badami was known as Badiamaioi

Divisions
Bagalkot district is divided into six taluks; each taluk is further subdivided into and villages and habitations. There are 18 hoblies in the district:


 *  taluk: Badami, Guledgudd, Kerur, Kulageri
 *  taluk: Bagalkot,, Sitimani
 *  taluk: Anagwadi, Bilagi
 *  taluk: Amingad, Hungund, Ilkal, Karadi
 *  taluk: Jamkhandi, Savalagi, Terdal
 *  taluk: Mahalingpur, Lokapur, Mudhol

History
Over 191 localities have been discovered in the  basin of the district. The discovery of settlements in the village of Lakhmapur near the Malaprabha valley yielded the identification of s such as s and s. A pre-Chalukyan brick  was discovered at the foothills of Bachinagudda, in Pattadakal where an idol depicting the bust of. Evidence of habitation was also discovered at the foothills of Bachinagudda, as were  and  coins of a later period.

The first documented evidence of the existence of Bagalkot district dates back to the 2nd century, when the taluks of Badami, Indi and Kalkeri were mentioned in the works of the. In the 6th century CE, the   rulers ruled over much of present. The Chalukyan king established Bagalkote as his administrative headquarters; the district retained its prominent status until the Chalukyan empire was sacked by the s in 753 CE. The explorer  visited Badami and described the people as "tall, proud,...brave and exceedingly chivalrous". He estimated the kingdom to be approximately 1,200 in circumference.

The rule of the Chalukyas of Badami, whose kingdom stretched from mordern Karnataka to and  was a highlight of Bagalkot's history. Chalukya king further consolidated the empire by battling with the s, s, s of the, s and Emperor , whom he vanquished on the banks of the  river Accounts of war were inscribed on stone structures in the town of , now located in the taluk of Hungund. The Chalukyas, descendants of the Badami Chalukyas conquered the area before the dawn of the 10th century CE. Their rule was intersperced with wars againsts the s and s. The Kalyani Chalukyas moved their capital from Badami to Kalyani, in the present day district of. , sister of the Kalyani Chalukya ruled in the area for more than 40 years from 1024 CE. During the course of her rule of the area, then known as, seventy villages from Bagalkot district were added to her administration. The Chola king seized the area by defeating  at Koodalasangama. By the 11th century CE, all of Karnataka including Bagalkot fell into the dominion of the Hoysala Empire, first consolidated by and later subordinated to the Sinda kings.

The s of annexed Bagalkot in 1190 CE and ruled until approximately the thirteenth century. The invasion by the , lead by  in 1294 brought an end to the rule of the Yadavas. In the 14th century, much of this territory was overrun by the. That the Taghlaqs were undisputed overlords of this territory cannot be established since, first king of the is supposed to have possessed territories as far north as Kaladgi in 1340 and because a fort was built under permission from Harihara in Badami during that time period. In the late 15th century, the dynasty founded by  established an independent state with  as its capital. It is from this time that Bagalkot's history is homogenous to that of Bijapur's. In 1818, after having lost their kingdom to the, the s of  were crowned underlords of the kingdom. With the failing of their brief reign which ended in 1948, the district passed into the hands of the and was incorporated into the dominion of the. According to the 2001 of the district, the towns of Bagalkot and Badami each had a population of over 100,000. Kannada is the primary language in the district. Approximately 88% of the district's population was Hindu, while 11% was Muslim. In September 1901 a swept through the district, particularly affecting Indi, Sindgi and Badami taluks.

India gained from the British in 1947; thereafter, the  of 1956 allowed for the creation of a Mysore State, renamed Karnataka in 1971, and for Bijapur (and therefore Bagalkot) to be included in its dominion. A separate district of Bagalkot was carved out from the existing Bijapur district in 1997.

Geography
The district of Bagalkot is situated entirely on the, which is part of the larger. Located in north-central Karnataka, Bagalkot is surrounded by to the west,  and  to the north and north-east,  to the east and,  and  to the south-east, south and south-west respectively. It is positioned at 16.2°N, 75.75°W and covers an area of 6593 km². Bagalkot district has six taluks &mdash; Bagalkot, Badami, Hungund, Mudhol, Jamkhandi and Bilgi. The average elevation in this area reaches approximately 610 m. The climate is warm and dry through out the year and rainfall is scarce. Bagalkot district receives the lowest rainfall annually in Karnataka. The months of September and December account for about 52% of the total annual rainfall.

Bagalkot is devoid of large canopy tree ; the region is. The,  and  flow through the region but are non. Soil in the area can be categorised as either the majority or minority. Black soil retains moisture and is often used for the cultivation of. and are primarily cultivated in Bagalkot, as are, cotton, , , ,  and. The district is also rich in mineral wealth. The village of Kaladgi, located 24 from the town of Bagalkot, harbours. also exists in the southern part of the district. Like much of Karnataka, the is the most common rock family. Common rock types in the region include, , and. The dry climate makes the region susceptible to and crop failure. The average rainfall in the region is approximately 318 annually. Bagalkot has not been affected by major activity due to it being located in the stable Zone II.

Demographics
Bagalkot is the second largest district in the and the 15th most populous district in Karnataka. With over 1,651,892 inhabitants (of which 28.97% were urban), Bagalkot accounts for over 18% of the total population of the Belgaum Division. Bagalkot has 6 taluks, comprising a total of 18 and 627 villages. Of the 6 taluks, two are categorised as "More Backward Taluk" and one as "Most Backward Taluk". The district has 163 s and 12 s. Bagalkot, with a decadal growth rate of about 19% is one of the ten fastest growing districts in Karnataka. Over 86% of the population in the district is Hindu, while 11% of the population is Muslim. s account for a little over 1% of the population, while s account for 0.17%. constitute about 17% of the total population. Communal tensions are fairly uncommon in Bagalkot. One of the few incidents documented in the city related to the stoning of a (RSS) procession near the Panka  in 1958. A ban order was imposed in Bagalkot in 2002 when RSS men were stoned during a procession near a high school.

, the state language of Karnataka, is the most widely spoken language in the district. The of the district is 57.3%, higher than national levels (52%) but lower than the mean literacy rate of the state (66.6%). Bagalkot ranks 22nd out of the 27 districts in Karnataka for adult literacy. The of Bagalkot is approximately 251 persons per square kilometer. Housing conditions in the district were identified as above average, per India's 2001 national census. About 96% of the houses surveyed were recorded as either "Good" or "Livable". penetration was about 67%.

Primary workers constitute about 43% of the district's population. Of these, 65% work in related activities. The of the district is 980 per 1000 males, considerably higher than the national average &mdash; 927. The district's is US$ 5.8 billion. The of the district is about US$ 350 annually.

Economy
Agriculture is the largest employer in Bagalkot, with over 65% of the working population engaged in it; approximately 80% of female workers in Bagalkot are engaged in agriculture. Like most of north Karnataka, Bagalkot is very rich in black soil which is conducive to the cultivation of cotton. Bagalkot's was valued at US$ 5.6 billion, making it the 12th largest economy in Karnataka. The approximate per capital income is US$ 360. The chief crops cultivated are rabi and jowar, as well as groundnut, cotton, maize, bajra, wheat, sugarcane and tobacco. Jowar is largely cultivated because it can be grown during as well as during the winters. The crop also is the chief supply of food for the people. are also grown in the region, primarily ',, kulith and '. , and  are also grown in Bagalkot. Water supply for irrigation includes reservoirs such as the Kendur reservoir, which is six miles from Badami and the Muchkundi reservoir, which is 4 miles from Badami. Famine due to lack of adequate rains is quite common in Bagalkot. A famine that struck the region in 1901 inflicted considerable financial loss to the agricultural industry in Bagalkot. The district has the fifth highest farmer suicide rate in Karnataka. Efficient water management techniques and government sops have only marginally mitigated the repercussions of the stricken district.

A sizable proportion of the population also consists of s. The chief manufactures are cotton and cloths. Large quantities of are also d and exported to other parts of the state and country. Most of the immigrants in the district are either s or cloth merchants.

Civic Administration
The is the head of the administration of the district of Bagalkot. The Deputy Commissioners office provides services to the district, collects census information, enforces  precedents, administers local elections and collects revenue. s assist the Deputy Commissioner in administrative matters at the taluk level &mdash; each taluk has one Tahalsidar. Rural areas of each taluk are administered by a locally elected, headed by a (CEO). The Zilla Panchayat is charged with rural development schemes related to irrigation, water supply, road and infrastructural facilities. Bagalkot district contributes one (MP) to India's. The district also contributes seven (MLA)s to Karnataka's, one from each taluk. Karnataka is one of only five states in the Indian union with an existing. Bagalkot district contributes four (MLC)s to the Vidhan Parishad.

Bagalkot district's Zilla Panchayat body consists of 26 members. Of these, a president and vice president of the Zilla Panchayat are also elected. In addition, five standing committees consisting of Zilla Panchayat members numbering no more than seven are elected. The five standing committees include Planning and Finance, General standing, Agriculture and Industry, Education and Health and Social Justice.

Culture
The culture of Bagalkot has been influenced traditionally by Kannada culture with prominent traces of Marathi culture as well, partly because of the district's proximity to Maharashtra and partly because of its past history of being a taluk under the Bombay Presidency. The North Karnataka of Kannada is primarily spoken in the district. Kannada itself is classified as a. The identifies  as the closest dialect to the particular dialect of Bagalkot. The traditional of the district is typical of the North Karnataka cuisine of the region. Jowar based food such as are popular. Other forms of made out of jowar are also common and are referred to as. As with most North Karnataka districts,, a s based dish is very popular and is usually eaten with Bhakri; the combination of these two dishes is referred to as Jhunka bhakar. Though not grown extensively in the district, rice, as in all of South India, is part of the staple diet and is imported from other parts of the state and region. and based s are common. town in Bagalkot district is famous for the s manufactured there.

The Chalukyan kingdoms of old have left an omnipotent presence in the district of Bagalkot. Several Hindu temples built by the Chalukyas exist in the town of Badami. Three cave-temple complexes constructed by the Chalukyan king (597 &mdash; 609 CE) exist within the district of Badami at the. Of the cave-temples at this site, three are while one is. The Badami fort, previously used by the Chalukyas as well as by also contains a prominent but now dilapitated  tower. Aihole, the former capital of the Chalukyan empire is a popular destination for Chalukyan and pre-Chalukyan art and architecture. Pattadakal contains a group of 10 major temples surrounded by minor s and s each depicting the architecture of the Chalukyas of Kalyani. The sanctioned a  centre in the town of Koodalasangama in honour of the social reformist Basavanna. , widely regarded as the founder of and prominent member of the  lived in Bagalkot and composed his music in Kannada.