Its salubrious climate, proximity to the coast and strategic position near Portuguese Goa commended it to the British as a suitable location for an army training center and cantonment, which it continues to be today for the Indian Armed Forces, along with an air force station of the Indian Air Force. The British had a sizable infantry post here, having realized the military importance of its geographical location. Perhaps that 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 East India Company and the British to exert control over India. Belgaum houses the Maratha Light Infantry Regimental Centre (MLIRC). It also houses the Commando Training Wing which is a part of the Infantry School, Mhow, where the country’s infantry commandos are trained in endurance, escape and evasion, guerrilla and commando warfare techniques and to live off the land. The commando course at Belgaum is mandatory for all infantry officers. Officers of other arms and services and even some foreign officers undertake the course. In between the military hospital and the commando training centre there lies the eminent Belgaum Military School, established in 1945 spread over an area of 64 acres (26 ha).
In 1474, the Bahmani Sultanate, then ruling from Bidar, captured the fort of Belgaum. Shortly afterward, in 1518, the Bahamani sultanate splintered into five small states and Belgaum became part of the Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur. The Adilshahis reinforced the fort of Belgaum; much of the existing structure dates from 1519. In 1686, the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb overthrew the Bijapur sultanate and Belgaum passed nominally to the Mughals. However, the Mughal empire went into decline after the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, and his principal detractors, the Maratha confederacy, took control of the area during the rule of the Peshwas (“prime ministers”). In 1776, the country was overrun by Hyder Ali of Mysore, but was retaken by the Peshwa with British assistance. In 1818, the British deposed the last Peshwa and annexed his kingdom, which included Belgaum. Kitturu Chennamma (1778–1829)- ???????? ???? ??????? was the queen of the princely state of Kittur in Karnataka. In 1824, 33 years before the 1857 War of Independence in Murree, she led an armed rebellion against the British in response to the Doctrine of lapse. The resistance ended in her martyrdom and she is remembered today as one of the earliest Indian rulers to have fought for independence.
Belgaum is the commercial hub and divisional headquarters of north Karnataka, ranking second to Bangalore in the state in terms of overall exports (mainly related to the automotive industry). Known as the “Bread Basket / Rice Bowl” of north Karnataka, it is an important source of vegetables, fruits, meat, poultry, fish, mining production, and wood (due to heavy rainfall, rivers and the abundance of water). Trading in north Karnataka is mainly with Goa, along with major cities like Pune and Bangalore. Rich deposits of bauxite are found in Belgaum district and have led to the creation of the Indian aluminium-producing company Hindalco Industries of the Aditya Birla Group. Additionally, uranium deposits have recently been found at Deshnur, a small village near Bailhongal town. Belgaum is a major producer of milk in the state, almost 1/3 or 30% of state’s production, and has the highest number of sugar factories; Belgaum, home to Ugar Sugar Works in Ugar, Renuka Sugars, and other large scale sugar factories, is also known as the Sugar Bowl of Karnataka.
The Vadgoan and Madhavpur suburbs of Belgaum were important urban centres between 400 BC and 300 AD. The present city was built in the 12th century AD by the Ratta dynasty, who were based at nearby Saundatti. The fort of Belgaum was built in 1204 by a Ratta officer named Bichiraja. Belgaum served as the capital of that dynasty between 1210 and 1250, before the Rattas were defeated by the Yadava Dynasty of Devagiri. Belgaum then briefly came under the sway of the Yadavas of Devagiri. The Khiljis of Delhi invaded the region at the turn of the 14th century and succeeded in ruining both indigenous powers of the region, the Yadava and the Hoysalas, without providing a viable administration. This lacuna was supplied by the Vijayanagara Empire, which had become the established power of the area by 1336. A century later, the town had become a bustling trading hub for diamonds and wood, owing to its favourable geographic location in the kingdom.
In 1916, the Karnataka Lingayat Education (KLE) Society was founded by seven founder life members, who are also addressed as “Saptarishis” (Seven Saints). On 13 November 1916, KLE Society started an Anglo Vernacular School in Belgaum (now G.A. High School). Lingaraj College came into existence in June 1933. In 1947, B.V.B. College of Engineering and Technology was started in Hubli. J.N. Medical College at Belgaum and G.H. College at Haveri were started in 1963. KLE also runs the world famous KLE engineering college in Belgaum, established in 1979. From 1984 onwards, KLE Society started dental, education, nursing, information technology, computer applications, hotel management, business management, tourism, fashion design, and agriculture colleges, as well as polytechnics across India. Today under the leadership of Mr. Prabhakar Kore, the KLE Society runs 207 institutions.
Belgaum enjoys rich cultural diversity stemming from its proximity to the states of Maharashtra and Goa. The customs and traditions of Belgaum have been influenced by both the Kannada and Marathi cultures. Traditional dressing in rural Belgaum is similar to the attires of people in the north Karnataka and Maharashtra; the men wear a turban with a long tailpiece at the rear and a dhoti (a sarong worn in a manner that allows easier movement) and the women wear saris. Both sexes have a strong preference for the Kolhapuri chappal, which are handcrafted in the villages near Ugar. However, in the city, the costumes are very much in tune with modern urban India.
Karnatak Law Society(KLS) was founded in 1939 by a group of diehard freedom fighters and eminent lawyers. Their distinguished vision and sheer service motto not only brought succor and solace to a large number of quality education aspirants but it also paved the way for the establishment of one of the greatest institutions of all times to come. KLS imparts unparalleled quality education in engineering, management and other allied areas to more than 20,000 students through eleven institutes situated in various parts of Northern Karnataka. KLS is managed by an elite pool of lawyers and engineers.
Belgaum is also an important educational hub, consisting of eight engineering colleges, five medical colleges, and some dental colleges across the city and district. Visvesvaraya Technological University, the largest university of Karnataka for technical education (for BE, Mtech, MCA, MBA) is based in Belgaum. Basic degree colleges, nine polytechnic colleges and three law colleges are other educational institutions. KLE, the Karnatak Lingayat Education Society, and KLS, Karnatak Law Society, are two educational giants based in Belgaum.
As per the provisional 2011 India census, the population of Belgaum city is 488,292, and its urban / metropolitan population is 610,189. Males constitute 51% (309,689) of the population and females 49% (300,500). Belgaum has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 65%; of those literate, 54% are males and 46% are females. Eleven percent of the population is under 6 years of age. The main language of the city is Marathi. There are also Kannada, Konkani, Urdu, Hindi and English speakers in the city.
Belgaum was chosen as the venue of the 39th session of the Indian National Congress in December 1924 under the presidency of Mahatma Gandhiji. The city served as a major military installation for the British Raj, primarily due to its proximity to Goa, which was then a Portuguese territory. Once the British left India, the Indian government continued and still continues to have armed forces installations in Belgaum. In 1961, the Indian government, under Prime Minister Nehru, used forces from Belgaum to end Portuguese rule of Goa.
The city is situated nearly 2,500 ft (762 m) above sea level and is the headquarters of Belgaum district, which borders the states of Maharashtra and Goa. Belgaum is also the headquarters for the Belgaum division. The division comprises the districts of Bagalkot, Belgaum, Bijapur, Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, and Uttara Kannada. The Government of Karnataka has proposed making Belgaum the second capital of the State of Karnataka; a second state administrative building Suvarna Vidhana Soudha was inaugurated on 11 October 2012.
The establishment of the Visvesvaraya Technological University in 1998, with the affiliation of more than 208 engineering colleges, raised the importance of Belgaum as a centre of education in Karnataka. Belgaum also hosts a number of medical colleges. The impact of this growth has considerably changed the cultural, linguistic and industrial profile of the city due to the influx of students from across India (and even across the world), some of whom made Belgaum their home base after completing their education there.
Belgaum is one of the major textile centres in the state with over 50,000 power looms (including unregistered units). Almost all of some areas in old Belgaum at Vadagaon, Khasbagh and Shahpur are engaged in business with power looms. Belgaum is known for Belgaum saris, which are sold under different brand names. Over 30,000 people are directly dependent on the power looms. There are also ready-made garment units, some of them export oriented, besides those manufacturing Khadi cotton products.
Belgaum Airport was the only airport in north Karnataka for many decades, and included an air force base. The airport currently serving the city is Belgaum Airport at Sambra, located at 10 km from the city on SH20. Belgaum was directly connected by air with Mumbai, but the only flight to Mumbai was stopped in November 2011 owing to a financial crisis at Kingfisher Airlines. Since then SpiceJet has announced daily flights to Bangalore starting from 22 Nov 2012.
With the passage of the States Reorganisation Act of 1956, which reorganised India’s states along linguistic lines, Belgaum was incorporated into the newly formed Mysore state (now Karnataka), despite the high proportion of Marathi speakers, who accounted for about three quarters of the total population at the time. Since then, Maharashtra has continued to claim the district, and the case is now with the Supreme Court of India.
Belgaum has a tropical savanna climate (K̦ppen climate classification Aw). It is known for its pleasant year-round climate. Belgaum is at its coldest in winter (November РFebruary temperatures dropping to 9 degrees Celsius; the minimum temperature in Karnataka state is usually recorded in Belgaum,) and it experiences almost continuous monsoon rains from June through September. Belgaum sometimes receives hail storms during April.
The name Belgaum had been proposed to be changed to Belagaavi by the Karnataka government. However, the central government has not agreed to rename the city, as Belgaum is caught between Karnataka and Maharashtra in a border dispute. One of the centre’s guidelines for renaming places is that the names should not hurt people’s sentiments, not have political overtones and not already be in use in any other state.
Belgaum is connected by road via national highways 4 (connecting Maharashtra (Now part of the Golden Quadrilateral), Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) and 4A (connecting Karnataka and Goa). NWKRTC run buses to all corners of Karnataka as well as neighboring states. There are many prominent private bus companies providing services to all major destinations in Karnataka and surrounding states.
Belgaum also is a strong industrial hub for machine shops catering to automotive manufacturing, especially crankshaft machining and castings. The geographical location of the city is an advantage, since it is situated between Bangalore and Mumbai–Pune, which supports the major automotive and aerospace companies along with other nearby industrial hubs such as Ichalkaranji and Hubli.
A wide variety of historical sites, temples and churches exist in and around the city, most notably the Kamala Basti fort, Kapileshwar temple (South Kashi), the hills of Vaijyanath, Ramtirth waterfalls, Revan Siddeshwr temple at Hunshevari situated in the valleys of Kakati, Siddeshwar temple in Kanbargi, the aerodrome at Sambra, and others.