Hubli–Dharwad

Hubli–Dharwad has a religiously diverse population. At the time of the 2011 census, over two thirds of the population were Hindus. Over a quarter were Muslim, the largest minority religion. Small minorities of Christians and Jains also live here.[8]

Kannada is the local language spoken in this city. English is also spoken in the city.

Hubli–Dharwad Municipal Corporation is municipal corporation for twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad in Karnataka state in India. It was constituted in 1962 by combining two cities separated by a distance of 20 kilometers. The area covered by the corporation is 181.66 km² (70.14 sq mi). spread over 45 revenue villages. The population of the twin cities as per the 2011 census is 943,788 of which 474,518 are males and 469,270 are female. Total literates are 727,103 of which 382,913 are males while 344,190 are female. The average literacy rate of Hubli and Dharwad city is 86.79 percent of which male and female literacy was 91.12 and 82.44.[9][10] Hubli–Dharwad's population increased 22.99% between 1981 and 1991, from 527,108 to 648,298, and by 21.2% between 1991 and 2001. The municipality covers 191 km² (74 sq mi).

Hubli–Dharwad is a 3rd fastest growing city, & developing industrial hub in Karnataka after state capital, with more than 1000 allied small and medium industries established in Gokul Road[11] and Tarihal[12] regions of Hubli. There are machine tools industries, electrical, steel furniture, food products, rubber and leather industries, and tanning industries.

To promote the overall economic development of industries, institutions and businesses, the Karnataka Chamber of Commerce & Industry[13] was formed. It is one of the premier associations, which has been gaining momentum in achieving potential growth and prosperity in Hubli region.[14] One key aspect of industrialisation for Hubballi-Dharwad was foundation of Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs), which aimed at providing hassle-free market conditions for farmers, to establish regulated and stimulated production of agricultural related commodities and goods.[15][16]

Hubli Airport

Hubli Airport (IATA: HBX, ICAO: VOHB) is a domestic airport serving the twin cities of Hubli-Dharwad and North Karnataka in the state of Karnataka, India. It is situated on Gokul Road, 8 kilometres from city center and 20 km (12 mi) from Dharwad. It is the third busiest airport in Karnataka & the 45th busiest airport in India. In March 2020, Hubli airport received the best airport award under government of India's Regional connectivity scheme.[17] Hubli airport connects to 10 destinations throughout the country. Efforts are being taken to upgrade it to international standards.[18][19]

South Western Railway headquarters, Hubli railway station

The city currently has four stations and one Junction. The Hubli Junction railway station is the main railway station in the city with a built-up area of 161460 sq. ft.[20] The other stations are Hubli South, Hubli East, Unkal, and Amargol. Hubli is the headquarters of the South Western Railway zone. It was carved out as a zone from the current South Central Railway. It is the centre for the Hubli Division. The Hubli Division is one of the highest revenue-generating divisions in India. Hubli is well-connected by the Indian Rail Network. Hubli, an important railway junction, has trains connecting with major cities like Mumbai, New Delhi, Varanasi, Hyderabad, Tirupati, Vijaywada, Kolkata, Chennai Rameshwaram etc [21] In November 2019, the work for extending a platform was undertaken by the Railways at the estimated cost of 90 Cr. According to railway officials, the length of the renewed platform is estimated at 1,400 meters, which would be longest in the world. The work is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2020.[22] Hubbali also has a Heritage Rail museum. The Indian Railways currently has 11 railway museums across the country. For bringing glory to the proposed Rail Museum, narrow-gauge Railway Rolling Stocks, from different Railways are being displayed and work is moving at a rapid pace. It is proposed to collect photographs of Rail network going back to the 19th and early 20th century so that all old memories of Rail Journey can be part of the photo gallery in the proposed Rail Heritage Museum.[23]

Hubli lies on the "Golden Quadrilateral". Asian Highway 47 passes through Hubli. It lies on National Highway 63 (Ankola–Gooty) and National Highway 218 (Hubli–Humnabad), which connect Hubli with major cities in the region. NWKRTC (North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation) is a state-run corporation headquartered at Hubli. A semi ring road connecting NH4 (Mumbai-Chennai), NH67 (Ankola–Gooty) and NH218 (Hubli–Humnabad) with cloverleaf junction at Gabbur is already under construction.

Hubballi-Dharwad BRTS (also known as HDBRTS) is a bus rapid transit system built to serve the twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad, located in the North-Western part of Karnataka state in India. Hubballi-Dharwad BRTS (HDBRTS) project is a Government of Karnataka initiative to foster long-term economic growth in the region. The project promotes fast, safe, comfortable, convenient and affordable public transportation between the twin cities and aims to reduce congestion and air pollution in the region.

The length of the Hubballi-Dharwad BRTS corridor is 22.25 km (13.83 mi) from CBT Hubli to CBT–Dharwad with the width of the cross-sections ranging from 44 to 35 m (144 to 115 ft). The BRTS corridor includes segregated bus lanes, access-controlled bus stations, physical and fare integration with BRT feeder services, off-board ticketing through smart cards and bar-coded paper tickets, intelligent transport system and high-quality buses (Standard AC buses). The corridor is designed for operating regular and express services. It consists of two lanes for BRTS buses on either side of the median bus station facilitating overtaking lanes for express services. Foot overbridges at six locations, PELICAN signals, and synchronised signal management are proposed to facilitate the easy approach of passengers to bus stations.[24]

The national level award winners.

The Jnanpith Award is a literary award in India, it is one of the two most prestigious literary honours in the country.

• D.R. Bendre
• Vinayaka Krishna Gokak
• Girish Karnad

• Bhimsen Joshi

• Gangubai Hangal
• Mallikarjun Mansur
• Basavaraj Rajguru
• Bhimsen Joshi

• Mallikarjun Mansur
• Gangubai Hangal
• Bhimsen Joshi

• Mallikarjun Mansur
• D. R. Bendre
• Vijay Sankeshwar
• Basavaraj Rajguru
• Dr. Mahipati M Joshi
• Dr. R B Patil
• Bhimsen Joshi

• V R Panchamukhi

• Kumar Gandharva
• Sawai Gandharva
• Venkatesh Kumar

• Shanta Hublikar
• Leena Chandavarkar
• V.K. Gokak

• Patil Puttappa
• Narayanacharya
• Sudha Murthy
• G. A. Kulkarni
• C. P. Siddhashrama

• Rai Saheb Ganpatrao Narayanrao Madiman (1879-1947) - Businessman and banker
• Gururaj Deshpande - Founder of Sycamore Networks[26]
• Vijay Sankeshwar - Founder and owner of VRL Group
• Sudha Murthy - co-founder of Infosys
• Nandan Nilekani - co-founder of Infosys