Challakere

—  city  —
Challakere Location of Challakere in Karnataka and India
Coordinates	14°19′N 76°39′E / 14.32°N 76.65°E / 14.32; 76.65Coordinates: 14°19′N 76°39′E / 14.32°N 76.65°E / 14.32; 76.65
District(s)	Chitradurga
Population	49,065 (2001[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 585 metres (1,919 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 577 522 • Telephone • +08195 • Vehicle • KA-16

Challakere is a town in Chitradurga district in the state of Karnataka, India

Geography

Challakere is located at 14°19′N 76°39′E / 14.32°N 76.65°E / 14.32; 76.65.^[1] It has an average elevation of 585 metres (1919 ft).

Demographics

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[2] Challakere had a population of 49,065. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Challakere has an average literacy rate of 69%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 75% and female literacy of 62%. 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Oil Industry

Challakere is also known as the 'oil city' of Karnataka and is India's second largest producer/supplier of edible oil after Mumbai. There are as many as 60+ oil industries in Challakere. Not only oil, several other industries like dal, fried gram, rice etc. are also present. The commercial activity in the town is comparable to that of a standard district and the district enjoys a huge business turnover out of town's business.

Kambali Business

Challkere is famous for kambali (woven blankets) made by the local Kuruba people. Challakere kambali are sending to various markets across India.

Temples

The challakere is also a place of the beautiful temple of Lord Veerabhadra Swamy. The Jaathre of the lord Veerabhadra Swamy occurs every year at the end of April. The turnout for the Jaathre is huge. Atmanand a great saint and share broker his diversified attitude is very much helpful to the society.

The famous Datta Mandir is located in Tyagaraja Nagar, and traditional practices of Datta Sampradaya, including miracles, can be seen at this temple. There is an audumbara tree which has branched into three segments symbolising datta avatar. The tree is full of fruits, which normally attract many insects, but these are not seen in this tree. A great saint, Srinivasa Datta Yogishwar, who lived for about 112 years, like an avadootha. You can see his samadhi in this mandir. Now the mandir is run by Dr. G.S.Govindadas, a well known ayurvedic practioner. There is a sacred well in front of the datta idol. In the surrounding areas the water table is 150 to 200 ft (61 m) down, but the 'sacred Ganga' in this well is at 6 ft (1.8 m). and the level remains constant throughout the year. There are legends that, the well known avadooth Satupasi of Dodderi (previously called Mallanna) also attained datta sakshatkara in this sacred place. Datta mandir has become a shelter for wellknown saints and vidwans. It encourages people in both spiritual and social development. The tiny place has a attracted many saints from all over the country. Datta Jayanthi, Gurupurnima, Gurupadyami are the major celebrations. A sacred place one must visit and get the blessings of lord dattatreya.

Ajjan Gudi is well known for its beautiful location beside the Ajjana Kere, which is the main water source for surrounding wells and drinking water for challakere.

Chellakere is also famous for its Challekere temple, at Bellary Road. Challakeramma Jathre is conducted once every five years. in this Jathra more than 15000 people will participate to get blessings of Challakeramma.

Upcoming Projects

Challakere is 200 km from Bangalore where an integrated township spread over 8,000 acres (32 km²) will be set up by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). This will be the first of its kind and will create one of India's largest science and Research hubs^[when?].

References

1. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Challakere
2. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20040616075334/http://www.censusindia.net/results/town.php?stad=A&state5=999. Retrieved 2008-11-01.