Dharni, Amravati

Coordinates: 21°33′N 76°53′E / 21.55°N 76.883°E / 21.55; 76.883

Dharni is the largest village in Melghat tahsil with 628 houses and a population of 2,783 persons according to 1961 Census. It is the headquarters of Melghat tahsil and forms the terminus of the high road through the hills from Achalpur to Burhanpur. It is 96–540 km (60 miles) distant from Achalpur and 148 km (92 mi) from Amravati.^[1]

Dharni was noted for the malaria infested areas, but these have since been cleared of malaria and brought under cultivation. The land is very fertile, chief crops being wheat and gram. For irrigation river Tapi has been tapped here. Melghat tahsil is rich in timber forests and hence the State Government have established a timber depot here. Most of the timber after local consumption is chiefly exported to Bombay. There are the offices of the Tahsildar, State Electricity Board. Tribal Welfare Officer and the Pancayat Samiti. It has a branch of the District Co-operative Bank and two other Cooperative Societies. The village has a primary School, a Multipurpose High School, a Post-office and a Police station. A dispensary is conducted by the Zilla Parisad. Recently a maternity home has been established.

Now Dharni is biggest commercial center in 100 radius of Melghat.The growth of dharni is bound by Proposed Tapi dam initial rate of growth is very fast than today. Most papular for Korku Adiwasi

MIDC-Dharni (Melghat) (Group D)^[2]

Dharni Industrial Area is one of the mini Industrial area in the Amravati District. MIDC has developed Dharni mini Industrial area by providing the best infrastructure to attract local entrepreneurs and industrialist.

Particulars Details Total area acquired 10.00 Hectares. Area developed 7.37 Hectares. Available for allotment 19 Nos. (7.37 Hectares).

Land Rates Industrial Plots per sq. mtr : 25 Commercial Plots per sq. mtr : 50

The News: The rich forests of Melghat are home to an impoverished people^[3]

Melghat hit the headlines in 1997 for the death of 500 adivasi children due to malnutrition. Children have been dying every year, especially during the rains when the adivasis do not have adequate employment for daily earnings.

Melghat is a vast forested tract spread over two tehsils of Amravati district, Chikhaldara and Dharni. It covers a geographical area of about 4,426 km². Of this, 3,630 km² is in Chikhaldara. This tehsil retains its dense forest cover because of its comparatively low population—about 76,000 people in 197 villages. The 796 km² of Dharni tehsil have fewer forests due to the pressure of 1.13 lakh people living in 153 villages.

It was earlier estimated that the deaths of adivasi children mostly occurred in Dharni and not in the Melghat Tiger Reserve. The problem has now spread, with deaths in 39 villages of the Multiple Use Area (MUA) of the tiger reserve. The reserve covers 1,676 km² of forests. It includes the Gugamal National Park (361.28 km²), which has no village within its boundaries, the Melghat Wildlife Sanctuary (788.75 km²) with 19 villages and a MUA (526.90 km²) with the 39 villages.

The reserve has a human population of 25,000. Of these, 8000 people live in 19 villages of the sanctuary and 17,000 adivasis live in the 39 villages of the MUA. Studies have shown that one of the reasons for the rising child deaths among the Korkus of Melghat is that they are denied access to traditional foods like wild flowers, tubers, fruits, crabs and fish from the rich forest.

References

1. ^ http://www.maharashtra.gov.in/english/gazetteer/AMRAVATI/places_Dharni.html
2. ^ http://midcindia.com/MIDCWebSite/investment/industrial/IndustrialDetails.aspx?id=121
3. ^ http://infochangeindia.org/200610175664/Agenda/Hunger-Has-Fallen-Off-The-Map/-All-we-want-is-to-live.html