Virar

(This material is mostly from Wikipedia)

Virar is a city in Maharashtra, India, part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Virar is also a part of Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation in Thane district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Virar railway station is the northern-most railway station on the Western Line of Mumbai Suburban Railway.

History

The name Virar comes from the Indian philosopher Jeevan Virar. Some however argue that the name actually comes from the Goddess Eka-viraa. There is a huge temple of Eka-vira Devi on the banks of Vaitarna River at the foot hills Tunga Parvat, (this is now totally broken by the continuous raids of Mohamedeans and Portuguese in the last 400 years), where people used to conclude their “Shurpaaraka Yatra”, as described in the Puranas and local legends. There is a huge tank here dedicated to Eka veera Devi called “Viraar Tirtha”, i.e. “Eka- Viraa Tirtha”. Even today, on the west banks of Viraar Tirtha, one finds a carved stone about three feet long and nine inches broad. Below that is a group of female figures of the Yoginis of Ekaveera Devi. Nearby one can find a stone with a roughly cut cow and calf (Savatsa Dhenu), a symbol of Govardhana Math which symbolizes eternity or Moksha. Moving ahead near the foot of a knoll of rock are two cow’s feet (Go-Paad) roughly cut in rock.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Virar had a population of 118,945. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Virar has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 81%, and female literacy is 74%. In Virar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age. Over a period of time Virar has become a cosmopolitan suburb with approximately 70% population being Marathi speaking and the rest a mix of other communities, mainly the Catholics and the Gujaratis. 70% of the population is below 30 years.

Education

The city's public school system is managed by the education ministry of the Government of Maharashtra. Hence the syllabus is under the state pattern devised by the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education. There are also other private schools who offer syllabus under C.B.S.E. and I.C.S.E. guidelines besides the state pattern. The late Shri Vishnu Waman Thakur Charitable trust and the Agashi-Virar-Arnala Education Society are the two most prominent bodies which have opened many institutes offering education ranging from Kindergarten to Ph.D. degrees in Virar. One can get graduate and post graduate degrees in Arts, Commerce, Commerce, Management studies and Technology through these institutes.

Tourism and places of attraction

Despite being in close proximity to the ever busy lifestyle of Mumbai, Virar manages to be a well known tourist place for many reasons.

Jivdani Temple
It is famous throughout the country for its only temple of Goddess Jivdani which is located around 1375 steps above the ground level, atop a hill in the eastern part of the city. People from far away places come to take the blessings of the Goddess. It is too much crowded especially during the Navratri festival. Many people in the region especially the Mangelas, the Kolis and the Bhandaris, worship the goddess as their family deity. The Papadkhandi dam situated at the foothills, was one of the major source of fresh water in the location, but is not enough because of the growing polulation of Virar.

Jain Temple
For Jain Community (Sthanakwasi jain, Deravasi and Others) all around Mumbai, this Jain Temple located at Agashi, about 5 kilometers from the Station is very famous amongst Jains who visit this place Daily and specially on Saturdays, as it is one of the very old temples in Mumbai and the adjoining region. This 400 year old temple has beautiful old carvings of the Lords of Jain community like Shri Mahavir, Lord Ghantagharan bhagvan and some specially decorated carvings of old times.

Vajreshwari temple
Vajreshwari is famous for its temple and hot water springs. It is mentioned in ancient "Puran" or holy books as a place blessed by the footsteps of Lord Rama and Lord Parashuram. In medieval ages Vajreshwari was known as Vadvali. It was called Vajreshwari after reincarnation of Vajrayogini in the Vajreshwari area. There are 52 steps to climb up to the main temple. It offers a commanding view of surrounding area from the temple. The view is beautiful during monsoon when all the surrounding fields are cultivated with rice fields and all the vegetation is emerald green. There are hot water springs in the Vajreshwari area as well as in Ganeshpuri and in Akoli. The hot water springs are a must bath for Vajreshwari devi devotees. The springs have high sulfur content and is believed to cure many skin ailments.

St. Peter's Church, Arnala
This church was erected in the early part of the 20th century and was one of the first under the Archdiocese of Bombay. Fr. Ismail Da Costa, built a hut chapel in 1919 near Arnala beach. Later with help from local people of all faiths he constructed the Church of St. Peter. Archbishop Joaquim Lima (Archbishop of Bombay) blessed the church on Dec. 27, 1931. Other historical churches in neighbourhood are St. James Church (Agashi) and Church of Holy Spirit (Nandakhal).

St. James Church
The St. James church located at Agashi on the road connecting Virar and Arnala, was first built in 1558. Portuguese were the best known seafarers among the European clans who built homes near the sea wherever they went. ‘Agasi’, the then small port village was one such place. Owing to its nearness to the sea and availability of wood from the jungles, which the Portuguese needed for boat building and constructions, Agashi soon became a permanent settlement for the Portuguese. The St. James Church that came into being during this early period was built using stones and bricks hence it withheld during the Muslim attacks of 1594. But during the raids of Marathas of 1739 it was mostly destroyed. The Marathas however permitted the priests to carry on religious ceremonies in the region and the church was rebuilt by 1760. In the year 1900 the church was renovated.


Arnala Fort
The Fort is located on a small island off the Arnala port. Since the fort is built on an island and surrounded on all sides by water it is also known as "Jaldurg" or "Janjire Arnala". The Portuguese called the island "Ilha das vacas" which means 'Island of the cows' in Portuguese. Before the Portuguese control of the island, the island was controlled by the Muslim rulers of Gujarat. The island is near the mouth of Vaitarna river and the Portuguese used it to observe and control shipping and navigation along the western coast. The Portuguese captain of Bassein donated the island to a Portuguese nobleman. The nobleman tore down the old fort and began construction of 700 foot by 700 foot fort. The fort was never completed by the nobleman but remained under Portuguese control.

Vasai fort (Bassein fort)
The Portuguese established a fort in Bassein, present day Vasai, on the mainland just north of the Bombay archipelago. The fort was fronted by a harbour. With this as the main base, they built other smaller forts, and strong houses in many of the islands. In the 18th century the fort was attacked by the Marathas under Baji Rao Peshwa, and fell in 1739 after a three year long campaign. The remains of the fort can be reached by bus or taxi from the Vasai railway station. The ramparts overlook Vasai creek and are almost complete, though overgrown.


Beach and resorts
The famous Arnala beach and Rajodi beach is situated just a few km west of the railway station. It is a favourite spot for the teenagers and elderly alike. There are regular State transport buses and autos that carry the tourists to the beaches from the railway station. There are many resorts such as the Arnala Beach Resort, the Green Paradise resort, Swagat resort, etc., that have come up recently owing to the increase in number of people coming from the main city land. The major occupation of farmers near Arnala beach is Floriculture and they cultivate wide variety of flowers. They also cultivate rice and various varied variety of vegetables.

Yazoo Park
It is one of the best option to spend a day with the families-with loads of fun and entertainment at Virar. It is located at Global City, Before Narangi Phata, Virar West and spread over 12-acre of area. It is about 10 minutes from Virar Station. It is started in 2011 and comprises: · Toy Trains · Giant Wheel · Merry-Go-Round · Free Fall · Game Zone · Bump'em Cars · Floating Restaurant, etc.

Great Escape
It is located near the Western Express Highway, off the Vajreshwari-Parol-Bhivandi road area. Its an ideal picnic place for one looking for resort with fun water park rides. Great Escape water park also has clubs which makes this place ideal to stay with a picturesque environment around.

Sports

Paragliding
Virar is the closest and the best place near Mumbai for paragliding training. Being a coastal area the winds at Virar are laminar, predictable and ideal for aviation sports. Early morning and evening winds are suitable for beginners and mid and early afternoon conditions are perfect for advance flyers. Sydney hill, Black Beauty hill, Twin Rock hill, Jivdani hill, Tungareshwar, Kaner hills are a few locations for hill flying. Virar is the only place near Mumbai with so many choices all in a radius of about 6 km. Virar has hundreds of acres of open land where winch based training is conducted.

Vasai-Virar Kala Krida Mahotsav
It is an annual sports event for the sportspersons of Virar and the neighbouring localities. The event has been a great success for the last 17 years, with participation coming from regional schools, colleges and grampanchayats. Other games like Karate and Kho-Kho have created state level players. Every year this event is conducted at the year end precisely from the 26th of Dec. to the new years night at the Chimajiappa Playground and the New English School, Vasai.

Governance

Virar falls under the jurisdiction of the newly created Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation(VVMC). It primarily comes in the Nalla Sopara comstituency for the Maharashtra Legislative Aaembly elections and in the Palghar constituency for the Lok Sabha elections. For all the three seats, the ruling party, Bahujan Vikas Aaghadi(BVA) has showed its dominance. The BVA has won 55 seats out of the 89 in the VVMC. Thus Virar elected Shri. Rajeev Patil as its first Mayor who was also the ex-President of the preceding Virar Municipal Council. For the Legislative Assembly seat, Kshitij Thakur, a BVA candidate and the son of ex-MLA of the region, Hitendra Thakur, won the seat in 2009, defeating Shirish Chavan of the Shiv Sena. Earlier in the 15th Lok Sabha elections, people voted for Baliram Sukur Jadhav, also a BVA candidate, as the Member of Parliament from the Palghar constituency.