Chakan is a census town

Census town

In India, a census town is one which has:# A minimum population of 5,000# At least 75% of male working population engaged in non-agricultural pursuits# A density of population of at least 400 persons per km2.In Ireland, a census town is;...

 in the Pune district

Pune District

Pune District is situated in Maharashtra state of India. Pune city is the district headquarters. In the last census on 2001, the total population of the district was 7,232,555, making it the fourth most populous district in India . Urban population comprises 58.08% of the total population...

 of the India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

n state

States and territories of India

India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...

 of Maharashtra

Maharashtra

Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

.

Geography

"Kuruli" is place near to Chakan is located at 18.75°N 73.85°E. It has an average elevation of 646 metres (2,119.4 ft).

Chakan is about 34 kilometres (21.1 mi) from Pune, on NH 50 between Pune and Nashik cities. It is also on the roads that connect the Pune-Mumbai Highway to the Pune-Nashik Highway and to the Pune-Ahmednagar-Aurangabad Highway. It is about 150 kilometres (93.2 mi) from Mumbai

Mumbai

Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

, 120 kilometres (74.6 mi) from Ahmednagar and 175 kilometres (108.7 mi) from Nashik.

Economy

Historically, Chakan has been a wholesale agricultural produce trading hub. It's agricultural market was a major onion trading center.

Chakan is now home to a Special Economic Zone

Special Economic Zone

A Special Economic Zone is a geographical region that has economic and other laws that are more free-market-oriented than a country's typical or national laws...

 (SEZ) promoted by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation

Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation

Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation is a project of the Government of Maharashta State in India, and is the leading corporation of Maharashtra....

 (MIDC). It has since evolved into a major automobile hub. It hosts automobile production plants for the Volkswagen Group

Volkswagen Group

Volkswagen Group is a German multinational automobile manufacturing group. , Volkswagen was ranked as the world’s third largest motor vehicle manufacturer and Europe's largest....

, Daimler-Benz

Daimler-Benz

Daimler-Benz AG was a German manufacturer of automobiles, motor vehicles, and internal combustion engines; founded in 1926. An Agreement of Mutual Interest - which was valid until year 2000 - was signed on 1 May 1924 between Karl Benz's Benz & Cie., and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, which had...

, Mahindra & Mahindra and Bajaj Auto

Bajaj Auto

Bajaj Auto is a major Indian vehicle manufacturer started by Jamnalal Bajaj from Rajasthan in the 1930s. It is based in Pune, Maharashtra, with plants in Chakan , Waluj and Pantnagar in Uttaranchal. The oldest plant at Akurdi now houses the R&D centre Ahead...

. Over 750 large and small industries, including a number of automobile component manufacturers are based in the area.

Shiroli Chandus village, located 6 km north of Chakan, has been identified as a probable site for the proposed Pune International Airport

Pune Airport

Pune International Airport is located approximately north-east of Pune in the state of Maharashtra, India. The airport, operated by the Airports Authority of India, shares its runway with Lohegaon Air Base. The airport gained an international status when flights to Dubai and Singapore were...

.

Tourism

Chakan boasts the Sangram Durga or Bhueekot Killa, which was once the domain of Chhatrapati Shivaji. The fort is built on level ground and surrounded by the fortified walls and turrets. It differs from most Indian forts which were traditionally built on hilly, elevated land. The fort was the site of an epic 54 days of stiff resistance by the Maratha

Maratha Empire

The Maratha Empire or the Maratha Confederacy was an Indian imperial power that existed from 1674 to 1818. At its peak, the empire covered much of South Asia, encompassing a territory of over 2.8 million km²....

 general Firangoji Narsala against Mughal

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 Sardar Shahistekhan. The fort withstood heavy Mughal attacks until the Mughals breached the walls using high explosives. The following attack on the fort was repulsed by the Marathas. But short on supplies, Firangoji counter attacked and cut his way deep in to the Mughal encampment where he was finally subdued and captured.

The Chakreshwar temple is another site of importance. Legend has it that it is the site where King Dasharatha was battling a Rakshasa

Rakshasa

A Rakshasa or alternatively rakshas, is a race of mythological humanoid beings or unrighteous spirit in Hindu and Buddhist religion...

 (Demon King), when the wheel of his ratha

Ratha

Ratha is the Indo-Iranian term for the spoked-wheel chariot of Antiquity.It derives from a collective to a Proto-Indo-European word for "wheel" that also resulted in Latin rota and is also known from Germanic, Celtic and Baltic...

 (chariot) was stuck in mud near the pond of Chakreshwar. When his wife Kaikeyi

Kaikeyi

Kaikeyi , in the Hindu epic Rāmāyaṇa, was the second of King Daśaratha's three wives and a queen of Ayodhyā. She was the mother of Bharata...

 helped get the wheel unstuck, Dasharatha granted her three wishes, that eventually led to the exile of Rama

Rama

Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...

 and the subsequent events of the epic Ramayana

Ramayana

The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...

.

In May, Chakan celebrates a major festival called Khandobacha Urs.

Demographics

India census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

, Chakan town had a population of 21,674. Males constituted 54% of the population and females 46%, due to higher migrant workers in tehe neighboring industries. Chakan had an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 78% and female literacy of 65%. 15% of the population was under 6 years of age. Since then the town has seen multi-fold growth due to a number of new automobile industries that have been established in the area.

Some of the popular residential areas in Chakan include Talegaon Chowk, Main Road, Bramhin Lane, Deshmukh Lane, Mal Ali, Bazar Peth, Nanekarwasi, Medankarwadi, Kadachi Wadi, Vishal Park and Market Yard.

Shri Shivaji Vidya Mandir is the oldest school in town on the Main road between Marketyard and Bazar Peth.

Transport

Chakan is located 34 km from Pune City on the National Highway 50, between Pune and Nashik. Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation runs frequent and extensive bus services that connect to various parts of Maharashtra

Maharashtra

Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

 state. PMPML buses connect Chakan to Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad

Pimpri-Chinchwad

Pimpri-Chinchwad is a city in the Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India. It consists of the twin towns of Pimpri and Chinchwad which are governed by a common municipal body...

. Highways connecting to Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad have heavy traffic due to extensive industrial growth in the area.

Chakan is also on the Pune Junction - Nashik Road

Nashik Road

Nashik Road is the name given to the suburb of Nashik that has the city's railway station...

 railway line. The nearest airport is the current Pune International Airport.

The proposed site of a new, expanded Pune International Airport is at Shiroli

Shiroli

Shiroli is a village in Belgaum district in the southwestern state of Karnataka, India....

 and Chandus villages, about 6 km from Chakan. Phase III of the Pune Metro

Pune Metro

Pune Metro is a proposed metro rail project in the city of Pune, India, and its surrounding Metropolitan Area. The preparation of project Report work was undertaken by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation in 2007, and has identified three prospective routes in the area. The project is expected to be...

 will connect Chakan to Moshi, which hosts an International Convention and Exhibition centre.