Jawhar, a hill station in the Palghar district of Maharashtra in the Konkan division is a city and the oldest municipal council established in the year 1918. Perched at an altitude of 447m, the city of Jawhar is situated in the Sahayadri mountain ranges of the Western Ghats, and is known for its picturesque setting and vibrant cultural heritage. Jawhar is a tropical area, mostly surrounded by green deciduous trees and has a good climatic condition almost all throughout the year.
History of Jawhar
The state of Jawhar was founded in the year 1343 by Raja Jayaba Munke of the Munke Dynasty. Being a princely state, Jawhar was part of the Bombay presidency under the British rule. The state of Jawhar went through many transitions for over 600 years like the developmental neglect due to low revenue generation and haphazard organisation. Before its formal integration into the Union of India in 1947, Jawhar"s last ruler was Yashwant Rao Munke, under whom the city flourished and a significant improvement in its development was noticed. His predecessor Raja Ratan Singh IV was also a capable ruler who improved and developed the city. It is also known that Jawhar served as camping point for the Maratha King Shivaji and his army en route to Surat.
Culture of Jawhar
Jawhar is one of the few remaining tribal regions of Maharashtra, and is home to the Warli, Kolcha and Kukana tribes. These tribal communities take special efforts to preserve their culture and traditions. The famous Warli paintings are a characteristic landmark of the place, drawn with white on red background depicting scenes from everyday life of the Warli people. They are now also made in varied colours. Because of its immense popularity, these paintings help educate outsiders on the cultural heritage of the tribes. There is also the traditional culture of Bohada or a fair, which is being followed since ancient times and here one can see and experience the tribal culture.
Tourist Attractions of Jawhar
Located 0.5 km towards west, from the heart of the city is the prime tourist attraction called the Sunset Point also known as Dhanukamal because of its bow shape. It is a heritage of lovers and during sunset one can see the mountain of Mahalaxmi near Dahanu. The most popular historical tourist attraction is the neoclassical palace of Jai Vilas built with majestic pink syenite stones, which is a coarse grained intrusive rock. Jai Vilas also known as Raj Bari was a residential palace of the Munke royal dynasty built under the patronage of Raja Yashwant Rao Munke.
Another tourist sight of the city is the Hanuman point, from where one can see the historical fort of Shahapur Maholi. There is also an old temple of Maruti near the point called the Katya Maruti temple surrounded by dark forests of cactus. There is also a magnificent Dabhosa- Dadarkopara Fall, which is one of the highest waterfalls in Maharashtra. Situated on Lendi River surrounded by straight mountains covered with medicinal plants, the Darbhosa waterfall has a height of 300 feet. Few other tourist spots are the Kal Mandavi waterfall, Khad Khad dam, Shirpamal and the Jai Sagar Dam.
The nearest airport is at Nasik while the railway station is at Igatpuri at a distance of 61 km.
