Baner

Tukai Devi Mandir Baner (Established 400 years ago)

Tukai Devi Mandir Baner (Established 400 years ago)

History of Baner dates back to the 17th century, when the Kalamkar family inherited Baner, becoming the rulers of the area.[2] Kavaji Kalamkar built a temple of the goddess "Tukai Mata" on a hillock near Baner, which is now known as Baner Hill, part of the Baner-Pashan Biodiversity Park.

Jyoti Ganesh Kalamkar, Swapnali Pralhad Saykar, Amol Ratan Balwadkar and Baburao Dattoba Chandere are the current corporators of Baner ward (PMC ward Number: 09) in Pune Municipal Corporation.[3]

Baner lies in the western side of Pune. Once in the outskirts, now it is merged into Pune with the help of rapid urbanisation. Baner lies on the foothills of the hills comprising the Baner-Pashan Biodiversity Park. Baner has an average elevation of 570 m ASL. The river, Ramnadi flows through the suburb.[4]

Bagad festival in Baner

Shri Ram, Hanuman, Lakshmi, Tukai, Divyai, Bhairavnath, Sant Savatamali, Baneshwar, Vitthal Rukmini, Ganpati, Dattatray and many temples are part of cultural heritage of Baner. The most prominent temple in Baner is the Bhairavnath Temple(known as GramDaivat which means Town Deity), located in middle of the town. During Navratri, there is a large procession to this temple and worshippers gather from around the town to pray here. On every Akshaytritiya people celebrates "Urus(GramDaivat festival)" here which continuous for 3–4 days. In Urus they organize Tamasha, Kusti and fair. Dattajayanti, Ram Navami, Savatamali Punyatithi, Bhagwanbaba and Navratri are big festivals of Baner. Bhairavnath Devasthan trust organizes "Ek Gav Ganpati Miravnuk Ek" program every year which gives every Ganpati Mandal in the town to show their talent in front of the whole town. On every Hanuman Jayanti, people celebrate "Bagada Festival" in the evening.[5]

Until 2005, Baner was known for its agricultural development. Now, due to the huge number of IT industries and residential complexes, Baner lost this status. Mango, Guava, Tamarind, Plums were the famous fruits of Baner. "Baneri Bore" (Plums of Baner) got the brand name because of Baner.

Baner Hill is a hill that separates two suburbs of Pune, Pashan and Baner. The hill is the third highest point within the city limits, with an elevation of 2,224 feet (678 m), surpassed by the Vetal Hill and the Sutarwadi Hill. There is a temple located in the northern foot of the hill. The place is an excellent getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city and provides a great morning trek location for the weekends. One can view the whole of baner on one side and the pashan area from the other. The place is actually the home for a plantation drive that has been taken up enthusiastically by the locals, helped by numerous volunteers. One can see people coming up early in the morning every Sunday and working in groups to make the place greener. Hidden in the route up the Baner Hill is a small cave temple. According to a folklore, these caves date back to the Pandava era and is said to be where the Pandavas lived during their exile almost 5000 years ago. But according to late Ninad Bedekar, the caves belong to the reign of Rashtrakuta Raja, nearly 2500 years ago. The architecture of the caves belongs to the Rashtrakuta dynasty because of the way the pillars as well as the steps into the cave are made.[6] Baner Hill is surrounded by two suburbs of Pune, Pashan and Baner. Most of its area is in Baner, so it is commonly known as Baner Hill. The hillock runs East-West. It has a spur which is locally known as the Pashan Hill which has an elevation of 2,100 feet (640 m). The temperature here is 1 to 2 degrees cooler than the temperature in the main city. Rest of the area shares almost same climatic conditions as that of Pune.

Sunrise at Baner hill

The image represents the scenic beauty of sunset that can be seen from Baner Hill

Baner has large variety of restaurants, cafes and pubs. Some of the most notable ones being Malaka Spice, The K Factory, Minus 18 Degrees, Pimp My Wok and Flying Duck. Baner does not have a full scale shopping mall or multiplex theatre. Instead one can find individual stores such as Fab India, Westside, Pantaloons etc. It is a popular hang out spot in the city due to variety of cuisines on offer and development of Balewadi High Street.[7]