Panvel () is a city and taluka in Raigad district of Maharashtra, India. It is highly populated due to its closeness to Mumbai. Panvel is also governed for development purpose by the body of Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Panvel Municipal Corporation is the first Municipal Corporation in Raigad and the 27th Municipal corporation of Maharashtra State.
Geography
Panvel is one of the cities in the district of Raigad. It is also called the gate of Raigad because Panvel is the first city when entering in Raigad from west. It is also one of the most populous and developed cities in the district. Panvel is situated on the banks of the Gadhi river which flows and connects all the way to the Arabian Sea. It is also surrounded by hills on two sides.
Demographics
Panvel has a mix population consisting of the Agri samaaj and Koli communities. Panvel is a medium-sized city but densely populated as it is strategically placed between Mumbai and Pune. The city is the headquarters of the Panvel sub-division of the Raigad district, which is the largest in the district as per number of villages (564).
Religion
Hinduism is majority religion in Panvel city with 78.67% followers. Islam is second most popular religion in city of Panvel with approximately 10.85% following it, followed by Buddhism with 5.92% followers. In Panvel city, Christianity is followed by 2.13%, Jainism by 1.29%, Sikhism by 0.47%. Around 0.13% stated 'Other Religion', approximately 0.54% stated 'No Particular Religion'.
Climate
Weather is Sunny across the year. There is heavy rain during monsoon. May is the warmest month of the year. The temperature in May averages 34.3 °C. The lowest average temperatures in the year occur in January, when it is around 23.4 °C. Temperatures hover around 40 °C during most days of summer during mid-March till May. Highest temperature recorded around 44–45 °C. Average annual temperature of Panvel is 27.0 °C.
History
Panvel (also known as Panwell by the British) is about 300 years old, developed around trade routes (both land and sea), during the Maratha rule and hence after by the Mughal rule, British and the Portuguese. Once upon a time, Panvel was famous for its rice market. Panvel Municipal Council (PMC) was established in the year 1852, and was the oldest municipal council of Maharashtra, before the formation of Panvel Municipal Corporation. Panvel Municipal Council's elections started in the year 1910. The first mayor of the PMC was Mr. Yusuf Noor Mohammed Master Kachchi for the years 1910–1916. The sesquicentennial anniversary (150th anniversary) of the PMC was celebrated in the year 2002. The city prospered and grew due to the influence of large scale trade by land and sea. This was characterised by the large palace-like homes that came up during the Peshwa period. It is also said that old name of this city was Paneli (Panelim in Konkani). There were historic cannons (during the time of Shivaji) situated on Panvel fort. On 1 October 2016, Panvel Municipal Corporation came into existence.
Location
Panvel lies approximately 40 kilometers east of Greater Mumbai, in Navi Mumbai, inside the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. It is surrounded by the mountains of Matheran to the east and south east and outer regions of Panvel i.e. villages of Dundhare, Maldunge are separated from the suburbs of Badlapur and Ambernath by hilly ranges of the Western Ghats. It lies adjacent to the Navi Mumbai International Airport forming its eastern boundary.
New Panvel
Most of the recent developments of Panvel are in New Panvel, as it's more of a planned city compared to Panvel city New Panvel is developed, administered, and maintained by CIDCO. Unlike Panvel city, New Panvel is strictly a node of Navi Mumbai. Though residents of New Panvel used to elect a representative in the Panvel Municipal Council, the Municipal Council does not control or manage any administrative or development activity in New Panvel.
Since October 2016, New Panvel was brought under administration of Panvel Municipal Corporation.
The development of New Panvel was initiated in 1970 to meet the housing requirements of employees working in the nearby industrial MIDC areas such as Taloja, Rasayani, Patalganga & Pen.
New Panvel is strategically located on the eastern side of the Mumbai-Bangalore National Highway (NH-4) and just west of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. It is well connected to rest of India by roadways and railway.
New Panvel is divided in two parts – New Panvel East and New Panvel West (commonly known as Khanda Colony). They have 19 and 23 sectors respectively. It has separate railway station for Panvel and Khandeshwar.