Goddess
Ambabai (Mahalaxmi) of Kolhapur is found in almost every Maharashtrian household.
Pioneer social reformer, Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, ruled with the object
of uplifting the downtrodden. Places like Panhala, Jyotibha, Vishalgad,
Nrusinhwadi and Bahubali attract tourists from all corners of India. Jnanapeeth
laureate V.S. Khandekar settled at Kolhapur in later part of his life. Warna,
the first Wired Village in India, is a distinctive feature of this district.
Peasants’ cooperatives dominate the district’s economy. Wrestlers
of Kolhapur were legends once upon a time. Home to fine arts like music,
painting and cinema, Kolhapur has remained in the vanguard of industrial
innovations even today. It is among the very few districts in the country
to enjoy water availability throughout the year, thanks to the Radhanagari
dam constructed by Shahu Maharaj nearly a century ago
