Khadki is a cantonment in the city of

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It has now flourished as a quasi-metropolis & centered in the northern region of the city.

Description

Khadki could be considered an

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

base, along with an ordnance factory consisting of two ammunition factories, a Military Vehicle Depot (Central Armed Forces Vehicle Depot, CAFVD) and the Military Dairy Farm. Referred to previously as Kirkee during the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

, its borders are flanked by two other large army establishments—the

College of Military Engineering College of Military Engineering Pune (CME) is a technical and tactical engineering training institution of the Indian Army Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army, Indian Army. Training of Combat Engineers, Military Engineering Service, Border Ro ...

Dapodi Dapodi (earlier: Dapoorie) is a neighbourhood in Pimpri Chinchwad in the northwestern Pune, India. It is located in the northwest area of the city. Dapodi is situated on the banks of Pavana river and Mula River. The neighbourhood of Dapodi ...

and the

Bombay Engineering Group The Bombay Engineer Group, or the ''Bombay Sappers'' as they are informally known, are a regiment of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The Bombay Sappers draw their origin from the erstwhile Bombay Presidency army of the British Raj ...

. It also has a war cemetery (Kirkee War Cemetery) and a war memorial. It has a large market—Khadki Bazaar—and a railway station which was connected to the Ammunition Factory, but which link was shut down in the 1960s. Khadki had a large number of open areas which were converted by CAFVD into playing fields for both field hockey and soccer (Football), with as many as four of the former and two of the latter, thereby becoming a bastion of

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

. All tournaments in Pune were played there, on dust grounds that were watered prior to a match. As it expanded, Pune built stadiums for both these sports. Local

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

and

field hockey Field hockey (or simply referred to as hockey in some countries where ice hockey is not popular) is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with 11 players in total, made up of 10 field players and a goalk ...

matches are held on the

CAFVD Sports Stadium The CAFVD Sports Stadium is a stadium in Khadki in Pune. It is located opposite Khadki railway station on old Mumbai-Pune road (Part of NH 4). Local association football and field hockey Field hockey (or simply referred to as hockey ...

in front of the Khadki Railway Station west exit towards old Mumbai Pune highway. Field hockey matches are also held on the main road from Khadki to the Ordnance Factory, better known as Ammunition Factories. One pair of Football and Hockey fields has since been converted into residential areas, bordered by St Joseph's Convent Girls School on Burr Road, General Thorat Road and the old Pune-Mumbai Road. Khadki is surrounded on three sides by the Mula River, starting from Bopodi/Dapodi, past the War Cemetery, joining the

Mutha River The Mutha River is a river in western Maharashtra, India. It arises in the Western Ghats and flows eastward until it merges with the Mula River (India), Mula River in the city of Pune. It has been dammed twice, first at the Panshet Dam (on the ...

at what is known as Sangamwadi. Two historic bridges add to its military background, the low-lying Holkar Bridge and the Sangam Double Bridges- one for rail and the other for road traffic. Two more bridges have been added since 2005, one replacing Holkar Bridge as it would invariably be submerged in the

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

s and the other to shorten the distance from Deccan College area to Poona Engineering College and Deccan Gymkhana. Khadki has as many as seven military officer's

mess The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

es.

History

Khadki was the site of the

Battle of Khadki The Battle of Khadki, also known as or the Battle of Ganeshkhind and Battle of Kirkee, took place at modern day Khadki, India, on 5 November 1817 between the forces of the British East India Company and the Maratha Confederacy under the leader ...

, fought between the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

and the

Marathas The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

in 1817 in which

Baji Rao II Baji Rao II (10 January 1775 – 28 January 1851) was the 13th and the last Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy . He governed from 1795 to 1818. He was installed as a puppet ruler by the Maratha nobles, whose growing power prompted him to flee h ...

, the

Peshwa The Peshwa was the second highest office in the Maratha Empire, next in rank and prestige only to that of the Chhatrapati. Initially serving as the appointed prime minister in the Maratha Kingdom, the office became hereditary when Shahu gave t ...

ruler was defeated. Soon after the war, the British set up a cantonment here. It then became the base of the

Royal Regiment of Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

's 79 (Khadki) Commando Battery.

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951), was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener. He saw action again in the First World War ...

was born in Khadki. The well known Indian hockey player and former India captain,

Dhanraj Pillay Dhanraj Pillay (born 16 July 1968) is a retired Indian field hockey player and former captain of the India national team. He also looks after the Air India Sports Promotion Board as a Joint Secretary based in Mumbai. For the last 5 years, Dhan ...

grew up here. An equally accomplished player of yester years, full back Joe Philips too was born and brought up in Khadki. Joe Philips represented India at a number of international meets including the Summer Olympics of 1936 in Berlin, Germany at which the Indian Men's Hockey team won the Gold Medal. The well known Hindi film actor

K K Menon Krishna Kumar Menon (born 2 October 1966), known professionally as Kay Kay Menon, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Hindi cinema, and occasionally in Gujarati, Tamil, Marathi and Telugu films. He is best known for his roles in films ...

is also known to have attended school here. Raj Kapoor owned 11 FM Cariappa Marg. The Cantonment Office and Small Cause Court are on 17, FM Cariappa Marg. St. Ignatius Church and St. Joseph Boys School are behind the Courthouse.

Khadki railway station

Khadki railway station is on the

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

–

railway route owned by the Central Railway zone of Indian Railways.

Sinhagad Express The Sinhagad Express is an Intercity Express train which plies daily between the cities of Pune and Mumbai in India. It is operated by the Indian Railways and comes under the Central Railway zone. It is one of the six point-to-point express ...

, Sahyadri Express,

Deccan Express The ''Deccan Express'' is an express train that leaves daily at 3:15pm, plying between the cities of Pune and Mumbai in India, a distance of 192 km and at 7 am from Mumbai to Pune. Services The Deccan Express was launched much earlie ...

, Koyna Express and

–

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

Express halt at this station. It has four platforms, six lines and one footbridge and is electrified. This is an important stop for Pune Suburban Service. This station is to the east of Khadki's

auto rickshaw An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many other terms in various countries, including three-wheeler, Adaidaita Sahu, Keke-napep, Maruwa, auto, ...

stand and is near Khadki Bazaar. This station was built for access to Khadki Cantonment (Kirkee Cantonment) and the CAFVD officers accommodation which is just 3 km away. Today this station is mostly used by and for the

. The nearest major airport is

Pune International Airport Pune Airport is an international airport and an Indian Air Force base serving the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India. It is located at Lohagaon, approximately northeast of the historic centre of Pune. The airport is a civil enclave operate ...

at Lohegaon (Viman Nagar).

Kirkee cantonment

The Khadki (

Kirkee Khadki is a cantonment in the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India. It has now flourished as a quasi-metropolis & centered in the northern region of the city. Description Khadki could be considered an Indian Army base, along with an ordnance facto ...

)

Cantonment A cantonment (, , or ) is a type of military base. In South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the British Raj). In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essentially, "a permanent residential ...

is housed here. It is known to be as one of the richest cantonments in the country. When considered along with Pune Cantonment, it is the largest Cantonment in the world. These two areas are the green zones of Pune and contribute to keeping pollution levels down. This area is also known for the Kirkee War Cemetery.Kirkee War Cemetery
CWGC Cemetery Report, Kirkee War Cemetery. and two special memorials erected by the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

. The war cemetery holds the graves of 1,668 Commonwealth service personnel from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

besides 629 from

who were reburied here from Bombay

Sewri Christian Cemetery The Sewri Christian Cemetery (Marathi: ''Sewrī Kristi smashan bhumi'') in Sewri, Mumbai, India, was established by Arthur Crawford, the first Municipal Commissioner of Bombay as a location for European burials. The land was acquired from the ...

in 1962. The graves from Sewri are unmarked and their names listed on the Kirkee (1914–18) Memorial. The Kirkee (1914-1918) Memorial is dedicated 735 Commonwealth service personnel who died in India in World War I and whose graves were in various locations where they could not be maintained, to the 629 whose remains were reburied within this cemetery in 1962 from Sewri Christian Cemetery, and to about 193 soldiers of East and West African origin who died during the period of 1939-1945 in various non-operational zones around the country.
CWGC Cemetery Report, Kirkee (1914-1918) Memorial. There is also the Kirkee (1939-1945) Memorial to 197 Commonwealth service personnel (excepting East and West African) who died in World War II and whose graves in other parts of India and in Pakistan are unmaintainable.
CWGC Cemetery Report, Kirkee (1939-1945) Memorial. Khadki also has two major Ordnance Factories Organisation, Ordnance Factories - Ammunition Factory Khadki and High Explosives Factory. Station Workshop EME of Indian Army is also based in Range Hills. Range Hills area in Khadki is mostly occupied by defense service personals since most of the quarters of defense establishments are located in Range Hills.

Demographics

India

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, Khadki had a population of 76,608. Males constitute 56% of the population and females 44%. Khadki has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85%, and female literacy is 74%. In Khadki, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Education

The town has Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies (SIMS), at nearby

Range Hills Range may refer to: Geography * Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra) ** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands * Range, a term used to i ...

, Khadki has the following schools *

Kendriya Vidyalaya The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan () is a system of Government of India, central government schools in India. Governed by the Ministry of Education (India), Ministry of Education, Government of India. , it has a total of 1,257 schools in India, ...

R.H.E * St. Joseph's - one for Boys and another for Girls * All Saints. * Range Hills Secondary School, Range Hills * S.V.S. High School, Khadki * St. Thomas Public School, Khadki Station * Allegoankar High School * Tikaram Jagannath College * Zakir Hussain Semi-English high school * Garrison Children High School, Khadki * Smt. C. K. Goyal Arts and Commerce College, Khadki

Sports

Khadki is also known as a bastion of hockey. Local

and

matches are held on the

in front of the Khadki Railway Station on Old Mumbai-Pune Road.

Notable people

*Field Marshall

William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951), was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener. He saw action again in the First World War ...

, Commander-in-Chief of

was born in 1865 * Peter Hatch (born 1938), English cricketer *

(born 1968), retired Indian field hockey player and former captain of the Indian national team *

Sonalee Kulkarni Sonalee Kulkarni Benodekar (née Kulkarni) is an Indian actress who has established herself as a prominent figure in Marathi cinema. Praised for her versatility and powerful performances, She is one of the highest-paid actresses in Marathi cine ...

(Born 1988), Marathi film actress *

Ajay Banga Ajaypal Singh "Ajay" Banga (born November 10, 1959) is an Indian American business executive. He is the president of the World Bank Group. He was the executive chairman of Mastercard, after having previously been president and chief executive off ...

(Born 1959), business and policy executive *

Ruturaj Gaikwad Ruturaj Gaikwad (born 31 January 1997) is an Indian international cricketer who captains the Maharashtra cricket team in the T20, List A format and the current captain of Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He made his intern ...

, Indian cricketer and captain of

Chennai Super Kings The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...

Indian Premier League The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...

References

Khadki Railway Station

External links

Kirkee war Cemetery

Image set Kirkee war Cemetery
{{Pune district topics Cantonments of India Cantonments of British India Neighbourhoods in Pune