Rameshwar also known as Rameshwar Wadi is a small town located on the coast of

Sindhudurg Sindhudurg Fort (Marathi pronunciation: in̪d̪ʱud̪uɾɡ is a historical sea fort located in Arabian Sea near the Konkan region of Maharashtra in Western India. The fort, commissioned by Chhatrapati Shivaji, was constructed between 1664 ...

District of

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 ...

on the west coast of

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 ...

. A very old

Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple is located in the village Rameshwar Wadi in Devgad taluka of Sindhudurg District, Maharashtra, India. This temple is dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva. It is a historic temple built in the 16th century. Its chief in ...

is located in this town which is dedicated to the

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

deity

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

. Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth has developed a Mango Research Sub Centre over an area of about 90 acres, that has developed hybrids like Ratna, a cross between the

Alphonso Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. I ...

and Neelam variety, as well as the Kesar hybrid. Rameshwar also has a large number of

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

palms in addition to

kokum ''Garcinia indica'', a plant in the mangosteen family (Clusiaceae), commonly known as ''kokum'', is a fruit-bearing tree that has culinary, pharmaceutical, and industrial uses. It grows primarily in India's Western Ghats: in the states of Mahara ...

(''Garcinia indica'') to boot, and is the home of the famed Alphonso mangoes.History and Culture of Sindhudurg
/ref> Other fruits grown in the region are

jackfruit The jackfruit or ''nangka'' (''Artocarpus heterophyllus'') is a species of tree in the Common fig, fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family (Moraceae). The jackfruit is the largest tree fruit, reaching as much as in weight, in length, and in d ...

chiku ''Manilkara zapota'', commonly known as sapodilla (), sapote, chicozapote, chicoo, chicle, naseberry, nispero, or soapapple, among other names, is an evergreen tree native to southern Mexico and Central America. An example natural occurrence is ...

and

guava Guava ( ), also known as the 'guava-pear', is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava '' Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family (Myrtaceae), nativ ...

Etymology

The ancient

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

name of the town, Rameshwar is one of the names used to refer to Lord Shiva. The town is named after

and its temple -

, is located within the town boundaries.

Pujare of Rameshwar

The original inhabitants of the region are the

Pujare clan Pujare, also known as Pujar, Pujara or Pujari, traditionally belonged to the priestly class of the Maratha community. They are the original inhabitants of Rameshwar in Devgad Taluka of Sindhudurg District in Maharashtra, India. Their oldest settl ...

of the

Maratha The Marathi people (; Marathi: , ''Marāṭhī lōk'') or Marathis (Marathi: मराठी, ''Marāṭhī'') are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are native to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-A ...

society. The temple rituals of

are performed by the Pujare. They are responsible for performing all the temple rituals, including Puja and

Aarti ''Arti'' () or ''Aarati'' () is a Hindu ritual employed in worship, part of a ''Puja (Hinduism), puja'', in which light from a flame (fuelled by camphor, ghee, or oil) is ritually waved to venerate Hindu deities, deities. ''Arti'' also refers t ...

, as well as taking care of the shivling and

murti In the Hinduism, Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' (, ) is a devotional image, such as a statue or icon, of a Hindu deities, deity or Hindu saints, saint used during ''Puja (Hinduism), puja'' and/or in other customary forms of actively expressing d ...

s. The Pujare act as counselors during Shri Dev Rameshwar festivities and festivals. They have a reputation for being learned and conduct prayer services for Lord Shiva. In

society, Pujare traditionally belonged to the priestly class in the

Kshatriya Kshatriya () (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority"; also called Rajanya) is one of the four varnas (social orders) of Hindu society and is associated with the warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...

community.

Shri Dev Rameshwar Temple

A temple dedicated to the

deity

is located within the boundaries of Rameshwar Wadi. It is a historic temple built in 16th century. Its chief interest is the approach about 250 yards long, cut through rock fifty feet deep. The idol, a four-armed figure seated on a bull, is of solid silver said to weigh a hundred kilograms and is in good condition at present.Gazetteer of Ratnagiri District - Culture
/ref> A fair is held for six days in the month of Magha every year which is attended by about 5,000 people from nearby villages and towns. The fair starts 5 days before the day of worship.

Beaches and marine life

The western side has two sandy and somewhat rocky beaches facing the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

. One of them is towards the north near Vijaydurg and is located near the northern settlement of Ghariwadi while Rameshwar or Wafel Beach is to its south. Most of the fishing occurs on the northern beach as the water there is shallow and plentiful availability of marine life. Wade fishing is the most commonly used technique near this beach. The fishermen enter the water along with nets and fishing rods, avoiding use of boats due to shallow waters. The Wafel beach is deep towards the shoreline and is rarely used for fishing. Only boats can be used here for fishing activities due to the strong inward current and depth of water even near the shore. A wide variety of fish such as

Indo-Pacific king mackerel Indo-Pacific king mackerel (''Scomberomorus guttatus''), also known as the spotted seer fish or spotted Spanish mackerel, is a sea fish among the mackerel variety of fishes. It is found in around the Indian Ocean and adjoining seas. It can grow ...

(surmai), lady fish,

pomfret Pomfrets are scombriform fish belonging to the family Bramidae. The family currently includes 20 species across seven genera. Several species are important food sources for humans, especially ''Brama brama'' in South Asia. The earlier form of ...

sting ray Stingrays are a group of sea rays, a type of cartilaginous fish. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae (deepwater sting ...

hammerhead shark The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks that form the family Sphyrnidae, named for the unusual and distinctive form of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a Hammerhead shark#Cephalofoil, cephalofoil (a T-shape or " ...

puffer fish Tetraodontidae is a family of marine and freshwater fish in the order Tetraodontiformes. The family includes many familiar species variously called pufferfish, puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, blowers, blowies, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, ...

, mullet,

great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large Lamniformes, mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major ocea ...

carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 20 families, 164 genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

seer fish Scomberomorini is a tribe of ray-finned, saltwater, bony fishes that is commonly known as Spanish mackerels, seerfishes, or seer fish. This tribe is a subset of the mackerel family (Scombridae), which it shares with four sister tribes, the tun ...

swordfish The swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as the broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are the sole member of the Family (biology), family Xiphiidae. They ...

and a rarely occurring

sailfish The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae ( marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the ...

are spotted here. Other than these fishes, aquatic mammals like

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal in the cetacean clade Odontoceti (toothed whale). Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontopori ...

porpoise Porpoises () are small Oceanic dolphin, dolphin-like cetaceans classified under the family Phocoenidae. Although similar in appearance to dolphins, they are more closely related to narwhals and Beluga whale, belugas than to the Oceanic dolphi ...

and

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...

are also found in the region and are quite commonly seen. Shellfish like

lobster Lobsters are Malacostraca, malacostracans Decapoda, decapod crustaceans of the family (biology), family Nephropidae or its Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on th ...

clam Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve mollusc. The word is often applied only to those that are deemed edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the sea floor or riverbeds. Clams h ...

mussels Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, whic ...

common periwinkle The common periwinkle or winkle (''Littorina littorea'') is a species of small edible whelk or sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc that has gills and an operculum, and is classified within the family Littorinidae, the periwinkles. This is a ...

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

and many types of

crabs Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the thorax. Their exoskeleton is often thickened and ha ...

are also abundantly found in this area.Rameshwar Blog - Wildlife
/ref>

Flora and fauna

Commonly found animals in and around the town include

red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe and Asia, plus ...

hyena Hyenas or hyaenas ( ; from Ancient Greek , ) are feliform carnivoran mammals belonging to the family Hyaenidae (). With just four extant species (each in its own genus), it is the fifth-smallest family in the order Carnivora and one of the sma ...

rabbit Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...

mongoose A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family has two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to southern Europe, A ...

sea otter The sea otter (''Enhydra lutris'') is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between , making them the heaviest members of ...

barking deer Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...

giant squirrel Oriental giant squirrels are cat-sized tree squirrels from the genus ''Ratufa'' in the subfamily Ratufinae. They are a distinctive element of the fauna of South Asia, south and southeast Asia. Species There are four living species of oriental gi ...

langur The Colobinae or leaf-eating monkeys are a subfamily of the Old World monkey family that includes 61 species in 11 genera, including the black-and-white colobus, the large-nosed proboscis monkey, and the gray langurs. Some classifications split ...

and

wild dog A free-ranging dog is a dog that is not confined to a yard or house. Free-ranging dogs include street dogs, village dogs, stray dogs, feral dogs, etc., and may be owned or unowned. The global dog population is estimated to be 900 million, of whi ...

Leopards The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...

wild cats The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...

and

tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is tradition ...

are very rarely seen in the area due to sparse vegetation. Domestic cows, bulls and Asian buffalo, buffalos are quite a common site in the town. Residents of the town use bulls for farming and collect milk from cows and buffalos. Common reptiles include various kinds of snakes and lizards. Birds other than crows, sparrows and pigeons, that are commonly sited in the town are Eastern barn owl, barn owl, kingfisher, kite, cormorant, stork, egret, red-whiskered bulbul, pheasant, tern and cuckoo. Four species of crows exist in the region, of which jungle crow is the most commonly occurring species. Others are Carrion crow, carrion, jackdaw and Rook (bird), rook. The entire region is very sparsely vegetated. A wide variety of grasses and weeds are found abundantly in the region. The most commonly found fruiting trees are mango,

, ziziphus and garcinia. Most of these trees are grown in private plantations. Some of the flowering plants include chafa, hibiscus and calotropis which can be found in the wild.

Rameshwar Dockyard

Rameshwar Dockyard, also known as Rameshwar Godi, is a tidal dockyard on the left bank of Waghotan river or Kharepatan Creek about 1.5 km from Vijaydurg Fort. The dockyard was built by Maratha Empire, Maratha Kanhoji Angre, Admiral Kanhoji Angre during the 17th century and was re-modelled by Anandrao Dhulap to increase its capacity to hold ships of as much as 500 tons. The length and width of the dock is 110 m x 75 m and the gateway is 7 m wide at its base and 11 m at the top without any gates. The bottom of the dock slopes upwards from the entrance. The wide base is designed to confer stability on the structure. The floor of the dockyard is made of lime mortar. This floor is now covered by a deposit of sediment more than 2 m thick.Marine archaeological exploration and excavation of Vijaydurg - A naval base of the Maratha Period, Maharashtra, on the west coast of India
/ref> The dockyard currently lies just a few meters away from a small Christian settlement. The occupation of the residents living nearby is mainly fishing.

Shri Sidhhapoorti Ganesh Mandir

A temple dedicated to

deity, Lord Ganesha was built in 2000. This temple was built by a local resident of Rameshwar Wadi. It is located in the western part of the Wadi which is known as "Vatar". Although the temple lies entirely in the private premises of its builder, it is open for outsiders. Various festivities and pujas are carried out in the temple throughout the year. There is no separate administration or a priest appointed in the temple, the owner takes care of all the maintenance and other matters of the temple building and its premises. The temple building is entirely made using red rocks and concrete. Its area is about 600-700 sq ft, while the front yard (angan) on the temple building is approximately of the same size. A small tulsi vrindavan (a sacred tulsi grove) is located at the right outer corner of the front yard. To the left of the temple, many flowering plants are grown. The temple itself is located within many trees.

Mango Research Sub Centre

The Government of Maharashtra established a Mango Research Sub Centre at Rameshwar in 1978. It is an agricultural research station under the jurisdiction of Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth (known as Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth before 12 February 2001), Dapoli, District: Ratnagiri district, Ratnagiri. The region of Konkan is distinguished from the rest of Maharashtra, Maharashtra State by virtue of its distinct agro-climatic conditions, soil types, topography, its location between the Sahyadri ranges and the Arabian Sea, Arabian sea, crops and cropping pattern, land holdings, and socio-economic conditions of the farmers. As such, the problems in agriculture and allied sectors are also entirely different from the other parts of Maharashtra. The Mango Research Sub Station at Rameshwar was built as part of the plan implemented by the Government of Maharashtra to conduct research on location specific problems and disseminate the improved crop production technologies among the farming community.

Gram Panchayat Rameshwar

Rameshwar Gram Panchayat (Village Panchayat) was established on 17 January 1989. The number of members is 9 and are elected from 3 divisions (prabhaags).

Mahashivratri Fair

Every year, Maha Shivratri, Mahashivratri is extensively celebrated in this village. A huge fair is held in and around the premises of

during this festive time. It is the night of worship of

and occurs on 13th night/14th day of the ''Krishna Paksha'' or Dark Half of the month Magha according to the Hindu calendar. On this day, devotees observe fast and stay awake all night. Mahashivratri marks the night when

performed the 'Tandava'. It is also believed that on this day

was married to Parvati, Parvati Ma. On this day Shiva devotees observe fast and offer fruits, flowers and Aegle marmelos, Bael leaves on ''Shiva Linga''. The fair lasts for six days and many devotees from surrounding regions as well as from across the state visit

during this festival. Huge processions are held during the festive night as well as the following day.

Maha Shivratri observances

The following table shows some of the observances of Mahashivratri:

Transport

Rameshwar is located on MH SH 115 which connects with NH 17 50 km away from the town. It is well connected to neighbouring towns and cities.

State transport

MSRTC buses are available from all major towns as well as local buses that ply at regular intervals. Interstate buses of Goa State also ply from Panaji to Vijaydurg, which can be used to reach Rameshwar Wadi.Interstate Bus Service - Goa
/ref>

Driving directions

From Mumbai: Distance - 431 km Time - 7 hours 44 minutes
From Pune: Distance - 353 km Time - 6 hours 50 minutes
From Kolhapur: Distance - 143 km Time - 3 hours 20 minutes
From Panaji: Distance - 182 km Time - 3 hours 31 minutes

Local transport

The local transport is motorised three-wheeler rickshaws. They are parked near the main bus stop and these are available without much bargaining.

Railways stations

Nearest railways stations are: * Rajapur, Maharashtra, Rajapur Road Railway Station: 62 km, 1 hour 30 minutes * Vaibhavwadi Road Railway Station: 63 km, 1 hour 20 minutes * Nandgaon, Maharashtra, Nandgaon Road Railway Station: 63 km, 1 hour 20 minutes * Kankavli Railway Station: 74 km, 1 hour 45 minutes Local motorised three-wheeler rickshaws are available from all the above listed railway stations or one can hire private cars that are parked outside. MSRTC Buses also ply between these stations and Vijaydurg, which can be used to reach Rameshwar Wadi. List of trains halting at the above-mentioned railway stations:

Nearest airport

The nearest airport is Dabolim Airport in Goa which is 207 km away. Other airports are Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai (437 km) and Pune Airport (366 km). Another airport located nearby is Ratnagiri Airport, which is just 102 km from Rameshwar Wadi but currently, scheduled commercial air services are not available.

Places of interest

* Rameshwar Beach (Wafel Beach) * Kalavshe Beach (Kolwadi) * Rameshwar Dockyard (Godi) * Hatti Mahal * Sambhaji Angre Samadhi * Shri Aday Durgay Temple * Green Earth Eco-Park, Rameshwar * Vijaydurg Fort * Vijaydurg Beach * Vijaydurg Port * Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth's Mango Research Sub Centre, Rameshwar(Girye)

References

{{Sindhudurg district topics Cities and towns in Sindhudurg district Tourist attractions in Sindhudurg district