- Nasik
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/nah"sik/, n.a city in W Maharashtra, in W central India: pilgrimage city of the Hindus. 176,091.
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▪ Indiatown, northwestern Mahārāshtra state, western India. It lies along the Godāvari River and is situated along major road and rail routes at a point about 110 miles (180 km) northeast of Bombay. Nāsik is an important religious centre and attracts thousands of pilgrims annually because of the sanctity of the Godāvari River and because of the legend that Rāma, the hero of the Rāmāyaṇa epic, lived there for a time with his wife Sītā and his brother Lakṣmaṇa. The main part of the town lies on the right (south) bank of the river, while Panchavati, a quarter on the left bank, has several temples. The town's riverbanks are lined with ghats (stepped bathing places). Nāsik is the site of the Pandu (Buddhist) and Chamar (Jaina) cave temples dating to the 1st century AD. Of its many Hindu temples, Kāla Rām and Gora Rām are among the holiest. Tryambakeśvar, a village and the site of a Śaivite Jyotirliṅga temple 14 miles (22 km) from Nāsik, is the most important of the pilgrim sites. In the second half of the 20th century the town has become industrialized; silk and cotton weaving and sugar and oil processing are important. Ozar is a new suburban township. Nāsik has several colleges affiliated with the University of Poona.The area in which Nāsik is situated is drained by the Girna and Godāvari rivers, which flow through open, fertile valleys. The chief crops grown in the region are wheat, millet, and peanuts (groundnuts). Sugar is an important irrigated cash crop. Regional industries consist primarily of sugar and oil processing and cotton spinning and weaving. A military-aircraft factory is nearby. Pop. (1981) town, 262,428; metropolitan area, 429,034.* * *
Universalium. 2010.