Dombivli Railway Station completes 125 years of its existence

By Eugene DSouza, Dombivli/Moodubelle
Bellevision Media Network

Mumbai, 08 November 2011: Certain landmarks either in the lives of individuals or institutions conjure sweet memories and revive nostalgic thoughts of the persons or institutions. However, when this reporter visited the Dombivli Railway Station on November 7, 2011, the 125th anniversary of the establishment of the station, there was neither any  sign of  celebration  nor any hoarding indicating the 125th birthday of the station. Dombivli railway station was erected in 1886, 33 years after the first train chugged between Mumbai and Thane.

 

Dombivli, the densely populated suburb with highest population growth rate of 35.9 percent between 2001-11 had a humble beginning. The first mention of Dombivli goes back to 1075, when King Harpal Dev, referred to Dombivli on the stone inscriptions at Mahul village near the Turbhe Port. The name ‘Dombivli’ is derived from its original inhabitants, the ‘Dombs’, those who conduct Hindu funeral rites in crematoriums.

 

According to a research book, the ‘History of Dombivli City’, the Portuguese did not consider the ‘Dombs’ to be outcastes. Other people began to migrate to Dombivli and make it their home there after a well-known trader named Narayan Atmaram Patkar settled down in Kopargaon near Dombivli in 1880. By the end of the nineteenth century farmers began cultivating the surrounding land and sold paddy from Kalyan to Mumbai.

 

Apart from the local Agri (farmers) and Koli (fishing) communities, the region saw steady growth in the Chitpavan community among the Maharashtrians, who brought in the culture of classical music and theatre. With the passage of time, people belonging to different communities began to migrate to Dombivli, as real estate became costlier in Mumbai and Thane. Gradually, Dombivli grew typically as a middle class dominated literate city.  It is one of the highly literate cities in Maharashtra.  Even now, Dombivli is considered the second cultural capital of the state after Pune.

 

 

Over the years, Dombivli has grown by leaps and bounds without proper planning putting heavy pressure on the infrastructure and basic amenities such as water and electricity. The local trains are overcrowded and the roads have been congested and poorly maintained.  During rainy season people face harrowing time to negotiate the roads and make it to the railways station. In the evening time as  the local trains from CST pour out commuters coming back from their working places, the surrounding regions of the railway station look  human ocean. Normally, people avoid going out towards the railway station during the evenings.

 

This reporter who has been residing in Dombivli since 1976 has seen the rapid growth of the city for the last 35 years. The railway station has also grown with additional platforms and  foot-over bridges. A number of locals originate from the Dombivli station. A new station known as Kopar  was commissioned few years back  few meters from the southern end of the Dombivli station.

 

In spite of being congested and outgrown, the residents of Dombivli have great attachment to the city that is the home of many communities from different parts of India. There is a great deal of communal harmony and goodwill among the people of the city. The ‘Shobha Yatra’ on  the Gudi Padva day every year reflects the cultural homogeneity of the city.

 

As the Dombivli Railway Station enters 125th year of its existence, it is hoped that the railway authorities will provide additional facilities and service to the commuters.