Thane

History

Thane emerged as an urban area during the reign of the Shilahara dynasty, which ruled north Konkan during 800-1265 CE. A 1094 CE Shilahara inscription refers to Srī-sthānaka as a velakula, that is, a harbour that was an important centre for import and export. Thane is mentioned in the Mahikavatichi Bakhar, a 15th-17th century Marathi language historical chronicle of doubtful accuracy. According to the text, Prince Pratap Bimb, the brother of Champaner's king Govardhan Bimb, established a new kingdom by conquering territories in the Konkan region. In the 12th century, his general Balkrishn-rao Somvanshi captured Thane from the Shilahara king Yashwant-rao, and went on to conquer the surrounding territories. In the 13th century, Nagar-shah - the ruler of Ghandivi (Gandevi) - captured the area. His relatives demanded control of three villages - Malad, Marol and Thane - as a reward for their good performance in this military campaign. When Nagar-shah refused their demand, they allied with the imperial Yadavas of Devagiri. The area subsequently came under the control of the Yadava prince Bimb-dev, before Nagarshah regained control of it as a vassal of the Delhi Sultanate. Subsequently, the area was successively ruled by some local families, the Muzaffarids of Gujarat, and the Portuguese. The Thane area was contested between the Portuguese, the Mughals and the Marathas in the 17th century, with Shivaji capturing it from the Mughals in 1675. Later, the Portuguese regained control of Thane, and started building a fort there in 1734, but the Marathas captured it in 1737.

Geography

Thane has a tropical monsoon climate that borders on a tropical wet and dry climate. The overall climate is stable with high rainfall days and minimal days of extreme temperatures. Temperature in Thane varies from 22 °C to 36 °C, with winter temperatures as low as 12 °C at night, and summer temperatures reaching 40 °C at noon. Lowest daytime temperatures are typically during the summer monsoon peak in July and August, when temperatures can plummet to 25 °C. Around 80% of the total annual rainfall is concentrated in June to October. The average annual rainfall is recorded at 2000–2500mm, and the humidity level ranges from 61% to 86%, rendering the area a humid zone. Thane has been ranked 12th best "National Clean Air City" (under Category 1 >10L Population cities) in India according to the Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2024 results. {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! No. !! Name !! Image !! Details !! Coordinates !! Area(in hectares) |- | 1 | Ambe Ghosale Lake | | At Meenatai Thakare Chowk, Castle Mill Naka (Opposite Desai Bunglow) in Uthalsar Ward committee | | 2.77 |- | 2 | Brahamala Lake | | Near Babubhai Petrol Pump in Uthalsar Ward Committee | | 0.5173 |- |3 |Burbank Lake | |Inside Hiranandani Estate, between Park Avenue and Wood Street. To the west of it is Lake Enclave. | |0.5857 |- | 4 | Datiwali Lake | | East side of Diva station situated in the marshland of Ulhas river in Mumbra Ward Committee Area | | 0.77 |- | 5 | Dawala Lake | | At Ovala in Majiwada-Manpada Prabhag Samiti | | 1.136 |- | 6 | Desai Lake | | On westside of Ulhas river, in Desai village in Mumbra Ward Committee | | 1.75 |- | 7 | Devasar Lake | | At the end of Bhayanderpada at foothills of Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Majiwada-Manpada Ward Committee | | 0.516 |- | 8…

Most-observed species

• House Crow

  Corvus splendens Vieillot, 1817 · Aves
  26,804
• Black Kite

  Milvus migrans (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  22,597
• Common Tailorbird

  Orthotomus sutorius (Pennant, 1769) · Aves
  20,522
• Rose-ringed Parakeet

  Psittacula krameri (Scopoli, 1769) · Aves
  20,095
• Rock Pigeon

  Columba livia J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  19,720
• Common Myna

  Acridotheres tristis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  19,335
• Large-billed Crow

  Corvus macrorhynchos Wagler, 1827 · Aves
  17,720
• Red-vented Bulbul

  Pycnonotus cafer (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  15,483

Most recent

• M 4.1 — 2019-07-24
  25 km WSW of Shirgaon, India