Ghugus

Geography

Ghugus is located at 19.93°N 79.13°E / 19.93; 79.13. It has an average elevation of 189 metres (620 feet). Wardha river is flowing by the side of the village which make it prosperous in Minerals, like Coal. Climate here is dry where winter is Cool and Summer is extremely hot. The temperature rises up to 49 Celsius.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Ghugus had a population of 29,945. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Ghugus has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 79%, and female literacy is 67%. In Ghugus, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age. Gandhi chowk is in the center of the town and a place meant for big meetings and rallies for the awareness and information of the people.

Education

Ghugus town has well grade of schools up-till 12th.It takes the privilege of having the schools of C.B.S.E, I.C.S.E and Maharashtra Board. The oldest and most popular of the schools is Mount Carmel Convent Higher Secondary School(C.B.S.E). The other schools are Vianney Vidya Mandir(I.C.S.E),Janata Vidhyalaya and Kirti Convent.There are so many WCL colonies in ghugus. Shubhash Nagar, Gandhi Nagar, Ram Nagar etc. are some of them. Ghugus is a coal mining village in Chandrapur tahsil, about 20.92 km. (13 miles) from Chandrapur connected by a branch railway line shooting off at Tadali from the Chandrapur-Wardha main line of the Central Railway. Here two collieries are work yielding a good variety of non-coking coal. Besides Ghugus proper whose population was 1,767 in 1961, two separate habitations have grown round the collieries with population of 1,862 and 1,660, respectively. All the three places have each a post office, a medical practitioner and a primary school, excepting Ghugus proper where there is a middle school. The colliery areas have a rest house each and at the first of these a weekly bazar is held on Sundays.

There are three caves in the rocky ground near Ghugus. In one of them there is an idol of Bhairavdev with broken legs. The local tradition regarding this is that in former times while thefts and dacoities used to take place elsewhere, none could be committed at Ghugus, and consequently the thieves and dacoits cut off the legs of the idol. In front of this idol there is a stone standing erect called Bahi or the sleeve of Sita. Not far off there is another small cave containing a stone, which the people say is the mother of Bhairavdeva. The idol of Bhairavdeva was said to be increasing in height. To stop it his mother put a stone on his head. Between these two caves are two stones which are said to mark the place where a fight between a tiger and a wild boar had taken place. Ghugus is now interesting as a coal mining town and as the locality where coal was first discovered in this district. The first colliery known as Mayo Colliery was opened in 1870 by Lord Mayo. It ceased working the very next year.

Controversies

There are allegations of Coal Mafia operating in Ghugus area. In 2015, police arrested wanted kingpin of coal mafia, Haji Sheikh from Nakoda village. Haji Sheikh was wanted for several offences of assault and attempt to murder.

ACC Limited had to shut down it's old cement plant next to Nakoda village due to violation of pollution standards. Even as the polluting old unit of ACC has been closed, the woes related to noise pollution in village Nakoda located adjacent to ACC Limited remain unaddressed.

Industries & Shops

Ghugus has coal industries "WCL" and a cement company "ACC Limited". There is a Steel Plant and many coal washers, for this reason Ghugus is the most polluted town in maharashtra. Lloyds Metals and Engineers Limited is a sponge iron plant in ghugus.

WCL Western Coalfields Limited, a subsidiary of Coal India Limited.

ACC Limited Associated Cement Companies Limited.

Shops- Ghugus population is increasing day by day the people of ghugus need more facility. Ghugus main market area is in the middle of the town known for basti. On every Sunday a weekly bazar (market) is organized to meet the needs of the people.