Lonavala (ISO: Loṇāvaḷā) is a hill station town and a Municipal Council in the Pune district, Maharashtra, India. It is about west of Pune and to the east of Mumbai. It is known for its production of the hard candy chikki and is also a major stop on the railway line connecting Mumbai and Pune. From the Pune suburbs, local trains are available from Pune Junction. Both the Mumbai-Pune Expressway as well as the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway pass through Lonavala. Lonavala is also home to INS Shivaji (formerly HMIS Shivaji) which is the Indian Navy's Premier Technical Training Institute. On 16 Feb 1945, the Establishment was commissioned as HMIS Shivaji and since then, the premier Technical Training Establishment of the Indian Navy trains officers. Etymology The name Lonavala derives from Leni (Prakrit, A resting place carved from stone) and Avali (Prakrit, series). Lonavali in Prakrit is a place that has a series of such Lenis around it. History Present day Lonavala was a part of the Seuna (Yadava) dynasty. Later, the Mughals realised the strategic importance of the region and kept the region for an extended time. The forts in the region and the "Mavala" warriors played an important role in the history of the Maratha Empire and that of the Peshwas. In 1871, the Lonavala and Khandala hill stations were discovered by Lord Elphinstone, who was the Governor of Bombay Presidency at the time. Politics The President of Lonavala Municipal Council is Smt. Surekha Nandkumar Jadhav and the Vice president is Shri. Sanjay Mohan Ghone. Demographics India census, Lonavala had a population of 57,698. Males constituted 53.47% of the population and females 46.53%. The sex ratio in Lonavala is 870, lower than the state average of 929. Lonavala has a literacy rate of 89.33%, which is higher than the state average of 82.34%. The Male literacy rate is 93.4%, and the female literacy rate is 84.57%. 10.37% of the total population in Lonavala is of children under 6 years of age. Climate Tourism Lonavala and the adjacent Khandala are twin hill stations above sea level, in the Sahyadri ranges that demarcate the Deccan Plateau and the Konkan coast. The hill stations sprawl over an approximate area of . Tourism peaks during the monsoon season. The name Lonavala is derived from the words leni' which means caves and 'avali' which means series. i.e. 'a series of Caves' which is a reference