Alandi (Marathi pronunciation: [aːɭən̪d̪iː]) is a town and a municipal council in the Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India. The town is popular as a place of pilgrimage and the resting place of the 8th century Marathi saint Sant Dnyaneshwar. History Alandi has a long history but gained prominence in the 13th century when Dnyaneshwar (1275–1296) decided to entomb, otherwise known as sanjeevan samadhi, himself in a samadhi, a form of shrine, under the then existing Siddheshwar temple complex in 1296. A temple was built over the Samadhi by Ambekar Deshpande in around 1580–1600. Further additions to the temple were made during the Maratha Empire era by Maratha nobles and the Peshwa. In 1778, Alandi was granted to Mahadji Shinde, the powerful Maratha statesman of the Maratha confederacy at that time, by the Peshwa. For two decades after that, the Shinde family were the main sponsors of various renovations of the temple. In the 1820s, Haibatraobuva Arphalkar, a courtier of the Scindia of Gwalior, started the modern Palkhi tradition of carrying the paduka (replica silver sandals) of Dnyaneshwar to Pandharpur during the annual Wari. Haibatraobuva was laid to rest under the first step of the temple complex per his will. Despite being a small town, it was granted municipal status during the early British Raj. The council would raise revenue through levying tax on pilgrims which used to number around 50,000 at the end of 19th century. Geography Alandi () is located on the bank of the Indrayani River, from Khed Taluka of Pune District, near the northern edge of the city of Pune. Alandi has an average elevation of . Demographics In 2011, Alandi had a population of 28,576. Males constitute 56% of the population and females 44%. The lingua franca is Marathi. Alandi has an average literacy rate of 73% (82% of the males, 68% of females), which is lower than the national average of 74.04%. 13% of the population is under 6 years of age. All castes are represented in the town census. The closely related Maratha clans, Kurhade-Patil and Ghundare-Patil, dominate the civic life of the town. Traditionally, many Hindu widows have come to reside in places of pilgrimage such as Pandharpur and Alandi. Government Alandi has a Municipal council with a directly elected as Mayor (Nagaradhyaksha). In the 2016 election to the council, The BJP candidate Vaijayanti Umergekar-Kamble was elected mayor by defeating