A new permanent pictorial cancellation was released at the Kirloskarwadi Sub Office (416308) in the Sangli district of Maharashtra on 24th November 2022.
The postmark depicts a line art of the Kirloskar Engine. And contains the name of the post office in both Hindi and English language.
Now let’s know some interesting facts and the legacy of Kirloskarwadi town.
Inspired by the industrial townships of America and Europe, one of the legendary industrialists of Indian history, Laxmanrao Kirloskar founded the Kirloskar Brother Ltd. factory in the year 1910 and built the Kirloskarwadi township around this factory. The Kirloskar Brothers Ltd. is the flagship company of the Kirloskar group and one of the leading pump manufacturing companies across the globe.
In 1910, Laxmanrao built the factory near Kundal Road railway station (currently known as Kirloskarwadi Railway Station) in the Sangli district of Maharashtra, which is currently known as Kirloskar Industries. With the land donated by Balasaheb Pant Pratinidhi, the then-ruler of Aundh Sansthan, a princely state under British rule in India, Laxmanrao established the factory and the township.
- Kirloskar Brothers Ltd received the ASME N-STAMP in 2012 and is the first Indian company in rotating equipment to receive this as well as amongst a few companies in the world to have this accreditation.
- Kirloskar Brothers Ltd is also one of the first pump companies to have an all women operated and managed manufacturing plant at Coimbatore, which is the second largest metropolitan city of state Tamil Nadu in India.
- KBL also aided the Thai govt in the rescue operation in saving the football team that were trapped in the water filled cave of July month of 2018.
- Kirloskar Brothers has been closely associated with India’s nuclear program and has made canned motor pumps for pumping heavy water which are deployed at Indian Nuclear Power Plants.
- KBL is also the first Indian company to get Factory Mutual certification for its valves.
The issue of a permanent pictorial cancellation by the Department of Posts on Kirloskar industries is one of the best tributes for their contribution to the industrial and agricultural revolution in India.
Note: Two more special covers were released on Kirloskarwadi Railway station and ODOP. I will update the blog once I receive good quality images of the covers.