| Shirdi | |
| Native Name Lang: | mr |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Nickname: | Sainagar |
| Pushpin Map: | India Maharashtra#India |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Coordinates: | 19.77°N 74.48°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Maharashtra |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Ahmednagar |
| Established Title: | Taluka |
| Established Date: | Rahata |
| Government Type: | Municipal Council |
| Governing Body: | Shirdi Municipal Council |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Total Km2: | 13 |
| Elevation M: | 504 |
| Population Total: | 36004 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Languages |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Official |
| Demographics1 Info1: | Marathi |
| Timezone1: | IST |
| Utc Offset1: | +5:30 |
| Postal Code Type: | PIN |
| Postal Code: | 423109 |
| Area Code Type: | Telephone code |
| Area Code: | 02423 |
| Registration Plate: | MH-17 |
| Leader Title: | MP |
| Leader Name: | Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure, Shiv Sena (UBT) |
| Leader Title1: | MLA |
| Leader Name1: | Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, BJP |
Shirdi (; also known as Sainagar) is a town and pilgrimage site in the Indian state of Maharashtra.[1] [2] Shirdi is located in the Rahata taluka of Ahmednagar District. It is accessible via the Ahmednagar–Malegaon State Highway No.10, approximately from Ahmednagar and from Kopargaon. It is located east of the Ahmednagar–Manmad road.[3] Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust is located in Shirdi.[4]
As per the 2011 Indian census, the population of Shirdi stood at 36,004. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Shirdi has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 76%, and female literacy is 62%. In Shirdi, 15% of the population is under six years of age.[5]
Being a famous pilgrimage site, much of Shirdi's population is made up of tourists, due to the town being home to the 19th-century Indian saint Sai Baba's samadhi temple. Every day, over 60,000 religious tourists visit Shirdi. The temple opens at 4:45 AM.[6]
The Sainagar Shirdi Railway station became operational in March 2009. As of 2011, there are trains from Chennai,[7] [8] Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Vijayawada, Hyderabad, Mysore[9] and other cities/states that have Shirdi railway station as their terminal stop.
Shirdi Airport was inaugurated by the President of India, Ramnath Kovind, on 1 October 2017. There are major destinations from Shirdi airport, viz. the airports of Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai. The airport is located at Kakadi in Kopargaon tahsil area, 14 km south-west of Shirdi.[10] The construction, according to the original plans, was completed in February 2016, and the first trial flight landed on 2 March 2016.[11] There are plans to lengthen the runway from 2,200 metres to 3,200 metres. The target completion date is 2017 or 2018.[12]
The nearest major airports are at Aurangabad and Pune, and respectively from Shirdi.
Shirdi is accessible via the Ahmednagar-Manmad State Highway No.10, approximately from Ahmednagar and from Kopargaon. It is approximately from Mumbai on the Eastern Express Highway.