Diveagar

Diveagar(Dive Agar)is a popular beach destination from the nearby towns of Shrivardhan and Harihareshwar. Diveagar about 4-5 hours away from the two major cities of Pune(approximately 160km) and Mumbai(approximately 170km) making Diveagar a popular weekend spot. Diveagar is about 40 kms off the NH17 from Mangaon. It’s a village located in Shrivardhan Taluka, Raigad district in the state of Maharashtra.

The area is peaceful, clean and sparsely populated. The region includes a fishing settlement, a beach, a temple, local businesses engaged in coconut and beetle nut tree farming, and some tourism businesses such as restaurants, cottage rentals and hotels.

A beach that shot up in popularity after a serendipitous discovery of a golden mask of the elephant god Ganesha, Diveagar, is a prosperous village located at one end of the triple Raigad beaches. Although the mask unfortunately was stolen from the 'Suvarna Ganesh' temple in 2012 the popularity of Diveagar beach. Lord Suvarnaganesha Temple is a temple of great significance owing to its 300 years old idol of Lord Ganesha also referred to as Suvarnaganesha. The idol is famed as it is crafted with 24 carat pure gold and measures to be 60 cm tall and weighs as 1.3kg.

The beach, facing the Arabian Sea, is approximately four kilometers long and undeveloped. The beach contains a number of suru trees (Casuarina), which are common to coastal Maharashtra. The access to the beach has a dense cover of belu trees, which are otherwise uncommon in the area. Sand-bubble crabs can be found on the beach and at nearby Harihareshwar one can find dolphins. Some sea turtles still lay their eggs on the beach. There is a small fishing village, where vendors sell fresh fish. The beach is accessible from the Mumbai-Goa highway via Kolad or Karnala. Diveagar is flanked by two lesser know beaches. Velas to the north of Diveagar is famous for the turtle festival which is celebrated here. Aaravi is another beach to the south of Diveagar.