Davangere or the “Village of Lake” was ruled and administered by Hoysalas, Pandyas and Pallavas which later came to be ruled by the famous Tippu Sultan. This thriving land, recognized for its rich soil and cotton was created partitioning the Chitradurga, Shimoga and Bellary districts on the Independence day of 1997. Positioned on the National Highway 4, Davanagere, as a district includes the six Taluks of Davanagere, Harihar, Honnali, Channagiri, Harpanahalli and Jagalur.

The district has 1 Minister of Parliament belonging to the BJP and 9 MLAs with the city MLA belonging to the Indian National Congress.

The district has 1 Minister of Parliament belonging to the BJP and 9 MLAs with the city MLA belonging to the Indian National Congress.
District Administration and City Corporation
The Corporation of the city known as the “Manchester of Karnataka” however came into existence on the 6th of January 2007. The city which is placed at about 260kms from Bengaluru was previously a municipal corporation. The City Mayor post is reserved for women candidates belonging to the Scheduled Caste division and the Deputy Mayor positions are generally reserved for BCs and Minorities of the A category.

While the district of Davanagere comes under the Deputy Commissioner who takes care of the Revenue and Development together with General administration, the city which is divided into 41 wards, each administered by a Corporator, comes under the Mayor. The Mayor serves for a period of 1 year.
Functioning of the City Corporation and the district administration come under the City Corporation Act of 1976 and the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Common C&R of 2011 and fall under the umbrella of the Central and State governments.
The Deputy Commissioner’s office comprises of varied departments that contribute to the overall revenue of the district and state.
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Education
- Department of Irrigation
- The Commercial Tax Office
- The Public Works Department
- Department of Horticulture
- The Pollution Control Board
- The Forest Department
- The Fisheries Department
- The city urban development cell
- Department of Tourism
- Department of Labour
- Department of Health and Family Welfare
- Department of Social welfare
- The district employment exchange
- Police
Zilla Panchayat
Apart from the above, Davanagere comprises of Zilla Panchayat that serves to build and enhance infrastructural facilities including roads, water-ways, hospitals, educational institutions in rural areas. These Panchayats are headed by a Chief Executive officer who is holds an equivalent rank to that of the Deputy Commissioner. The Panchayat is split into the following divisions for better administration:
The Deputy Commissioner’s office offers grievance redressal through an array of sections that include Administration, Revenue, Election, Municipal, Judicial etc.
- Development Section
- Administration Section
- Accounts Section
- Planning Section
- Council Section