Gujarat
Gujarat (
Gujarati: ,
,
IPA ; also spelled
Gujrat and sometimes
Gujarath. Guzarat is a Western phonetic corruption, and is not considered an official term). Gujarat is the second-most industrialized
state in the
Republic of India (after
Maharashtra), which contains many of the former
Princely states of India. Gujarat borders
Pakistan, and the states of
Rajasthan to the north-east,
Madhya Pradesh to the east, Maharashtra and the
Union territories of
Diu,
Daman,
Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the south. The international border with
Pakistan is to the north-west. The
Arabian Sea makes up the state's western coast. Its capital,
Gandhinagar is a
planned city. It is located near
Ahmedabad, the former state capital and the current commercial center of Gujarat.
Indus Valley Civilization
Many settlements of the
Indus Valley Civilization, also known as the
Harappan Civilization, have been found in
Gujarat. The most important of these are the trade port of
Lothal in south eastern Gujarat and
Dholavira in western gujarat.
Migration and Hindu Kingdoms
The name of the state is derived from
Gujjarātta (Gurjar Rāshtra), which means the land of the
Gujjars. It is believed that a tribe of
Gujjars migrated to India around the 5th century. Gujarat's coastal cities, chiefly
Bharuch, served as ports and trading centres for the
Maurya and
Gupta empires. After the collapse of the Gupta empire in the 6th century, Gujarat flourished as an independent Hindu kingdom. The
Maitraka dynasty, descended from a Gupta general, ruled from the 6th to the 8th centuries from their capital at
Vallabhi, although they were ruled briefly by
Harsha during the 7th century. In 775 the first
Parsi (Zoroastrian) refugees arrived in Gujarat from
Iran. The
Arab rulers of
Sind sacked Vallabhi in 770, bringing the Maitraka dynasty to an end. A branch of the
Pratihara clan ruled Gujarat after the eighth century.
960 AD to 1292 AD
The
Solanki clan of
Rajputs ruled Gujarat from c. 960 to 1243. Gujarat was a major center of Indian Ocean trade, and their capital at
Anhilwara (
Patan) was one of the largest cities in India, with a population estimated at 100,000 in the year 1000. In 1026, the famous
Somnath temple in Gujarat was destroyed by
Mahmud of Ghazni. After 1243, the Solkanis lost control of Gujarat to their feudatories, of whom the
Vaghela chiefs of
Dholka came to dominate Gujarat. In 1292 the Vaghelas became tributaries of the
Yadava dynasty of
Devagiri in the
Deccan.
1297 AD to ~1850 AD
In 1297 to 1298
Ala ud din Khilji,
Sultan of Delhi, destroyed Anhilwara and incorporated Gujarat into the Delhi Sultanate. After
Timur's sacking of
Delhi at the end of the 14th century weakened the Sultanate, Gujarat's Muslim governor
Zafar Khan Muzaffar asserted his independence, and his son, Sultan
Ahmed Shah (ruled 1411 to 1442), established
Ahmedabad as the capital.
Cambay eclipsed Bharuch as Gujarat's most important trade port. The Sultanate of Gujarat remained independent until 1576, when the Mughal emperor
Akbar conquered it and annexed it to the
Mughal Empire. It remained a province of the Mughal empire until the
Marathas conquered eastern and central Gujarat in the 18th century; Western Gujarat (
Kathiawar and
Kutch) were divided among numerous local rulers.
|
Bombay Presidency in 1909, northern portion |
|
Bombay Presidency in 1909, southern portion |
1614 to 1947
Portugal was the first
European power to arrive in Gujarat, acquiring several enclaves along the Gujarati coast, including
Daman and Diu and
Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The
British East India Company established a
factory in
Surat in 1614, which formed their first base in India, but it was eclipsed by
Bombay after the British acquired it from Portugal in 1668. The Company wrested control of much of Gujarat from the Marathas during the
Second Anglo-Maratha War. Many local rulers, notably the Maratha
Gaekwads of Baroda (
Vadodara), made a separate peace with the British, and acknowledged British sovereignty in return for retaining local self-rule. Gujarat was placed under the political authority of
Bombay Presidency, with the exception of Baroda state, which had a direct relationship with the
Governor-General of India. From 1818 to 1947, most of present-day Gujarat, including
Kathiawar,
Kutch, and northern and eastern Gujarat were divided into dozens of
princely states, but several districts in central and southern Gujarat, namely
Ahmedabad, Broach (
Bharuch),
Kaira,
Panch Mahals, and
Surat, were ruled directly by British officials.
Indian Independence Movement
The people of Gujarat were the most enthusiastic participants in India's struggle for freedom. Leaders like
Mahatma Gandhi,
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel,
Morarji Desai,
K.M. Munshi,
Narhari Parikh,
Mahadev Desai,
Mohanlal Pandya and
Ravi Shankar Vyas all hailed from Gujarat. In addition,
Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Pakistan's first Governor-General, spoke
Gujarati as his mother tongue and his father was from what later became Gujarat. Gujarat was also the site of some of the most popular revolts, including the
Satyagrahas in
Kheda,
Bardoli,
Borsad and the
Salt Satyagraha.
See Also:
Freedom fighters from GujaratProvince Consolidation and Division after 1947
After India's independence in 1947, 217 princely states of
Kathiawar and
Saurashtra, including the former kingdom of
Junagadh, were grouped together to form the province of
Saurashtra, with its capitol at
Rajkot. On
November 1,
1956, Saurashtra was merged into
Bombay State. The modern state of Gujarat was created on
May 1,
1960, out of the northern, predominantly
Gujarati-speaking portion of
Bombay State. The southern, predominantly
Marathi-speaking portion became the state of
Maharashtra.
Post Independence
After
Indian independence and the
partition of India in 1947, the new Indian government grouped the former princely states of Gujarat into three larger units;
Saurashtra, which included the former princely states on the
Kathiawar peninsula,
Kutch, and
Bombay state, which included the former British districts of Bombay Presidency together with most of Baroda state and the other former princely states of eastern Gujarat. In 1956, Bombay state was enlarged to include Kutch, Saurashtra, and parts of
Hyderabad state and
Madhya Pradesh in central India. The new state had a mostly Gujarati-speaking north and a
Marathi-speaking south. Agitation by Marathi nationalists for their own state led to the split of Bombay state on linguistic lines; on
1 May 1960, it became the new states of Gujarat and
Maharashtra. The first capital of Gujarat was
Ahmedabad; the capital was moved to
Gandhinagar in 1970.
Surat is known as Diamond or Silk city of India and business city of India.
In Gujarat a few new towns have been established since
Indian independence in 1947. Most of these are more like settlements established near existing urban centres.
Gandhidham,
Sardarnagar and
Kubernagar are three rehabilitation towns more like
refugee settlements than self-sufficient towns. The last two now form part of the city of Ahmedabad.
Ankleshwar and
Mithapur were two of the earlier industrial towns established in Gujarat. A complex of three small townships for the oil refinery, the Fertilizer Factory and Petro-chemicals plant also came up near
Vadodara.
Kandla is the only new port town established in the state.
2001 Gujarat Earthquake
Gujarat was hit with a devastating
earthquake on
January 26,
2001 at 9:00, which claimed a staggering 20,000 lives, injured another 200,000 people and severely affected the lives of 40 million of the population. The economic and financial loss to Gujarat and India is being felt even after almost half a decade. (figure of 20000 is very high to be corrected). Actual figures are between 10,000 to 20,000
2002 Gujarat Riots
The 2002 Gujarat violence consisted of riots triggered on February 27, 2002 by an attack on a passenger train, the Sabarmati Express, passing through the town of Godhra. When the train stopped at the station, the train caught fire and 59 passengers, most of whom were Hindu women and children, were burnt alive. A Majority of the people who witnessed the incident say that a 1000 strong mob of muslim men attacked the coach while it was at the railway station by pulling the emergency brakes and halting the train. They then attacked the people who tried to escape from with swords and pipes and then set the coach ablaze, burning all the 59 passengers in the most gruesome incident. [
1]
Following reports of the deaths, widespread violence spread throughout the state, the bulk of which was targeted at the minority Muslim population. According to an Indian Central Government report released in 2005, 254 Hindus and 790 Muslims were killed with an estimated 223 deemed missing.
Gujarat is the westernmost state of India. It is bounded by the
Arabian Sea to the west and southwest, and
Pakistan to the north. The state of
Rajasthan is to the northeast,
Madhya Pradesh to the east, and
Maharashtra and the union territory of
Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the south and southeast of Gujarat.
Climate & Natural Features
The relief is low in the most parts of the state and involves diverse climate conditions. Though mostly dry, it is
desertic in the north-west, and wet in the southern districts due to heavy
monsoon season. With the construction of
Sardar Sarovar on
Narmada River, a result of the largest
dam in India
[Sardar Sarovar, the Report of the Independent Review, Bradford Morse and Thomas Berger, Edited by The Independent Review, 1992.],
irrigation facilities have improved immensely, with water being provided to the most dry areas of
Kutch and Saurashtra through a 550 km long
canal, an engineering marvel. With the
Gulf of Kutch and the
Gulf of Cambay, Gujarat has about 1600 km of coastline, which is the longest coastline of all Indian states.
Rivers
The major rivers flowing through the state include the
Narmada,
Sabarmati, and
Mahi in central and northern Gujarat;
Mithi,
Khari, Bhadar, Shetrunji and
Bhogavo in Saurashtra;
Tapi,
Purna,
Ambika,
Auranga and
Damanganga in the southern part of the state.
National Parks
Gujarat is home to four
National Parks, including
Gir Forest National Park, near
Junagadh,
Blackbuck National Park in
Bhavnagar District,
Vansda National Park in
Navsari District, and
Marine National Park on the
Gulf of Kutch in
Jamnagar District. The last remaining
Asian lions, famous for their dark black manes, live in the area surrounding
Girnar. In addition to these, there are twenty one
Wildlife sanctuaries.
Major Cities
The
major cities in Gujarat are
Ahmedabad,
Vadodara (Baroda),
Surat,
Rajkot,
Bhavnagar and
Jamnagar. Ahmedabad, the commercial capital of the state, is the sixth largest city of India. Other important cities include
Nadiad,
Anand and
Ankleshwar in central Gujarat,
Bharuch,
Navsari,
Vapi, and
Valsad in the south; and
Bhuj, and
Dwarka in Saurastra in the west.
Macro-economic trend
This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Gujarat at market prices
estimated by
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.
| Year ¦¦ Gross State Domestic Product |
|---|
| 1980 | 74,270 |
| 1985 | 139,880 |
| 1990 | 279,960 |
| 1995 | 718,860 |
| 2000 | 1,084,840 |
The economy of Gujarat shows that it is one of the most prosperous states of the country, having a per-capita
GDP 2.47 times India's average. Of all the states, Gujarat controls some of the largest businesses in India. According to the data published by "Center for Monitoring Indian Economy" or CMIE, Gujarat ranked third among all the states of India in 2004, approximately same as
Punjab and
Maharashtra, at Rs. 15,800
[Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy]. Major Agricultural produce of the state include
cotton,
peanuts,
dates,
sugarcane,
milk & milk products. Industrial products include
cement, and
petrol. Gujarat is the largest producer of milk in India.
Amul, located at
Anand is one of the largest milk product producer co-operatives in the world.
Surat is a hub of the global
diamond trade. It is home to a thriving diamond trade and diamond cutting industry.
Alang Ship Recycling Yard, located 50 km southeast of
Bhavnagar, on the
Gulf of Khambhat, is the world's largest ship breaking yard. Reliance Petrolieum Limited, one of the group companies of
Reliance Industries Limited founded by
Dhirubhai Ambani operates the oil
refinery at
Jamnagar which is the world's largest grassroots' refinery.
[Reliance Industries Limited - see section headed '1999-2000']Gujarat ranks
first nationwide in gas-based thermal electricity generation with national market share of over 18% and second nationwide in nuclear electricity generation with national market share of over 16%.
Over 4% of the
S&P CNX 500 conglomerates have corporate offices in Gujarat......
On
1960-05-01, Gujarat was created out of the 17 northern
districts of former
State of Bombay. These districts were further subdivided later on. There are 25 administrative
districts in the state (as of 2006).
Gujarat is governed by a
Legislative Assembly of 182 members. Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) are elected on the basis of adult suffrage from one of 182 constituencies, of which 13 are reserved for
scheduled castes and 26 for
scheduled tribes. The term of office for a member of the Legislative Assembly is five years. The Legislative Assembly elects a speaker, who presides over the meetings of the legislature. A governor is appointed by the
President of India, and is empowered to summon, prorogue, and dissolve the Legislative Assembly, and to address the House after every general election and the commencement of each year's first session of the Legislative Assembly. The Leader of the Legislative Assembly is the leader of the majority party or coalition in the legislature (Chief Minister), or his or her designee. The Leader sets the dates of the legislative sessions, and decides what business is to be transacted in the legislature and what order it is taken up. The administration of the state is led by the Chief Minister.
After independence in 1947, the
Indian National Congress party (INC) ruled the
Bombay state (which included present-day Gujarat and
Maharashtra). Congress continued to govern Gujarat after the state's creation in 1960. During and after India's
State of Emergency of 1975-1977, public support for the Congress Party eroded, but it continued to hold government until 1995. In the 1995 Assembly Polls, the Congress lost to the
BJP and
Keshubhai Patel came to power. His Government lasted only 2 years. The fall of that government was provoked by a split in the BJP led by
Shankersinh Vaghela. BJP returned to power in 1998 state assembly polls and has won most of the subsequent polls. In 2001, following the loss of 2 assembly seats in
by-elections, Keshubhai Patel resigned and handed over power to
Narendra Modi. The BJP retained a majority in the 2002 election, and Narendra Modi has since served as Chief Minister of the state.
Revenues of Government
This is a chart of trend of own tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) of the Government of Gujarat
assessed by the Finance Commissions from time to time with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.
| Year ¦¦ Own Tax Revenues |
|---|
| 2000 | 104,818 |
| 2005 | 138,964 |
This is a chart of trend of own non-tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) of the Government of Gujarat
assessed by the Finance Commissions from time to time with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.
| Year ¦¦ Own Non-tax Revenues |
|---|
| 2000 | 19,077 |
| 2005 | 31,365 |
Gujarat has 13
universities and 4
agricultural universities.
Gujarat University ([
2] Website)is the largest
university located in the city of Ahmedabad. Other universities are In alphabetical order:
Bhavnagar University,
Bhavnagar (
website),
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University, Ahmedabad,
Ahmedabad,
Gujarat Ayurveda University,
Jamnagar (
website),
Gujarat National Law University,
Gandhinagar,
Gujarat University,
Ahmedabad,
http://www.gujaratuniversity.org.in/default.htm website]), [[Gujarat Vidyapith,
Ahmedabad (
website),
Hemchandracharya North Gujarat University,
Patan (
website),
Kachchha University, Bhuj Kutch 370001,
Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda,
Vadodara,
Nirma University of Science & Technology,
Ahmedabad,
Saurashtra University,
Rajkot (
website),
Sardar Patel University,
Vallabh Vidyanagar,
South Gujarat University,
SuratAgriculture Universities
*
Anand Agricultural University,
Anand*
Gujarat Agricultural University, Sardar Krushinagar,
Dantiwada (
website)
*
Junagadh Agricultural University,
Junagadh (
website)
*
Navsari Agricultural University,
Navsari (
website)
Engineering Schools
L. D. College of Engineering [
3], Dharmsinh Institute of Technology (DDIT)
Nirma Institue of Technology [
4] and
Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology are among the premier engineering institutes of west India. Centre for Environment Planning and Technology ([
5]) is a well known institution for students of art and architecture.
Research Organizations
Gujarat also hosts some of the premier research organisations of India:
Indian Space Research Organization is the premier space research institute located in the city of Ahmedabad. Known as the cradle of Space Sciences in India, the
Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) was founded in 1947 by
Dr. Vikram Sarabhai [
6] in the city of Ahmedabad, near to Gujarat Univerity and L. D. College of Engineering campuses. As a unit of the Department of Space, Government of India, PRL carries out fundamental research in select areas of Physics, Space & Atmospheric Sciences, Astronomy & Astrophysics and Planetary & Geosciences.
Institute for Plasma Research is an autonomous Physics research institute localted in the capital city Gandhinagar, involved in research in various aspects of plasma science including basic plasma physics, research on magnetically confined hot plasmas and plasma technologies for industrial applications. [[Ahmedabad Textile and Industries' Research Association] is also located in Ahmedabad, gujarat.
Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute operated under
Council of Scientific & Industrial Research Govt. of India at Bhavnagar. It was inaugurated by Late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the First Prime Minister of India on 10th April, 1954 with a view to carry out research on marine salt, and salt from inland lakes and sub-soil brine. It is working on
Reverse Osmocis,
Electro Membrane Process,
Salt and Marine Chemicals,
Analytical Science and some of others.
Gujarat Science City
Gujarat Science City [
7], is a government initiative to draw more students towards education in
Science, which hosts India's first
IMAX 3D Theater, An Energy Park, A Hall of Science, An
Amphitheater, And Dancing
Musical fountains among others.
Its official and primary language is
Gujarati. The religion of the majority of its residents is
Hinduism, in addition to significant percentages following
Islam,
Jainism,
Zoroastrianism and
Christianity. Most of the Gujarati people are vegetarian. Amongst Hindus the deity of
Krishna is famously worshipped in His form of Sri
Nathji throughout Gujarat.
As Gujarat is a heavily industrialized state of India, it attracts lots of outsiders, mostly from
North India,
Bihar, and
South India. Hundreds of thousands of non-Gujarati workers live in Gujarat.
The Hindu majority in the state have a long history of harmony and tolerance of various religions and communities, such as the long established, and in many cases thriving, Gujarati
Muslim and
Parsi communities. (See the account of
Zoroastrian community for their welcome to Gujarat for settlement in around the 8th Century). However, due to recent events, such as
2002 Gujarat violence that claimed about a 1,000 victims,
media have portrayed the people of Gujarat as communally intolerant. It should be noted that most of these media personnel never lived in Gujarat to witness the peaceful co-existence of Hindus and Muslims.
Gujarat is the only home of Asiatic Lions. Outside Africa, Gujarat is the only natural habitat of lions. Gir National Park in south-west part of the state covers only the part of lion's habitat. Besides lions, the other big cat can be found in the state are Panthers. Panthers are spread across large plains of Saurashtra and mountains of South Gujarat.
by the instructions of
Bhagwan Swaminarayan.]]The
Swaminarayan Temple in
Kalupur,
Ahmedabad is the first built Swaminarayan Temple in the world, this temple is know to be very popular with tourists.
Lothal is the site of the ancient ruins of the first Indian port, dating from the time of the
Indus Valley Civilization.
Dholavira, The Ancient Metropolitan City, locally known as Kotada Timba, is one of the largest and most prominent archaeological sites in India, belonging to the Indus Valley Civilization. It is located on the Khadir island in the Kutch district of Gujarat - the island is surrounded by water in the monsoon season. The site was occupied from about 2900 BCE for about a millennium, declining slowly after about 2100, briefly abandoned and then reoccupied, finally by villagers among its ruins, until about 1450.
The
Modhera Sun Temple is famous for its rare position as specifically and uniquely designed for the worship of the Sun, Lord
Surya. While the main temple is beautifully and intricately designed with complex architecture, painting and sculptures, there is a central pond and surrounding it stand 108 small temples for each of the Sun God's 108 names.
Dwarka city on the tip of the
Arabian Sea is famous for being the legendary home of Lord
Krishna, the eighth
Avatara of
Vishnu, hero of the
Mahabharata epic. Ancient ruins of a city and temple complex found underwater suggest a historical basis for the legend. The
Rann of Kutchch covers a large portion of western Gujarat, and is world-famous for its rare ecosystem,
fossils, wildlife and terrain. Only 500 years earlier, the area was the
Arabian Sea.
While the city of
Ahmedabad is a large and fast-growing modern metropolis, it was also the home of the
Indian Independence Movement, with the
Sabarmati Ashram of
Mahatma Gandhi a standing legacy. Other major tourist sites include
Palitana,
Diu,
Kutch,
Jamnagar,
Junagadh, and
Rajkot in the region of
Saurastra; and
Champaner and
Pavagarh in the
Panchmahal district. Gujarat has 4 national parks and 21 sanctuaries, which include:
Nal Sarovar,
Anjal,
Balaram-Ambaji, Barda, Jambughoda, Jessore, Kachchh Desert, Khavda, Narayan Sarovar, Paniya, Purna, Rampura, Ratanmahal, and Surpaneshwar.
*
List of people from Gujarat*
List of Maitraka rulers of Gujarat*
List of Solanki rulers of Gujarat*
List of Vaghela rulers of Gujarat*
List of Muzaffarid rulers of Gujarat*
Gujarati people*
Gujarat in Lok Sabha*
Dholavira*
Chief Ministers of GujaratOfficial website
* Official portal of Gujarat Government
;Weather of Gujarat
* Weather information of Gujarat
;History of Gujarat
* History of Gujarat
* More information about history of Gujarat
* List of rulers of Gujarat
;Further information
* Gujarat Map
* Directory of Cities and Towns in Gujarat
* Gujarat earthquake of 2001Transportation in Gujarat
* Gujarat Transportation
