Gujarat

Gujarat
Capital • Coordinates	Gandhinagar • 23.03° N 72.58° E
Largest city	Ahmedabad
Population (2001) • Density	50,596,992 ( 10th) • 258/km²
Area • Districts	196,024 km² ( 7th) • 25
Time zone	IST ( UTC +5:30)
Establishment • Governor • Chief Minister • Legislature (seats)	1960- 05-01 • Kishore Sharma ( list) • Narendra Modi ( list) • Unicameral (182)
Official language(s)	Gujarati
Website	www.gujaratindia.com
Abbreviation (ISO)	IN-GJ
? Seal of Gujarat

Gujarat or Guzarat ( Gu: ગુજરાત, Hi: गुजरात; Gujarāt, IPA [guɟra:t]; also spelled Gujrat and sometimes (incorrectly) Gujarath) contained many of the former Princely states of India, and is the second-most industrialized state in the Republic of India after Maharashtra. Gujarat borders the states of Rajasthan to the north-east, Madhya Pradesh to the east, Maharashtra and the Union territory of 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 is Gandhinagar, a planned city which is close to Ahmedabad, the former state capital and the current commercial center of Gujarat.

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.

Gujarat has become one of the fastest-growing states in the country; with an average recorded per-capita income of Rs. 15,800 in 2004, compared to the national average of Rs. 6,400. Though mostly noted for their entrepreneurial spirit, people from Gujarat, also refered to as Gujarati (pl. Gujaratis), have also been leaders in the arts and the sciences. Three of India's most prominent leaders in the independence movement were from Gujarat: Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and Morarji Desai. Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the first Governor General of Pakistan, spoke Gujarati as his mother tongue and his father hailed from what became the Indian state of Gujarat. Vikram Sarabhai was the father of India's space program. Gujarat is the only state in India where there is a prohibition on liquor.

Geography

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 to the south and southeast of Gujarat. 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 , 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.

The major rivers flowing through the state include the Narmada, Sabarmati, and Mahi in central and northern Gujarat; Mithi, Khari, and Bhogavo in Saurashtra; Tapi, Purna, Ambika, Auranga and Damanganga in the southern part of the state. 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.

The major cities in Gujarat are Ahmedabad, Vadodara (Baroda), Surat, Rajkot 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.

History

Situated on the western coast of India, the name of the state is derived from Gujjarātta (Gurjar Rāshtra), which means the land of the Gujjars or khazars. It is believed that a tribe of Gujjars migrated to India around the 5th century. The history of Gujarat, however, began much earlier. Settlements of the Indus Valley Civilisation, also known as the Harappan Civilisation, have been found in the area now known as Gujarat. Gujarat's coastal cities, chiefly Bharuch, served as ports and trading centres in the Maurya and Gupta empires. After the fall 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. 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. In 775 the first Parsi (Zoroastrian) refugees arrived in Gujarat from Iran.

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 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.

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.

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. It was also the site of the most popular revolts, including the Satyagrahas in Kheda, Bardoli, Borsad and the Salt Satyagraha.

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.

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. Ankleswar 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.

Gujarat was hit with a devastating earthquake on January 26, 2001 at 9:00am, 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.

Administration and politics

On May 1, 1960, 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.

Economy

The economy of Gujarat shows that it is one of the most prosperous states of the country, having a per-capita GDP significantly above India's average. 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 . 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.

Educational institutions

Gujarat has 10 universities and 4 Agricultural universities. Gujarat is home to the prestigeous Indian Institute of Management, located in the city of Ahmedabad. The institute has been rated as the best in Asia by Asiaweek ^{[ citation needed]}, and attracts a lot of foreign students. Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology [5] is the first institute in India to recognise ICT as the emerging technical discipline and impart education in the same. Gujarat also hosts an extension campus, the National Institute of Design at Gandhinagar, for the prestigious NID at Ahmedabad. Gujarat has four state agricultural Universities, namely Anand Agricultural University, Junagadh Agricultural University, Navsari Agricultural University and Saradar Krushinagar Dantiwada Agricultural University engaged in Teaching, Research and Extension Education.

Gujarat is also the home for famous 'The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda [6] located in the city of Baroda or Vadodara established by the earstwhile ruler Maharaja Sayajirao. It was conceptualized in early 20th century and later on established with different faculties and institutes. Apart from being the one of the few unique institutes having medium of instruction completely in English, it also bears the honour to have India's second largest dome, an architectural wonder.

Nirma Institue of Technology and L.D. College of Engineering are among the premier engineering institues of west india. Centre for Environment Planning and Technology(CEPT) is a well known institution for students of art and architecture. Gujarat also hosts some of the premier research organisations of India. Among others, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) and Ahmedabad Textile and Industries’ Research Association (ATIRA) are the most noteworthy.

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.

Demographics

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 people of the state have a long history ^{[ citation needed]} of harmony and toleration 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 certain events such as 2002 Gujarat violence that claimed about a 1,000 victims in the recent past the people of Gujarat have been perceived by the outside world through the media as communally intolerant.

Tourism

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. 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.