Ahmedabad is the largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat and is situated at the bank of River Sabarmati. It spreads over 8,707 square kilometers and was the former capital of Gujarat. It has many textile industries and so it is called as Manchester of India and Manchester of East. The other names of Ahmedabad are Karnavati and Amdavad. It houses many industries and is the administrative capital of the district of Ahmedabad. The non-cooperation movement was launched by Mahatma Gandhi from here. Here in this article you can find all the details about Ahmedabad and its culture.

History of Ahmedabad

In 11^th century the city was called as Ashapalli and the ruler of Anhilwara named Karandev I waged war against the king of Ashapalli and established the city of Karnavati. Then in the 13^th century, the Vaghela dynasty of Dholka was ruling over and the Sultan of Delhi conquered this. The Muzaffarid dynasty established their rule over the city. The city of Ahmedabad became the capital of the Gujarat Sultanate. Sultan Ahmed Shah was ruling over the city and it was named as Ahmedabad after him.

The Sultan built a fort called as Bhadra Fort and it has 12 gates. The Mughal rule over Ahmedabad ended in 1753 when Raghunath Rao and Damaji Gaekwad seized the fort. They ruled over the city for about 64 years and then this went into the hands of the British government in 1818. After this period Ahmedabad saw a huge development and it was during the British period that Municipality was founded and the railway line was established. Many campaigns of civil disobedience movement were launched here during the British rule. The two ashrams Kochrab Ashram and Sabarmati Ashram were established by Mahatma Gandhi near this city. After the independence of India, when the Bombay state was divided on 1^st May 1960, Ahmedabad was made into the capital of the state. Later it was changed to Gandhi Nagar.

Geography and Climate

Ahmedabad is located at an altitude of 174 feet above mean sea level. It has a hot semi-arid climate with very little rainfall. This could be said as a semi-desert due to the expansion of Rann of Kutch. There are two lakes in the city namely Kankaria Lake and Vastrapur Lake. It is one of the earthquake prone zones in India. The temperature rises in summer to as high as 48 degree centigrade and lowers up to 5 degree centigrade. The three major seasons are winter that lasts from November to March, summer from April to June and monsoon season from July to October. The average rainfall is 93.2 cms. Sometimes it receives heavy rains causing floods in the Sabarmati River. The best time to visit this place is in winter.

People and Culture of Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad has a population of nearly 4 million people and has a literacy rate of 79.89% with the male literacy rate of 87.11% and female literacy rate of 71.12%. 5.41% of people of Ahmedabad live under poverty line. Vaishnavas and Jains are living in large number here and more than 12% of the people are Muslims. Other sects of people living here are Punjabis, Marathis, Tamils, Telugu, Sindhis, Marwaris and Malayalis. So, one can see a blend of culture here. Gujarati is the mother tongue of most of the people but Hindi is also commonly spoken. Among 35 major Indian cities NCRB has rated this city to have the highest crime ratio.

If you go to Ahmedabad you can notice a blend of ancient and modern culture here with many architectural monuments, temples and mosques. The Indo-Saracenic style of architecture with a mix of Hindu and Islamic style is popularly seen. The important religious festivals celebrated here are Deepavali, Holi, Eid and Christmas. Apart from them, the kite flying festival is held on 14^th January every year and this is celebrated to mark the end of winter. Navratri is the festival of nine nights to get the blessings of Goddess Shakti. The folk dance Garba is played with Dandiyas during this time.

The Rath Yathra is organized in the Jagannath temple in Ahmedabad in the month of June or July. The chariots of gods are taken around the city with grand decorations during this time. The three day fair at Tarnetar is also arranged called as Tarnetar Mela. The Kutch Mahotsava is held every year in February by tourism of Gujarat with music, poetry and handicrafts.

Some of the music and dance schools here are Saptak School of Music, Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, Melodious Tone, Merry Makers Musical Classes, Alap Music Class, Mudra School of Indian Classical Dances, Kama’s School of Music, Jainik Music School, etc.

The typical Gujarati thali has roti, rice, dal and vegetables and curry called Shaak along with pickles and papads. Some of the popular recipes of Gujarat are Nutrela Chavli Ghugra, Dhabele, Undhia, Handvo, Kachumber, etc. The pineapple sandwich and Gwalia Dosa are famous all over the world. The buttermilk and tea are the famous beverages. The Hindus and Jains are strict vegetarians and to serve them vegetarian Pizza Hut is opened here for the first time in the world. People love chewing pan and one can find many pan stalls located in Ahmedabad. The traditional embroidery works and arts are sold in Paldi area and the traditional mojri footwear is sold in Madhupura area. The mirror work handicraft could be found near the Law Garden.

Education and Economy

The two major universities in Ahmedabad are Gujarat University and Nirma University. Other educational institutions are International Institute of Management and Technical Studies, Datatech Institute of Internet Marketing, Academy for Decision Science Ahmedabad, Gujarat Vidyapith, Calorx Teachers’ University, Ahmedabad University, Institute of Computer Accountants, Institute of Finance Banking and Insurance, etc.

The GDP of Ahmedabad in the year 2010 was 16 billion dollars. The main source of income comes from the textile and garments industry. There are many textile mills in this region namely Calico Mills, Bagicha Mills, Arvind Mills, etc. The real estate is also a good business in this place. Many chemical and pharmaceutical industries are located in Ahmedabad and biggest two of them being Zydus Cadila and Torrent Pharmaceuticals. The chemical units are run by Nirma group and Adani group is one of the multinational infrastructure company located here. The IT sector also witnessed huge growth and major companies like Tata Consultancy Services have opened their office here. The city gets its water supply from the Sardar Sarovar Project. It is the largest supplier of denim and also leads in the gems and jewelry export. The educational and industrial development of Ahmedabad has attracted students and talented workforce from many parts of India.

Almost all the important banks like UAE Exchange and Financial Services Ltd, Indusind Bank Limited, ICICI Bank Ltd, Bank of Rajasthan, The Ahmedabad Dist Coop Bank, United Co op Bank, Ahmedabad Central Co op Bank, Ahmedabad Mahila Nagrik Sahkari Bank Ltd, Ahmedabad People Co op Bank, Allahabad Bank, Amarnath Co op Bank, Apni Sahakari Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of Madurai, Bank of Punjab, Catholic Syrian Bank, Canara Bank, Bombay Mercantile Co op Bank, Centurion Bank Ltd, City Union Bank, Charotar Nagrik Sahkari Bank, Global Trust Bank, Federal Bank, Ellisbridge Co op Bank, The Nedungadi Bank, The Jammu and Kashmir Bank, etc. are situated here.

Transport Facilities in Ahmedabad

The airport in Ahmedabad is located just 15 kms from the centre of the city and is called as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. This is the busiest airport in the state of Gujarat and more than 250 planes come and go daily. It handles six million passengers every year. The flight service is available to many international locations such as Kuwait, Muscat, Dubai, Doha Qatar, Sharjah, Singapore, etc and many domestic locations like Mumbai, Delhi, Indore, Chennai, Goa, Pune, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, etc.

The city of Ahmedabad is well connected by train with all the major cities of India. There are direct trains available from this place to the cities like Puri, Chennai, Trivendram, Bengaloru, Coimbatore, Vadodara, Udaipur, Indore, Pune, Bhopal, Kolkata, Nagpur, Lucknow, Varanasi, Goa, Bikaner, Rajkot, Surat, etc.

The NH 8 that connects Delhi and Mumbai passes through this city. Ashram Road, C. G, Road, Relief Road and SG Highway are the main traffic areas of Ahmedabad. Ahmedabad BRTS runs rapid transit system within the city. The bus transport is highly affordable and is comfortable too because they run on the separate corridors in the middle of the roads and no other vehicles are allowed to enter into it. If you want to get around in the city you can hire Tushar rickshaws or autos or car or go by buses. The local bus stand is known as Lal Darwaja and is located between Nehru and Ellis bridges.

Ahmedabad Tourism

The tourists can find cheaper hotels in the old town area. There are also many mid range hotels like Lemon Tree Hotel, Hotel Royal Highness, Hotel Cama Park Plaza, Hotel Comfort Inn Sunset, Hotel Fortune, Hotel Comfort Inn President, Hotel Quality Inn, Hotel Westend, Hotel Ramada, Hotel Shailly, Hotel Shree Krishna Palace, Hotel Kingston, etc. If you are looking for high class star value hotels then you have to select one among Gateway Hotel, Hotel Le Meridien, Hotel Pride, Hotel Fortune Landmark, Hotel Inder Residency, Hotel Courtyard, Royal Orchid Central, House of MG, The Grand Bhagwati, Cambay Grand, Hotel St. Laurn, etc.

There are lots places of interest in Ahmedabad. Here are the details about Ahmedabad tourist places.

Jama Masjid: This was built in 1423 by Sultan Ahmed Shah in yellow sandstone and stands on 260 pillars with 15 domes. This is one of the most beautiful mosques in India. This is built in thestyle of Indo-Saracenic architecture and it took thirteen years to complete it.

Ahmed Shah Tombs: This is located outside the east gate of Jama Masjid and has the tomb of Ahmed Shah, his son and his grandson.

Bhadra Fort and Darwaja: Ahmed Shah built this fort in 1411 and houses the royal palaces and garden within it. There three gateways to enter it and this is called as Theen Darwaja. The government offices are functioning in it at present.

Sidi Saiyad Mosque: The twin windows of pierced stone in palm leaves structure offers grandeur to this mosque and the slave of Ahmed Shah named Sidi Saiyad constructed this.

Hathesing Temple: This temple was built in 1850 by a Jain Merchant with white marbles and it is one of the best Jain temples located in this region. Ten lakh rupees were spent for building this temple which was a huge sum of money at that time.

Sidi Bashir Mosque: It is located outside the Sarangpur gate and this is called as the mosque of Jhulta minars or shaking minarets. The minarets have three storeys with stone balconies and are innovative pieces of architecture. The minarets sway if a little force is applied at the arch. The reason for vibration remains a mystery and an Englishman demolished one of them to find out the secret but could not.

Kankaria Late: This is a circular lake built in 1451 AD by the Sultan Qutub Ud Din. It has a summer palace at its center called as Nagina Wadi. There is children’s park, historical museum, zoo and a boat club around it.

Calico Museum: This is a reflection of the growth of textile industry in Ahmedabad starting from 17^th century. This museum was constructed in 1949 and houses reference library on textiles. It has different types of fabrics spun or woven or printed in the last five centuries.

Sabarmati Ashram: This served as the center of Indian independence movement and at present there is a museum within its complex. From 1917 to 1930 Mahatma Gandhi lived here.

Adalaj Vav: This is a wonderful piece of architecture located 19 kilometers north of the city and was built by Queen Rudabai. This has Vavs or wells in steps with chambers one behind the other to give a cool interior during hot summer season.

Other places of interest in Ahmedabad are Sarkhej Roza, Rani Rupmati Mosque, Rani Sipri Mosque, Raj Babri Mosque, Heritage Houses of Poles, Akshardham Temple, Science City, Vaishnodevi Temple, Amar Dham, ISKCON Temple, Vastrapur Lake, Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, Ahmedabad Metal Scene, Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Museum, Auto World Vintage Car Museum, etc.

These details about Ahmedabad will be very useful for the first time traveler to the place.

Article Posted By : Sumazla  On December 06, 2011lView All Articles

Suhaina Mazhar is a freelance content writer and blogger with five years experience in content writing. http://sumazla.blogspot.com is her blog.

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