Ganganagar

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Sri Ganganagar
Sri Ganganagar Location of Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan and India
Country	India
State	Rajasthan
District(s)	Ganganagar
Population	210,788 (2001[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area • Elevation	• 164 m (538 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 335001 • Telephone • +0154

Coordinates: 29°55′N 73°53′E / 29.92°N 73.88°E / 29.92; 73.88 Sri Ganganagar, also called Ganganagar, (in Hindi: श्री गंगानगर or गंगानगर ) is a northern most city of Rajasthan state of western India. It is the administrative headquarters of Ganganagar District.

History

Sri Ganganagar is named after the Maharaja of Bikaner, General His Highness Sri Raj Rajeshwar Maharajadhiraj Narendra Maharaja Shiromani Sir Ganga Singh Bahadur, Maharaja of Bikaner, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE, KCB, KIH". Sri Ganganagar is established as the major plan of irrigating the Erstwhile Bikaner State. Sri Ganganagar is situated at the point where the Satlej Waters enters Rajasthan or Erstwhile Bikaner state. The Bikaner state was affected by the worst famine in the year 1899–1900. In order to get rid of this problem permanently, in 1903 Maharaja Sri Ganga Singhji obtained the services of A. W. E. Standley, Chief Engineer, who demonstrated the feasibility of the western area of the Bikaner State being brought under irrigation from the Sutlej Waters. The plan of the Sutlej Valley Project was drawn by then Chief Engineer of Punjab Mr. R. G. Kennedy according to which the vast area of Erstwhile Bikaner state could be brought under irrigation. But because of objections by the erstwhile State of Bahawalpur, the project got delayed and finally with intervention of then Viceroy of India Lord Curzon in 1906, a Tripartite Conference was held and an agreement was reached and signed on 4 September 1920. The foundation stone of the Canal Head Works at Ferozepur was laid on 5 December, 1925 and the work completed in 1927 by constructing 89 miles of lined canal. The opening ceremony was performed on 26 October 1927 by Lord lrwin, the then Viceroy of India. The plan for Sri Ganganagar was drawn at this time only. And irrigated parts of Bikaner state came under Sri Ganganagar district and now parted Hanumangargh District.

City and Layout

Sri Ganganagar is one of the well planned mordern cities of India. It is said to be influenced by the town planning of Paris. It is divided into residential blocks and commercial area which includes Dhan Mandi (Agricultural Crop Market Place). Dhan Mandi is adjacent to the Railway Ward for ease of transportation of agricultural crops. Though because of lack of space Dhan Mandi is now shifted to a new location. Residential Blocks have large parks for each Blocks and Community centers and places of worship are at junctions of three or four blocks. Though growth of population has opened gates for unplanned growth all around it, still the Old City area, which is popularly referred as "Block Area", is still the most beautiful part of the city.

Economy

Sri Ganganagar is a testimony of the vision and efforts of Great Maharaja Ganga Singh Ji. Desert land was converted to a lush green town, credited to the Maharaja who brought the Gang canal which carries the excess waters of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the region, making Ganganagar district known as "the food basket of Rajasthan".^[1] The economy of the city is based on agriculture, its main crops are Wheat, Mustard and Cotton. Other crops are Guar, Bajra, Sugar Cane and Grams. In recent years farmers are also diverting towards Horticulture, and Kinnu(A Citrus Family fruit) has become a major crop of the area. The industries in the city are mostly based on agriculture. The city has Cotton Ginning and Pressing factories, Mustard Oil mills and Wheat Flour mills and of course the famous Rajasthan State Ganganagar Sugar Mills Ltd., which is famous all over the world for its Royal Heritage Liqueurs.^[2][3] It also has spinning and textile Factories. Because of its prosperity from agriculture, Ganganagar District also has a large number of automobiles which includes tractors and MUVs and because of the large population of Automobiles in the district, Sri Ganganagar has become one of the largest automobile markets in India. ganga nagar is also called the green district of rajasthan it is the food bucket for lager part of rajasthan

Climate

The climate of Sri Ganganagar is very extreme. The Summer Temperature reaches up to 50• Celsius and Winter Temperature dips just around 0• Celsius.^[4] The average annual rainfall is only 20cms.^[5]

Geography

Ganganagar is located at 29°55′N 73°53′E / 29.92°N 73.88°E / 29.92; 73.88.^[6] It has an average elevation of 164 metres (538 feet).

Demographics

As of 2001^[update] Indian census,^[7][8] Ganganagar had a population of 210,788. Males constitute 55% of the population and females 45%. Ganganagar has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 76%, and female literacy is 64%. In Ganganagar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age. Majority in population are Sikhs and Hindus while only a few people constituting other sects stay here. The main languages spoken in the town are Bagri, Marwadi, Punjabi and Hindi.

Educational Institutes

The city has been a center of learning since its early ages. This city has a large proportion of land which is dedicated to educational institutes. Notable educational institutions from the city include:

Schools:

1. Global School
2. Gupta Bal Bharti Girls Sen. Sec. School
3. Bhopal Wala Arya Higher Sen. Sec. School
4. Saint Soldier Public School (7A, outskirts of the city)
5. Guru Harkrishan Public School
6. Sri Guru Nanak Khalsa Higher Sen. Sec. School (Since 1939)
7. B. S. F Senior Secondary School
8. Good Shepherd Public School
9. Bihani Children's Academy
10. Nosegay Public School
11. Sacred Heart Convent School
12. Blooming Dales International School
13. Invention Public School
14. Education Point Computer Centre, Near Bank Colony
15. Tiny Tots Public School
16. Saraswati Public School
17. Seth G. L. bihani S. D. Sen. Sec. School
18. Arorvansh Public School
19. S. R. Public Senior Secondary School
20. Euro Kids International School
21. Govt. Sen. Sec. School(This is one of the oldest school and Popularly Known as MultiPurpose School)
22. Kalindi Public School
23. Saint Dhruv Public School
24. Gyandeep Shikshan sansthan (3E chhoti,S.S.B.Road)
25. Kids Camp Convent School

Colleges:

1. Sri Guru Nanak Khalsa College
2. Seth G. L. Bihani S. D.(P. G.) College
3. Sri Guru Nanak Khalsa Law College
4. Govt. Law College
5. Maharshi Dayanand (PG) College
6. CH. Ballu Ram Godara Girls College
7. CH. Malu Ram Bhambu Govt. Polytechnic College
8. Shri Aatm vallabh Jain Girls College ^[9]
9. Guru Nanak Girls College
10. Neo Institute of Computer Science
11. Bihani Institute of Management
12. Surendra Dental College and Hospital
13. Sri Ganganagar Engineering College
14. Devinder Sethi College
15. Bal Niketan Middle School

Places of interest

The city is surrounded with many canals which comes out from Gang Canal and these canals and water ways make some beautiful places for picnics and sight seeing. There are many places around city, like Teen-Puliya(three bridges)which are most visited by city folks on week ends and holidays. Other famous spots are Shivpur-head and Sadhuwali-head. The city is surrounded by lush green farms and orchards. The best time to visit is during February to March when Mustard fields are covered with yellow flowers, and during October to November when Cotton fields are covered with White Cotton. There are many religious places which are very famous, the famous Gurudwara of Sri Budha-johd is one of them and which is 85 km south west of the city. There are many other religious places also. Sri Jagadamba Andh MahaVidyalya is also a famous institute for education of the Blind and said to be one of the biggest education institutes of visually, hearing and speech impaired people in India and is also worth visiting. The ruins of the Harappa, Mahanjodaro and Kalibangan civilizations are found in Baror Village which is on Anupgargh Ramsinghpur road and which is also worth visiting.

Notable personalities

• Col Avtar Singh Cheema (1933–1989): An Arjuna Awardee who was the first Indian to climb Mount Everest. He was a part of the third mission undertaken by the Indian Army, in 1965, to climb Mt. Everest after two failed attempts. He successfully conquered the mountain on 20 May 1965. Due to his dislike for publicity he never got the acclaim he should have gotten. He was Captain in the Parachute regiment at that time. Later he was promoted to colonel. ^[10]
• Jagjit Singh: Famous Ghazal singer, was born in Ganganagar.
• Rajesh Pratap Singh: Famous Fashion Designer of India who was born and brought up in Sri Ganganagar. ^[11]
• Priya Kapoor: The most famous illiterate farmer who was born in Sri Ganganagar. She now resides in Ohio, USA, farming with her family of 35 raising/cultivating her speciality of Mustard crops for all of the U.S.A.^{[citation needed]}

References