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| Aligarh | |
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| — city — | |
| Nickname(s): City of Locks ; The Mecca of Education[1] | |
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| Coordinates: 27°53′N 78°05′E / 27.88°N 78.08°ECoordinates: 27°53′N 78°05′E / 27.88°N 78.08°E | |
| Country | India |
| State | Uttar Pradesh |
| Division | Aligarh |
| District | Aligarh |
| Area | |
| • Total | 130 km2 (50 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 178 m (584 ft) |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 967,732 |
| • Density | 7,400/km2 (19,000/sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Hindi |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 20200x |
| Telephone code | 0571 |
| Vehicle registration | UP-81 |
| Website | aligarh.nic.in |
Aligarh (pronounced /Ali-garh/ (
listen)) is the district headquarter of the district with the same name, that is Aligarh district, in the Northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is among the very few metropolitan cities in India which is famous worldwide. Its fame stems from its twin legacy of ‘education’ and ‘locks work’. It’s educational legacy comes from the fact that it houses one of the most renowned and oldest existing seat of learning in India, that is, Aligarh Muslim University, giving the city titles like ‘University Town’ and ‘Mecca of Education’. The other twin legacy of the town is ‘lock works’; the town being the center of lock manufacturing in India for decades. No matter Aligarh has been popularized throughout India and abroad with terms like ‘Aligarh ka tala’ which translated into English means ‘Aligarh Locks’ and the city itself is referred to as ‘City of locks’ in popular culture. vernacular.
Though it is famous worldwide and located very close to capital city of New Delhi, being approximately 90 miles (140 km) south-east of it, still Aligarh city displays ‘old world charm’ of a small Indian city. The city also houses and acts as administrative headquarters of Aligarh District and Aligarh Division
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Before the 18th century, Aligarh was known as Kol or Koil.[2] The name Kol referred to the entire district, and its geographical limits would occasionally change. The origin of the name is obscure. In some ancient texts, Kol has been referred to in the sense of a tribe or caste, the name of a place or mountain and the name of a sage or demon. From the study of the place-name of the district, it appears that the district was once fairly well covered by forests and groves. The early history of the district, through the 12th century A.D is obscure.[2]
According to Edwin T. Atkinson, the name Kol was given to the city by Balarama, who was there when he slew the great Asura (demon) Kol and, with the assistance of the Ahirs, subdued this part of the doab.[3] In another account, Atkinson points out a "legend" that Kol was founded by the Dor tribe of Rajputs in 372 A.D. This could be further confirmed by an old fort, the ruined Dor fortress, which lies at the city centre.
Some time before the Muslim invasion, Kol was held by the Dor Rajputs. In the time of Mahmud of Ghazni, the chief of the Dors was Hardatta of Baran.[3] There is reason to believe that Kol was once the seat of a Buddhist community: statues of Buddha and other Buddhist remains have been found in excavations where the citadel of Koil stood. It also had Hindu remains, which indicates that the citadel probably had a Hindu temple after the Buddhist temple.[3]
In 1194 AD, Qutb-ud-din Aibak marched from Delhi to Kol, which was "one of the most celebrated fortresses of Hind".[3] Qutb-ud-din Aibak appointed Hisam-ud-din Ulbak as the first Muslim governor of Koil.[3]
Koil is also mentioned in Ibn Battuta's Rihla, when Ibn Battuta along with 15 ambassadors representing Ukhaantu Khan, the Mongol Emperor of the Yuan dynasty in China, travelled to Kol city en route to the coast at Cambay (in Gujarat) in 1341.[4] According to Ibn Battuta, it would appear that the district was then in a very disturbed state since the escort of the Emperor's embassy had to assist in relieving Jalali from an attacking body of Hindus and lost one of their officers in the fight. Ibn Batuta calls Kol "a fine town surrounded by mango groves". From these same groves the environs of Kol would appear to have acquired the name of Sabzabad or "the green country".[3]
In the reign of Akbar, Kol was made a Sirkar and included the dasturs of Marahra, Kol ba Haveli, Thana Farida and Akbarabad.[3] Both Akbar and Jahangir visited Kol on hunting expeditions. Jahangir clearly mentions the forest of Kol, where he killed wolves.[2]
During the time of Ibrahim Lodhi, Muhammad, son of 'Umar, was the governor of Kol. He built a fort at Kol and named the city Muhammadgarh, after himself, in 1524–25. Sabit Khan, who was then the governor of this region, of Farrukh Siyar and Muhammad Shah, rebuilt the old Lodhi fort and named the town after his own name: Sabitgarh. The ruler of Koil was Bargujar Raja Rao Bahadur Singh whose ancestors ruled it from A.D 1184 after the marriage of the Raja of Koil, Ajit Singh's daughter to Raja Pratap Singh Bargujar.
In early 1753, the Bargujar Chief rose against the destruction of Hindu temples. The Jat ruler, Surajmal in 1753, with help from Jai Singh of Jaipur and the Muslim army, occupied the fort of Koil. The Bargujar Raja Bahadur Singh continued the battle from another fort under them and died fighting in the "Battle of Ghasera". All the women committed Jauhar. Koil was renamed Ramgarh and finally, when a Shia commander, Najaf Khan, captured it, he gave it its present name of Aligarh. Aligarh Fort (also called Aligarh Qila), as it stands today, was built by French engineers under the command of French officers Benoît de Boigne and Perron.[2]
The Battle of Aligarh was fought on 1 September 1803 during the Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805) at Aligarh Fort. The British 76th Regiment, now known as the Duke of Wellington's Regiment laid siege of the fort, which was under the control of the French officer Perron, and established British rule after capturing the fort. In 1804, the Aligarh district was formed by the union of the second, third and fourth British divisions with the addition of Anupshahr from Muradabad and Sikandra Rao from Etawa. On 1 August 1804, Mr Claude Russell was appointed the first Collector of the new district.[5]
In 1875, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan founded the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in Aligarh and patterned the college after both Oxford and Cambridge: universities that he had visited on a trip to England. This later became the Aligarh Muslim University in 1920.
Aligarh is located at the coordinates 27°53′N 78°05′E / 27.88°N 78.08°E.[6] It has an elevation of approximately 178 metres (587 feet). The city is situated in the middle portion of the doab, the land between the Ganges and the Yamuna rivers. The Grand Trunk Road passes through this city.
Aligarh's neighborhoods include Pilakhana, Tajpur Rasulpur, Somna, Gabhana, Bhankari Khas, Noorpur, Mangarhi, Gorai, Sidarmain, Kasimpur Powerhouse colony, Mainath, Nagliya, Khair, Atrauli, Vijaygarh, Gonda, Bhartari, Kanhoi, Iglas, Hathras and Chamed. Dhorra Mafi, Quarsi, Jamalpur
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Aligarh has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate, typical of north-central India. Summers start in April and are hot with temperatures peaking in May. Average temperatures range between 28–33 °C (82–91 °F). The monsoon season starts in late June, continuing till early October, with high humidity levels. Aligarh gets most of its annual rainfall of 800 millimetres (31 in) during these months. Temperatures then decrease, and winter sets in December, and continues till early February. Temperatures range between 12–16 °C (54–61 °F). Winters in Aligarh are generally mild, but fog and cold snaps sometimes occur.
| Climate data for Aligarh | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 21 (70) |
24 (75) |
30 (86) |
37 (99) |
40 (104) |
39 (102) |
34 (93) |
32 (90) |
33 (91) |
32 (90) |
28 (82) |
22 (72) |
31.0 (87.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 7 (45) |
9 (48) |
14 (57) |
20 (68) |
25 (77) |
27 (81) |
26 (79) |
25 (77) |
24 (75) |
19 (66) |
12 (54) |
8 (46) |
18.0 (64.4) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 15 (0.59) |
14 (0.55) |
7 (0.28) |
5 (0.2) |
13 (0.51) |
48 (1.89) |
230 (9.06) |
235 (9.25) |
144 (5.67) |
48 (1.89) |
2 (0.08) |
7 (0.28) |
768 (30.24) |
| Source: IMD | |||||||||||||
As of the census[7] of 2001,[8] Aligarh had a population of 669,087 . Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Aligarh has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 65.4%, with 71% of males and 43% of females literate. 16% of the population is under 6 years of age. At present Aligarh District has a population of around 3,800,000.Aligarh City has population of approximately 9,94000 according to 2011 census.
The city is an agricultural trade centre.[9] The processing of agricultural products and manufacturing are also important.[10]
Aligarh has always been an important business centre of Uttar Pradesh and is most famous for its locks industry. The locks that are produced in Aligarh are exported to different parts of the world. In 1870, Johnson & Co. was the first English locks firm to be set up in Aligarh. In 1890, the company initiated the manual production of locks on a small scale here.[11]
Being at railroad junction, Aligarh has developed into a commercial centre of an agricultural region which produces wheat, sugarcane, cotton, corn, barley, potato, guava and millet. In addition to the lock industry, other industries of Aligarh include flour milling, processing of raw cotton and the manufacture of butter, thermometers and glass. Aligarh is also famous for its brass hardware and sculptures. Today, the city holds thousands of manufacturers, exporters and suppliers involved in the brass, bronze, iron and aluminium industries.
There is a thermal power station 15 km away from the city. It is called Harduaganj Thermal Power Station (also referred as Kasimpur Power House). A nuclear power station, Narora Atomic Power Station is located 50 km away from Aligarh. Despite its proximity to two large power stations, frequent power cuts are normal in Aligarh. They are not just frequent but more than enough to create havoc. The situation is bad enough that people are trying to generate their own power using generators and invertors. It is not uncommon in the summers to have 10 hours or more of power cuts every day.
Aligarh boasts a Heinz-sauce manufacturing unit in Manzurgarhi (around 15 km from Aligarh). Aligarh is also popular for its sugar factory; Satha sugar factory is just 12 km far from the centre of city. Satha sugar factory is located on the Aligarh-Kasimpur route. On this route a cement factory is also present.
Aligarh city is also famous for its Gajaks,sohn-papdi,biscuits (shamshad papy is famous for its rusks) and Kachauries.
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There are two universities in Aligarh, Aligarh Muslim University, a central university established in 1875 and Mangalayatan University, a private university established in 2006.
Other notable institutions include:
There are two popular landmarks in Aligarh. One is Aligarh fort and another is Sir Syed Masjid in Aligarh Muslim University's campus. Another old fort, the Dor fortress (1524), now in ruins, lies at the city's centre; its site is located in the area now called Upper Kot and is occupied by an 18th-century mosque. The city also contains tombs of Muslim saints.[13]
Aligarh has a very renowned tomb (Baba Barchi) at Kath Pula. One famous Jainism Teerth Dhaam "Mangalayatan Teerth Dhaam" has been built at Agra Road. Another old Jain temple with fresco painted ceilings is located behind Khirni Gate Police Chowky at Agra Road in the main City.
Ibn Sina Academy of Medieval Medicine and Sciences"[14] at Tijara House is another site-seeing place where one can see a huge library on history of medicine and history of science.[15] and a museum on Indian heritage and culture. It was built by a Unani Physician and philanthropist Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman.
The Annual Cultural Exhibition, popularly known as Numaish, held at the Exhibition ground is held in January and February. Aligarh is also famous for Sherwanis, especially the Mehndi Hasan's shop reportedly frequented by former Prime Minister of India Pandit Nehru.
Some of the more famous markets of Aligarh include the Centre Point Market, Railway Road Market,Phool chorha,Halwai khana, Jamalpur Market, Shamshad Market, Mahavir Ganj, Upper Fort (known as Uppar Kot), Tasweer Mahal and Amir Nisha. Centre Point Market is the best place for shopping for brand enthusiasts. All major brand outlets are in the vicinity of this market. Recently, brands like Adidas, Reebok, BlackBerry, Puma have opened their outlets here. Railway Road and Amir Nisha markets are the major shopping hubs with a variety of clothes, cosmetics, jewellery and footwear being sold. Shamshad Market and Achal Tal Market are noted for its educational book stores. Mahavir Ganj is mostly famous for grocery items like ghee, spices, dry fruits, etc.
Most markets in Aligarh are made up of many small shops and markets that can get very crowded during daytime because of narrow roads. Cars and cycle rickshaws often clog up the streets, leading to traffic jams that can last more than an hour or so.
In Aligarh, mall culture is gaining prominence; many malls are under construction.
Cineplexes and multiplexes
The city is divided into two areas known as Old Aligarh (City) and New Aligarh (Civil Lines).
It consists of Vishnu Puri, Telephone Coloney(Near Quarsi Chauraha), Firdaus Nagar, Pratibha colony (opp. exhibition ground), Church Compound, Vishnupuri, Jamalpur, Hamdard Nagar Block- A, B, C & D, Tayyab Colony, Lal Diggi Road, Begam Bagh, Anwar ul-Huda Compound,, Pan Wali Kothi, Bargad House, Habib Painter Park Amir Nisha, National Colony, Azim Compound, Zakaria Market, Dhorra Mafi, Sir Syed Nagar, Iqra Colony,Wadi-e-Ismail, Shibli Bagh, Kabir Colony, Friends Colony, New Jamalpur, Badar Bagh, Habib Bagh, Bhamola, Zohrabagh, Ghalib Bagh, Anwar Villa Colony, Dodhpur, Shabistan Compound, Jeevangarh, Kela Nagar, Firdaus Nagar, Firdous Complex, Kabir Colony, Janakpuri, Niranjan Puri ( Navada ), Prag Sarover, Gyan Sarover, Maan Sarover, Shanti Sarovar, Avantika-1 And 2, Quarsi, Kishanpur, Rambagh Colony Gali, Swarna Jayanti Nagar, Shatabdi Nagar, Surendra Nagar, Mahendra Nagar, Naurangabad, Jawalapuri, Shyam Nagar, Janakpuri, Vikram Colony, Medical Colony, Lekhraj Nagar, Ramesh Vihar Colony, Durga Badi, Marris Road, Vidhya Nagar, Ram Krishna Puram,Jaiganj and Sasni Gate. Delhi GT Road and many more new colonies are being developed by Aligarh Development Authority. Dodhpur,
It consists of Avas Vikas Colony Sasni Gate,Manik Chowk,Halwai khana,Tamoli Para,krishna Tola, Baniya Para, Phool Chowraha, Kanwari Ganj, Mamu Bhanja, Kapil Vihar Colony, Banna Devi Police Colony, Sarai Labaria, Kishanpur, Bhamola, Anona House, Pahasu House, Rasalganj Gambhir Pura, Mahendra Nagar, Surendra Nagar, Bank Colony (Premier Nagar), Trimurti Nagar(Baraula Bypass), Gandhi Nagar, Saray Sultani,sarai rehman, Pathan Mohallah (Afghanan), Kala Mahal, Kale Khan Ki Sarai, Ghas Ki Mandi, Mohallah Shaikhan, Tantan Pada, Usman Pada, Chowk Bundukhan, Jama Masjid Upper Kot, Achal Talab and Khirni Gate These are some of the residential areas in old Aligarh. Green Park Colony near SBBM Inter College is a newly-constructed colony.
Aligarh currently has 2 FM Radio stations:
A lot of Hindi Newspapers including Dainik Jagran, Hindustan, Amar Ujala, Avadh Nama, Punjab Kesari, DLA are printed in the city. Various English Newspapers including the Times of India, the Hindu, Hindustan Times, The Economic Times can be found on the stalls at around 7 a.m. as they are published in the Delhi NCR and sent to the city. HT Media Ltd has recently come out with a printing facilities in Aligarh, printing of its Hindi newspaper "Hindustan" starting. They also plan to start printing the local edition of their English Daily "The Hindustan Times" very soon.
There are many social organiasations in Aligarh city,like Rotary Club(Aligarh branch), Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(Aligarh branch)at Dwarikapuri, Vishwa Hindu Parishad(Aligarh branch) at G.T. Road, Manav Upkar Samiti, Bharatiya Sewa Sansthan, Aligarh, Chetana Jagrati Punj(Aligarh branch), Kala Jagriti Samiti(Aligarh branch) etc.
There are many cultural based institutes in Aligarh city like Sangeetikaat Centre Point, Durga Sanskratik Kala Kendra, Sanskar Bharti(Cultural wing of Rastriya Swyamsevak Sangh)etc.
Aligarh is well-connected to other cities. The Grand Trunk Road, one India's longest oldest roads, passes through Aligarh on its way to Bengal. The nearest airport is the Indira Gandhi International Airport, about 160 km away. Aligarh is linked by road to Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Agra, Mathura, Meerut, etc. A large number of people commute to Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurgaon every day for work from Aligarh. Two national highways, the NH-91 and the NH-93, pass through Aligarh. An expressway from Delhi to Agra called the Yamuna Expressway is under development and will pass through Aligarh.
The two main bus terminals are the Masoodabad Bus Terminal and Gandhi Park Bus Terminal from where Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) buses serve cities all over the state of Uttar Pradesh and many other cities in Uttranchal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. Aligarh Junction, the primary railway station for Aligarh city, is a major stop for trains running on the Delhi-Kolkata route. It connects Aligarh to the states of West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand, north-east and most of Uttar Pradesh, and important cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bhopal, Gwalior, Lucknow, Jhansi, Puri, Kanpur, Agra, Varanasi and Jaipur. The station runs about 70 Mail/ Express/ E.M.U Trains daily.
City buses, tempos and rickshaw are convenient options to commute within the city. Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad laid the foundation stone for the third railway line between Aligarh and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh on. The 106.15-km line costing Rs 400 crore An international airport of Delhi has been approved by the Government in Bldev (Mathura). This also comes into Aligarh's District area being about 70 km, by road, from the city centre. The Metro Rail Project has passed and it will be running in the city of Aligarh by 2014 . Other new projects have already passed like Inner Ring road, Outer Ring road by Central Government and construction of a new flyover. An airport has also been approved by the Government.
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Qawwal Habib Painter is from the Old City of Aligarh. Many popular Bollywood artists hail from Aligarh: Chandrachur Singh, Sunidhi Chauhan, Faheemuddin, Naseeruddin Shah, Ravindra Jain and Javed Akhtar. Kaka Hathrasi was also from Aligarh (Hathras, now Distt. Maha Maya Nagar was earlier Sub District of Aligarh). Bharat Bhushan, the Bollywood super star of 1950s, was born in Aligarh. Nigar Sultana, an actress with Raj Kapoor and an actress in super-hit films like Aag(1948), Bazaar(1949)and many more, has a big bungalow named "Nigar Villa" in Aligarh at Marris Road near Kela Nagar. Padma Bhushan Award, the (2007) International Fame Poet of Hindi Kavi Sammelan Gopaldas Neeraj,generally known as ' Neeraj' also lives at Aligarh in Janak Puri; he wrote many famous songs for Hindi films, mainly for Shankar-Jaikishan and S.D.Burman. Noted Urdu poet Akhlaq Mohammed Khan, generally known as ' Shahryar' retired as Chairman of Urdu Dept of Aligarh Muslim University; he wrote lyrics for many famous Hindi films such as Gaman (1978), Umrao Jaan (1981) and Anjuman (1986). He was awarded by Sahitya Akademy Award in Urdu (1987) for his poetry collection and again by Jnanpith Award (2008) which is the highest literary award in India. Indian cricket team member Piyush Chawla (born 24 December 1988) also belongs to Aligarh.Painter S. A. Jafar of Aligarh is well known face in the field of fine arts in India and Abroad.
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