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Bhopal

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Bhopāl pronunciationⓘ (Hindi: भोपाल, Urdu: بھوپال) is a city in central India. It is the capital of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Bhopal has earned the sobriquet, City of 7 Lakes. A typical strong accent of Urdu is spoken in Bhopal that is well-known for its Gunga-Jumni culture. The demographics of the city can be broken down into 56% Hindus, 38% Muslims, with the rest of the population including Christians, Sikhs, Jains, and, Buddhists. However, the demographics of Bhopal district are slightly different with 69% Hindus and 24% Muslims.

Introduction

Bhopal is the capital of the state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of Bhopal District and Bhopal Division. Historically, Bhopal was also the name of a Muslim princely state in central India (See Bhopal (princely state)).

On December 3, 1984, a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal leaked 40 tons of toxic methyl isocyanate gas, which killed more than 3 thousand people outright and injured anywhere from 150,000 to 600,000 others. Another 12,000 deaths have officially been ascribed to the disaster's effects, although campaign groups put the figure much higher. (See Bhopal disaster.)

History

Bhopal is said to have been founded by the Parmara King Bhoj (1000–1055), who had his capital at Dhar. The city was originally known as Bhojpal named after Bhoj and the dam ('pal') that he is said to have constructed to form the lakes surrounding Bhopal.

Bhopal during the British Raj: see main article Bhopal (princely state)

After Independence

Bhopal was one of the last princely states to sign the 'Instrument of Accession' 1947. Though India achieved Independence in August 1947, the ruler of Bhopal acceded to the Indian government only on May 1, 1949. Sindhi refugees from Pakistan were accommodated in Bairagarh, a western suburb of Bhopal.

According to the States Reorganization Act in 1956, Bhopal state was integrated into the state of Madhya Pradesh, and Bhopal was declared as its capital. The population of the city rose rapidly.

In December 1984, a cloud of methyl isocyanate was accidently released from the factory of Union Carbide, a multinational company (now taken over by Dow Chemicals). The cloud covered half of the city and killed 3000 people immediately, 15,000 later, and left 50000 with permanent disabilities; see Bhopal Disaster.

Bhopal City

File:Map India Bhopal City.gif
Bhopal, city roadways & railways

Law and Government

Bhopal is the capital city of Madhya Pradesh. Currently, the mayor of the city is Indian National Congress's Sunil Sood.

Geography

Bhopal is a hilly area, located on the Malwa plateau, and the land rises towards the Vindhya Range to the south. The summers are hot and the winters cold. It rains moderately during the rainy season.

The municipality covers 286 square kilometres. It has two very beautiful lakes, collectively known as the Bhoj Wetland. These lakes are the Upper Lake (built by King Bhoj) and the Lower Lake. The catchment area of the Upper Lake is 361 km2 while that of the Lower Lake is 9.6 km2. The Upper Lake drains into the Kolans River.

The major hills in Bhopal comprise of Idgah hills and Shyamala hills in the northern region and Arera hills in the central region.

It is well connected to the rest of the country by rail, air and road links.

Demographics

The Old City of Bhopal is a predominantly Muslim area, but New Bhopal is a demographically cosmopolitan area. The chief languages are Hindi, Urdu and English, but there are a substantial number of Marathi speakers as well. Persian was the court language until nineteenth century and Urdu has been the lingua franca spoken with a particular heavy accent perfected in legendary Bollywood movie Sholay.

  • Population: 1.4 million
  • Total generation: 600 ton/day
  • Waste generation per capita: 0.43 kg/person per day

Major Parks

Bhopal has many public parks. Some of the major parks are: Kamla Nehru Children's Park (B.H.E.L. Park), Chinar Park (famous for its Bougainvillea varieties and animal statues), Ekant Park, Mayur Park, The Rose Garden (Gulab Udyan), Kilol Park etc.

Neighborhoods

Bhopal is divided into two parts - the Old City and the New Bhopal (these are not the official names). The Old City (often referred to in Bhopal as just "City") is the city built and developed by the Begums. New Bhopal was developed after Bhopal became the capital of Madhya Pradesh. It has modern residential localities like 1250 Quarters, Malviya Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Tatya Tope Nagar (T.T. Nagar), Arera Colony, Shahpura, Ayodhya Nagar, Kasturba Nagar, Gautam Nagar, Subhash Nagar, Saket Nagar, Shakti Nagar, Barkheda, Piplani and the commercial township called Maharana Pratap Nagar (commonly known as M.P.Nagar).

Major Industries/Products

The major industries in the city are electrical goods, cotton, chemicals (see Bhopal Disaster) and Jewellery.

BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited), the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprise in India, has a unit in Bhopal.

Sites of interest

  • Taj-ul-Masaajid: (The name is Masaajid and not masjid because 'masaajid' is plural of mosques and it literally means Crown Among Mosques) It is one of the largest mosques in Asia, built by Shahjehan Begum around a courtyard with a large tank in the centre and with an imposing double storeyed gate-way with 4 recessed archways and 9 imposing cusped multifoiled openings in the main prayer hall. The Quibla wall in the prayer hall is carved with 11 recessed arches, while the mimber is made of black basalt. The structure is enlivened by the limpid expanse of water in the tank outside the northern wall. The monumentality of this structure was much greater originally when it faced the towering bastions of the Fatehgarh Fort. A three-day Ijtima congregation was held here annually draws people from all over the world but has recently been shifted outside the City. Bhopal has over 400 mosques. Interestingly, Tajul Masaajid, perhaps the biggest mosque in India, faces the smallest mosque in the country that lies just on the other side of the road in the same area. The Dhai Seedhi Masjid (2-1/2 stairs mosque) was built in early 18th century when a rampart was converted into mosque.
  • Dhai Seedi ki Masjid: While Taj-ul-Masaajid boasts of being the largest mosque in Asia (spread areawise), this mosque Dhai-seedi-ki-masjid is known as Asia's smallest. It literally means "a mosque with two and a half steps". This is right across the road from Taj-ul-Masaajid and currently located within the campus of Gandhi Medical College, which is built on top of an old fort, and the mosque is in one of the watchtowers. It is also supposed to be the oldest mosque initially built as a makeshift mosque during the construction of the fort.
  • Islam Nagar: It has the ruins of the old city built by Dost Mohd. Khan.
  • Purana Kila: Situated in the Kamala Nehru Park, it is a part of the 300-year old fort of Queen Kamalapati.
  • Jama Masjid: A mosque built by Qudsia Begum in 1837. Gold spikes crown the minarets of this beautiful mosque.
  • Moti Masjid: A mosque based on the Jama Masjid of Delhi built by Sikander Begum in 1860.
  • Shaukat Mahal: A strange mixture of Indo-Islamic and European styles of architecture. It was designed by a Frenchman, said to be a descendant of an offshoot of the Bourbon Kings of France. Post Renaissance and Gothic styles are combined to charming effect here.
  • Gohar Mahal: It is situated behind Shaukat Mahal on the banks of the Upper Lake was built by Qudsia Begum. It is magnificent expression of the fusion of Hindu and Mughal architecture.
  • Sadar Manzil: It was built as a hall to be used by the Begums for public audience. Now it is used as the head-office of the Bhopal Municipal Corporation.
  • Bharat Bhavan: It is the main cultural center of the city and of the most important cultural centers of India. It was designed by the famous architect Charles Correa. It has an art gallery that exhibits works of famous painters and sculptors. It has an open-air amphitheatre facing the Upper Lake and two other theatres and a tribal museum. The night-view from the amphitheatre set on the backdrop of the old city and the lake is magnificent.
  • Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya: It means The Museum of Man. It is spread over 200 acres (0.8 km²) of undulating land on the Shamla Hills on the Upper Lake front. The museum is spread on a hilltop and showcases the various hutments that tribals of across the India use for shelter. It's an endeavour to preserve the rural housing architecture with it's own specific style and nuance so that it may not get lost as the use of cement and concrete penetrate rural India.
  • Government Archaeological Museum
  • Lakshmi Narayan Temple or Birla Mandir: It is a temple devoted to Lord Vishnu and his consort Laxmi. It is situated to the south of the Lower Lake.
  • Birla Museum
  • Bhimbetka: It has pre-historic rock art and is a World Heritage Site.
  • Sanchi: Situated at a small distance from the city of Bhopal, Sanchi houses some ancient Buddhist structures built by Emperor Ashoka.
  • Bhojpur - A small village situated some 40 km from Bhopal with a huge rock temple of lord Shiva and having betwa river flowing down the valley. The temple is been managed now by archeological survey of India.

Educational Institutes

Universities

Colleges

Schools

  • Campion School
  • Carmel Convent Senior Secondary School, B.H.E.L
  • St. Joseph's co-ed senior secondary school, Arera colony
  • St. Joseph's convent senior secondary school, idgah hills
  • Model Higher Secondary School, TT Nagar
  • St. Xavier's Senior Secondary Co-Ed School, Berkhera

Eminent personalities associated with Bhopal

  • Shankar Dayal Sharma: former President of India and former Professor at the Harvard Law School.
  • Jaya Bhaduri (Bachchan): Famous actress who also happens to be the daughter-in-law of the poet the late Harivanshrai Bachchan, the wife of actor Amitabh Bachchan and the mother of actor Abhishek Bachchan. Her father the late Taroon Kumar Bhaduri was a Bhopal based journalist.
  • Javed Akhtar: Poet and song writer of Bollywood. Famous for the writing the blockbuster movie "Sholay".
  • J Swaminathan: Eminent artist. Closely associated with the founding of Bharat Bhavan.
  • M.N. Buch: Retired IAS Officer settled in Bhopal. Well known for his forthright views of many issues.
  • Aslam Sher Khan: Member of the World Cup winning Indian Hockey team in 1975 (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia). Also became a Member of Parliament.
  • Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi: Also known as Tiger Pataudi. India's youngest captain in Test Cricket. His association with Bhopal is through his mother's family.
  • Shaharyar Khan: Former Pakistani Foreign Secretary. Belongs to the Bhopal Royal family. Is presently the President of Pakistan's Cricket Control Board.
  • Dr. A.Q. Khan: Migrated to Pakistan after his schooling. Father of the Pakistani Atom Bomb. Has bought himself negative attention by selling nuclear secrets to many countries.
  • Razaa Murad: Bollywood actor.


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