Jodhpur

Jodhpur

Jodhpur

Jodhpur

जोधपुर
Jodhpur (Rajasthani: जोधपुर),(/ˈdʒɒdpʊər/ About this sound Jodhpur.ogg (help·info)) is the second largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. After its population crossed a million, it has been declared as the second 'Metropolitan City' of Rajasthan. It was formerly the seat of a princely state of the same name, the capital of the kingdom known as Marwar. Jodhpur is a popular tourist destination, featuring many palaces, forts and temples, set in the stark landscape of the Thar desert.

The city is known as the "Sun City" for the bright, sunny weather it enjoys all the year round. It is also referred to as the "Blue City" due to the vivid blue-painted houses around the Mehrangarh Fort. The old city circles the fort and is bounded by a wall with several gates. However, the city has expanded greatly outside the wall over the past several decades. Jodhpur lies near the geographic centre of Rajasthan state, which makes it a convenient base for travel in a region much frequented by tourists. Jodhpur topped the Lonely Planet's list of most extraordinary place to stay in 2014


Unique Features of Jodhpur City

    Rich in History.
    Bounded by hills, Kaylana Lake and Garden and Mehrangarh Fort.
    Connected through NHs 65, 112 & 114 and SHs 28 & 5.
    Headquarters of North Western Railway.
    Important Tourist destination.
    Known for its Handicraft, Mining and Industries.

History

Jodhpur Panorama, seen from the Mehrangarh Fort.

According to Rajasthan district Gazetteers of Jodhpur and the Hindu epic Ramayana (composed up to 4th century AD), Abhiras (Ahirs) were the original inhabitants of Jodhpur and later Aryans spread to this region.

Jodhpur was also part of the Gurjara – Pratihara empire and until 1100 CE was ruled by a powerful Bargujar King. Jodhpur was founded in 1459 by Rao Jodha, a Rajput chief of the Rathore clan. Jodha succeeded in conquering the surrounding territory and thus founded a state which came to be known as Marwar. As Jodha hailed from the nearby town of Mandore, that town initially served as the capital of this state; however, Jodhpur soon took over that role, even during the lifetime of Jodha. The city was located on the strategic road linking Delhi to Gujarat. This enabled it to profit from a flourishing trade in opium, copper, silk, sandals, date palms and coffee.


In between 1540 to 1556, Afghans were in control of most of North India. Rajasthan born Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, popularly called Hemu, who started his career as a supplier of various types of merchandise to Sher Shah Suri empire, held various positions in capital Delhi as 'Incharge of Food Affairs', 'Minister of Internal Security', 'Prime Minister-cum-Chief of Army' with Islam Shah Suri and Adil Shah, who ruled north India from Punjab to Bengal at that point in time. Hemu, who took as the military commander of Afghan army in 1553, crushed the first rebellion, killing the Governor of Ajmer province Juneid Khan and appointed his own Governor in Rajasthan. Hem Chandra won several battles (22) throughout North India against Afghan rebels and twice against Akbar at Agra and Delhi, before his coronation at Purana Quila in Delhi on 7th Oct. 1556 as a 'Vikramaditya' king. Hemu lost his life in the Second Battle of Panipat on 5 November 1556, and the area came under Mughal king Akbar.

Early in its history, the state became a fief under the Mughal Empire, owing fealty to them while enjoying some internal autonomy. During this period, the state furnished the Mughals with several notable generals such as Maharaja Jaswant Singh. Jodhpur and its people benefited from this exposure to the wider world: new styles of art and architecture made their appearance and opportunities opened up for local tradesmen to make their mark across northern India.
View of the Rajasthan High Court, Sardar Museum in Umaid Park and upper right is Jodhpur fort in 1960.

Aurangzeb briefly sequestrated the state (c.1679) on the pretext of a minority, but the rightful ruler Maharaja Ajit Singh was restored to the throne by Veer Durgadas Rathore after Aurangzeb died in 1707 and a great struggle of 30 years. The Mughal empire declined gradually after 1707, but the Jodhpur court was beset by intrigue; rather than benefiting from circumstances, Marwar descended into strife and invited the intervention of the Marathas, who soon supplanted the Mughals as overlords of the region. This did not make for stability or peace, however; 50 years of wars and treaties dissipated the wealth of the state, which sought and gratefully entered into subsidiary alliance with the British in 1818.

During the British Raj, the state of Jodhpur had the largest land area of any in Rajputana. Jodhpur prospered under the peace and stability that were a hallmark of this era. The land area of the state was 23,543 sq mi (60,980 km2) its population in 1901 was 44,73,759. It enjoyed an estimated revenue of £35,29,000/. Its merchants, the Marwaris, flourished without let or limit and came to occupy a position of dominance in trade across India. In 1947, when India became independent, the state merged into the union of India and Jodhpur became the second city of Rajasthan.

At the time of partition, ruler of Jodhpur Hanwant Singh did not want to join India, but finally due to the effective persuasion of Sardar Vallab Patel, the then Home Minister at the centre, the princely state of Jodhpur was included in Indian Republic. Later after State Reorganization Act, 1956 it was made part of the state of Rajasthan.

Strategic Location

Jodhpur is the most important city of western Rajasthan and lies about 250 kilometres from the international border with Pakistan. This location makes it an important base for the Indian army, Indian Air Force and Border Security Force (BSF). Jodhpur's air base is Asia's one of the largest and one of the most critical and strategically located (Jodhpur Airport played the crucial role during Indo-Pak wars in 1965, 1971) airbases of the IAF deployed with advanced fighter jets Sukhoi Su-30MKI and Advanced Light Helicopters Dhruv.

Culture

Rich in history, the center of Marwar is one of the most vibrant places to explore. Music, food, art and language blend in perfectly to gives one a lively experience that is very distinct to this region. The city is famous for its food specially with shops named 'Jodhpur Sweets' being a very common site in many of the cities spread throughout India. Being at the onshore of Thar desert, life has been influenced with ways of the desert folks( gypsies can be found in many parts of the city).

Tourism

Ghanta Ghar (Clock Tower)

Umaid Bhawan Palace

Jodhpur's attractions include Mehrangarh Fort, Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jaswant Thada, Ghanta Ghar (Clock Tower) and Flying Fox [Mehrangarh Fort]. Tourists can make excursions to Mandore, Kaylana Lake and Garden, Balsamand Lake, Sardar Samand Lake and Palace, Masooria Hills, Veer Durgadas Smarak (monument, park and museum), Bhim Bhirak Cave.

The beautiful historic buildings and scenic landscapes of the city were featured in some big movies (The Dark Knight Rises directed by Christopher Nolan, and The Fall directed by Tarsem Singh), Hum Sath Sath Hain, Veer, and Shuddh Desi Romance.More recently, there have been many high profile celebrations organised in the city including many celebrity weddings. This has given an impetus to a nascent lavish wedding industry and also increased tourist footfalls.

Mehrangarh Fort
The Jaswant Thada mausoleum
Umaid Bhavan Palace
Ghanta Ghar (Clock Tower)
The city is embedded with majestic monuments from those built in early days to recent ones in 20th Century
Places of recreation

With ever expanding city, places of recreation are also increasing in number, albeit not so fast. Some of the places worth mentioning are:

    Mandore Gardens
    Kaylana Lake
    Shastri Circle
    Massoriya Hill Garden
    Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park
    Science Park
    Ummed Garden

Mandore Gardens
Kaylana Lake
Shastri circle
Science Park
Places of recreation in the city

Some of the upcoming attractions are:

    Akshardham temple
    Iskcon temple
    Machiya Safari Park
    Science City

Sports

Barkatullah Khan Stadium. Jodhpur

Jodhpur has two outdoor stadiums and one indoor stadium complex. Barkatullah Khan Stadium has hosted two cricket ODIs and is poised to take a greater share of the sport events at national and international levels in the future.

Fairs and festivals

Folk dance of Rajasthan.

A glimpse of Rajasthan folk dances.



    Marwar Festival
    Gangaur
    Teej
    Nag Panchmi Fair
    Sheetla Mata Fair
    Baba Ramdev Pir Mela

Transportation

Jodhpur Airport

The city has well established rail, road and air networks connecting it to other major cities of the country.

Railways

Jodhpur railway station
Night view of the railway station

Jodhpur railway station is the divisional headquarters of the North Western Railways (NWR). It is well connected with railways to major Indian cities like Alwar, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Pune, Kota, Kanpur, Bareilly, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Indore, Bhopal, Dhanbad, Guwahati, Nagpur, Lucknow, Gwalior, Jaipur etc. To decongest the main Jodhpur station (JU), the suburban station Bhagat ki Kothi (BGKT) is being developed as the second main station for passenger trains. At present 70 passenger trains originate from both the stations. Some of the important trains originating from Jodhpur railway station are- Ranthambore Express (Jodhpur to Indore), Mandore Express (Jodhpur to Delhi), Suryanagri Express (Jodhpur to Mumbai), Marudhar Express (Jodhpur to Lucknow), Howrah Superfast (From Jodhpur to Howrah) etc.

For further train running information, timings, halts etc. visit the official website of Indian Railways

Luxury train service- For experiencing the true magnificence and royal opulence of Rajasthan, luxury trains Palace on Wheels and Royal Rajasthan on Wheels are run jointly by RTDC and Indian railways. Jodhpur is one of the destinations of both of the trains.

Air


Jodhpur Airport is one of the prominent airports of Rajasthan. The airport is due for being transformed into an international airport. The work on which is going to start very soon. At present, there are daily flights from Delhi and Mumbai to the city operated by Air India and Jet Airways. From November 2013, Spice Jet and Indigo are also going to start their services from Jodhpur airport.

Road

Jodhpur is connected by road to all major cities in Rajasthan and neighbouring states like Delhi, Ahmedabad, Surat, Ujjain, Agra etc. Apart from deluxe and express bus services to cities within the state, Rajasthan Roadways provides Volvo & Mercedes Benz bus service to Delhi, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Udaipur and Jaisalmer (click here for time table and reservations). Recently, Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) is launched in the city with low floor and semi low floor buses plying on major routes. Jodhpur is connected to the National Highway network with three National Highways and to the Rajasthan State Highway network with ten state highways. National Highways passing through Jodhpur:

    NH-65, Ambala-Kaithal-Hissar-Fatehpur-Jodhpur-Pali, total length= 690 km
    NH-112, Junction with NH-14 near Bar connecting Jaitaran-Bilara-Kaparda-Jodhpur-KalyanpurPachpadra-Baloootra-Tilwara-Kher-BagundiDhudhwa-madhasar-Kawas and terminating at its junction with NH 15 near Barmer, total length= 343 km
    NH-114, Junction with NH-65 near Jodhpur connecting Balesar - Dechhu and terminating at its junction with NH-15 near Pokaran, total length= 180 km

State Highways passing thorugh Jodhpur:

    SH-19, Phalodi (NH 15) to Needar via Ahu, Chadi, Pachudi, Nagaur, Tarneu, Khatu Kalan, Khatu khurd, Toshina, Kuchaman City, Bhuni, Maroth, Deoli Minda, Renwal Crossing, Kaladera, total length= 368 km
    SH-21, Dantiweara to Merta City via Pipar City, Borunda, total length= 97 km
    SH-28, Phalodi (NH 15) to Ramji ki Gol via Deeechu, Shergarh, Pachpadra, Balotra, Sindri, Guda Malani.total length= 259 km
    SH-58, Jodhpur to Bheem up to NH 8 via Vinakiya, Rajola Sojat, Rendiri, Bhaisana, Sojat Road, Kantalia, Baban. total length= 142 km
    SH-61, Phalodi ( NH 15) to Mandal via Osian, Mathania, Jodhpur, Khejrali, Bhatenda, Saradasamand, Jadan, Marwar Junction, Auwa, Jojawar, Kamalighat, Devgarh, Rajaji ka kareda.total length=349 km
    SH-62, Bilara to Pindwara via Sojat, Sireeyari, Jojawar, Bagol, Desuri, Sadri, Sewari.total length=187 km
    SH-63, Banar to Kuchera via Bhopalgarh Asop.total length=129 km
    SH-65, Sheo (NH 15) to Shergarh via Bhiyad, Barnawa Jagger, Patodi, Phalsoond.total length=155 km
    SH-66, Siwana to Dhandhaniya (NH 114) via Samdari, Kalyanpur, Mandli Rodhawa Kalan.total length=90 km
    SH-68, Dangiyawas (NH 112) to Balotra via Kakelao, Khejarli, Guda Kakani, Luni, Dhundhara, Rampura, Samdari.total length=131 km