48 Facts About Gujarat

1.

The Gir Forest National Park in Gujarat is home to the only wild population of the Asiatic lion in the world.

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2.

Economy of Gujarat is the fourth-largest in India, with a gross state domestic product of 19.

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3.

Gujarat is derived from the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty, who ruled Gujarat in the 8th and 9th centuries CE.

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4.

Parts of modern Rajasthan and Gujarat have been known as Gurjaratra or Gurjarabhumi for centuries before the Mughal period.

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5.

Gujarat was one of the main central areas of the Indus Valley civilisation, which is centred primarily in modern Pakistan.

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6.

Ancient history of Gujarat was enriched by the commercial activities of its inhabitants.

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7.

Early history of Gujarat includes the imperial grandeur of Chandragupta Maurya who conquered a number of earlier states in what is Gujarat.

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8.

Gujarat ruled Girinagar (322 BCE to 294 BCE) and built a dam on the Sudarshan lake.

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9.

Gujarat shifted his capital from Giringer to Valabhi, near Bhavnagar, on Saurashtra's east coast.

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10.

Gujarat was known to the ancient Greeks and was familiar with other Western centers of civilisation through the end of the European Middle Ages.

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11.

Southern Gujarat was ruled by the Indian Rashtrakuta dynasty until it was captured by the Indian ruler Tailapa II of the Western Chalukya Empire.

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12.

Subsequently, Lata in southern Gujarat was ruled by the Rashtrakuta dynasty until it was captured by the Western Chalukya ruler Tailapa II.

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13.

Gujarat was a major center of Indian Ocean trade, and their capital at Anhilwara was one of the largest cities in India, with a population estimated at 100, 000 in the year 1000.

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14.

Gujarat was defeated and overthrown by the superior forces of Alauddin Khalji from Delhi in 1297.

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15.

Fragments of printed cotton from Gujarat have been discovered in Egypt, providing evidence for medieval trade in the western Indian Ocean.

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16.

The Sultanate of Gujarat remained independent until 1572, when the Mughal emperor Akbar conquered it and annexed it to the Mughal Empire.

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17.

Later, the Gujarat Sultanate allied with the Ottomans and Egyptian Mamluks naval fleets led by governor-generals Malik Ayyaz and Amir Husain Al-Kurdi, vanquished the Portuguese in the 1508 Battle of Chaul resulting in the first Portuguese defeat at sea in the Indian Ocean.

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18.

Gujarat described Gujarat's active trade with Goa, the Deccan Plateau and the Malabar.

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19.

Gujarat was one of the twelve original subahs established by Mughal Emperor (Badshah) Akbar, with seat at Ahmedabad, bordering on Thatta (Sindh), Ajmer, Malwa and later Ahmadnagar subahs.

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20.

Aurangzeb, who was better known by his imperial title Alamgir, was born at Dahod, Gujarat, and was the sixth Mughal Emperor ruling with an iron fist over most of the Indian subcontinent.

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21.

Gujarat was the third son and sixth child of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal.

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22.

Peshwas had established sovereignty over parts of Gujarat and collected taxes and tributes through their representatives.

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23.

Later in the 17th century, Gujarat came under control of the Hindu Maratha Empire that arose, defeating the Muslim Mughals who had dominated the politics of India.

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24.

Gujarat was placed under the political authority of the Bombay Presidency, with the exception of Baroda State, which had a direct relationship with the Governor-General of India.

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25.

Gujarat has the third-largest population of Jains in India, following Maharashtra and Rajasthan.

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26.

People from the Kutch region of Gujarat speak in the Kutchi mother tongue, and to a great extent appreciate Sindhi as well.

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27.

Gujarat is governed by a Legislative Assembly of 182 members.

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28.

Gujarat has two of the three liquefied natural gas terminals in the country (Dahej and Hazira).

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29.

Gujarat sold surplus power to 12 states: Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, and West Bengal.

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30.

Total geographical area of Gujarat is 19, 602, 400 hectares, of which crops take up 10, 630, 700 hectares.

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31.

Gujarat is the main producer of tobacco, cotton, and groundnuts in India.

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32.

Gujarat contributes inputs to the textiles, oil, and soap industries.

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33.

Adoption of cooperatives in Gujarat is widely attributed to much of the success in the agricultural sector, particularly sugar and dairy cooperatives.

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34.

An example of co-operative success in Gujarat can be illustrated through dairy co-operatives, with the particular example of Amul.

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35.

Gujarat stirred the White Revolution of India, the world's biggest dairy development program, and made the milk-deficient nation of India the largest milk producer in the world, in 2010.

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36.

Recently, in 2012, Gujarat began an experiment to reduce water loss due to evaporation in canals and to increase sustainability in the area by constructing solar panels over the canals.

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37.

One megawatt solar power project set up at Chandrasan, Gujarat uses solar panels fixed over a 750-metre stretch of an irrigation canal.

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38.

Government of Gujarat, to improve soil management and introduce farmers to new technology, started on a project which involved giving every farmer a Soil Health Card.

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39.

Gujarat was the home of Mahatma Gandhi, a worldwide figure known for his non-violent struggle against British rule, and Vallabhbhai Patel, a founding father of the Republic of India.

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40.

Gujarat government collected the Best State Award for 'Citizen Security' by IBN7 Diamond States on 24 December 2012.

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41.

Gujarat comes under the Western Railway Zone of the Indian Railways.

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42.

Ahmedabad Railway Station is the most important, centrally located and biggest railway station in Gujarat which connects to all important cities of Gujarat and India.

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43.

The Government of Gujarat is promoting bicycles to reduce pollution by the way of initiative taken by free cycle rides for commuters.

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44.

However, most of the private schools in Gujarat are affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) board.

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45.

Gujarat founded Physical Research Laboratory, a research institute encompasses Astrophysics, Solar System, and cosmic radiation.

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46.

Gujarat envisioned Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, one of the internationally reputed management research institute that is located in Gujarat's commercial capital Ahmedabad and is the top ranked management institutes in the country.

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47.

Gujarat Science City, is a government initiative to draw more students towards education in science, which hosts India's first IMAX 3D theatre, an energy park, a hall of science, an amphitheatre, and dancing musical fountains among others.

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48.

School of Business Management is an MBA college in Gujarat University providing a five-year integrated MBA course.

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