Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh

This article is about the municipality in Uttar Pradesh, India. For its namesake district, see Aligarh district.

Aligarh अलीगढ़ علی گڑھ
City of Locks ; The Mecca of Education
—  city  —
Aligarh Location of Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh and India
Coordinates	27°53′N 78°05′E
Country	India
State	Uttar Pradesh
Division	Aligarh
District(s)	Aligarh
Population	967,732 (2001)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 178 metres (584 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 20200x • Telephone • +0571 • Vehicle • UP-81

Aligarh( pronunciation , Hindi: अलीगढ़, Urdu: علی گڑھ) is a city in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located about 90 miles (140 km) south-east of New Delhi. The administrative headquarters of Aligarh District, Aligarh Police Range and Aligarh Division are located there. It has a population of 669,087, according to the 2011 census. The city is mostly known as a university town, alluding to the famous Aligarh Muslim University located there. Several intellectuals have been associated with this university; Sir Muhammad Iqbal, who is also regarded as one of the founding fathers of Pakistan, is the most famous. Aligarh has been also historically famed for its lock industry and is called the City of Locks in local vernacular.

History

Moat at the Aligarh Fort

Before the 18th century, Aligarh was known as Kol or Koil. 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.

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. 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. 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.

In 1194 AD, Qutb-ud-din Aibak marched from Delhi to Kol, which was "one of the most celebrated fortresses of Hind". Qutb-ud-din Aibak appointed Hisam-ud-din Ulbak as the first Muslim governor of Koil.

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. 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".

In the reign of Akbar, Kol was made a Sirkar and included the dasturs of Marahra, Kol ba Haveli, Thana Farida and Akbarabad. Both Akbar and Jahangir visited Kol on hunting expeditions. Jahangir clearly mentions the forest of Kol, where he killed wolves.

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 re-named 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.

Battle of Aligarh (1803)

General Lord Gerard Lake who oversaw the Battle of Ally Ghur

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.

Establishment of Aligarh Muslim University (1875)

Main article: Aligarh Muslim University

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.

Geography

Aligarh is located at the coordinates 27.88°N 78.08°E / 27.88; 78.08. 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.

Neighborhoods

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.

Climate

Aligarh
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     15   21 7     14   24 9     7   30 14     5   37 20     13   40 25     48   39 27     230   34 26     235   32 25     144   33 24     48   32 19     2   28 12     7   22 8 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: IMD
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     0.6   70 45     0.6   75 48     0.3   86 57     0.2   99 68     0.5   104 77     1.9   102 81     9.1   93 79     9.3   90 77     5.7   91 75     1.9   90 66     0.1   82 54     0.3   72 46 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

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.

Demographics

As of the census of 2001, 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

Economy

The city is an agricultural trade centre. The processing of agricultural products and manufacturing are also important.

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.

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, biscuits (shamshad papy is famous for its rusks) and Kachuries.

Education

Entrance Gate to AMU[BAB-E-SAYYAD]

Maulana Azad Library-one of the largest collection holder in Asia

Strachey Hall & SS Mosque

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:

• A.M.U City High School
• Al-Barkaat Public School (10+2)
• Albarkat Institute Of Management (Anoop Shehar Road)
• Aligarh College Of Engineering & Technology (ACET)
• Aligarh College Of Engineering And Management (ACEM)
• Aligarh Public School
• Aligarh Unani and Ayurvedic Medical College and Hospital
• Ayesha Tarin Modern Public School(+2), P.O. CDF
• Blue Bird Senior Secondary School
• Chauhan Indravai Inter Collage
• D.S. Degree College
• Dayanand Saraswati Vidhya Mandir Kasimpur Aligarh
• Dazzling Public School
• Delhi Public School
• Eurokids Aligarh
• Firdaus Public School
• Gagan Public Senior Secondary School
• H.B. Inter College
• Hare Krishna Public School
• Heritage International School
• Hiralal Barahseni Inter College
• Indian Institute Of Medical Representative (IIMR)
• Indira Gandhi College of Management and Technology (IGCMT)
• Ingraham Institute
• Institute Of Information Management Technology (IIMT)
• Iqra Public School
• Jagdish Bal Mandir, Rajendra Nagar
• Jagran Public School, Mathura Road
• Juipeter Public School, Jamalpur, Hamdard Nagar 1, Anupshar Road
• K.B.R. Educational Academy
• Krishna International School
• MADINATUL ULOOM COLLEGE (M.U.COLLEGE), Doharra
• Neel Giri Inter College, Agra Road
• Our Lady of Fatima Secondary School
• Pious Institute Of Management And Technology, Ramghat Road, Aligarh
• Raghuveer Bal Mandir
• Raghuveer Sahay Inter Collage
• S.M.B. Inter College, Ram Ghat Road, Aligarh
• S.T. High School (Minto Circle)
• Saraswati Vidhya Mandir, Mathura Road, Asana Ajeetpur Aligarh.
• Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Gonda Mod, Khair Road, Aligarh
• Senior Secondary School, AMU for Boys & Girls
• Shivadan Singh Institute of Technology and Management (SSITM)
• Shri Varshney College, Aligarh.
• Sri Sai Ayurvedic College
• St. Fidelis Senior Secondary School, Ramghat road, Aligarh
• T.R. Girls College
• Taameer-E-Millat Islamia School, Dodhpur
• Three Dots Senior Secondary School
• Vans Infotech, Ramghat road, Aligarh
• Vivekananda College of Technology & Management, Aligarh
• Wisdom Public Sr. Sec. School, Ramghat Road, Aligarh
• Zakir Hussain Sr. Sec. School

Important places

Christ church in Naqvi Park, a lesser known part of Aligarh.

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.

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.

Church of Ascension, Aligarh.

Ibn Sina Academy of Medieval Medicine and Sciences" at Tijara House is another site-seeing place where one can see a huge library on history of medicine and history of science. 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.

Markets

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.

Entertainment

In Aligarh, mall culture is gaining prominence; many malls are under construction.

• Great Shopping Mall
• Landmark Mall
• Regency Mall
• S K Mall
• Sharda Mall (under construction)
• Great Value Mall (under construction)
• Oasis Mall (under construction)
• Ozone Mall (under construction)

Cineplexes and multiplexes

• Grand Surjeet
• Big Cinema (Vadra Big Cinema)
• Apsara
• Meenakshi
• Vadra
• Lakshmi
• Nishat
• Surjeet
• Tasweer Mahal
• Gold Cinema Multiplex (under construction)
• Sodhi's Miniplex (under construction)
• Oasis Multiplex (under construction)

Important residential places

The city is divided into two areas known as Old Aligarh (City) and New Aligarh (Civil Lines).

New Aligarh

It consists of 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, 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, and Sasni Gate. Delhi GT Road and many more new colonies are being developed by Aligarh Development Authority.

Old Aligarh

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.

Media

Aligarh currently has 2 FM Radio stations:

• 92.7 MHz Big FM
• 101.3 MHz All India Radio,

Qawwal Habib Painter is from the Old City of Aligarh. Many popular Bollywood artists hail from Aligarh: Chandra Choor 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 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.

Transportation

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 Jewar. 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.

Notable personalities

• Gopaldas Neeraj, poet, recipient of Padma Bhushan
• Akhlaq Mohammed Khan, pen name Shaharyar, Urdu poet and Bollywood lyricist
• Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, Unani physician and author
• Annu Raj Singh, international shooter
• Shad Khan, anchor, actor and director
• Bharat Bhushan, Bollywood actor, scriptwriter and producer

Further reading

• Aligarh in My Days (Interviews of former Vice Chancellors of Aligarh Muslim University), Ed. Syed Ziaur Rahman, Non-Resident Students’ Centre, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 1997.
• Atkinson, Edward (1875, reproduced 2010). Descriptive And Historical Account Of The Aligarh District. Nabu Press. ISBN 1147427194. 

External links

• Aligarh City's Latest Updates
• Aligarh.Com
• My Aligarh All Info