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Kanpur

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Kanpur
Kanpur
Government
 • MayorRavindra Patni (Member of BJP)
Population
 (2001)
 • Total4,137,489 (2,001 census)

Kanpur pronunciationⓘ (Hindi: कानपुर, Urdu: کان پور, spelled as Cawnpore before 1948) is one of the most populous cities in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

Kanpur is located on the banks of the Ganga and is an important industrial centre. It has an area of over 1600 km² and had a population of around 4.13 million in the 2001 census. Owing to its industrial importance one of the Reserve Bank of India was established in the city. Kanpur is home to several most prestigious educational institutions of the country, including one of the Indian Institutes of Technology, Harcourt Butler Technological Institute (HBTI), CSJM University, University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Chandrashekhar Azad Agricultural University, and GSVM Medical College.

History

Nestled on the banks of the eternal Ganga, Kanpur stands as one of North India’s major industrial centres with its own historical, religious and commercial importance. Believed to be founded by king Hindu King Chandel of the erstwhile state of Sachendi, Kanpur, it is believed by some, derived its name from Kanhiyapur, the town of Kanhiya (Lord Krishna). In the course of time, Kanhiyapur probably was abbreviated as Kanhapur and subsequently as Kanpur (the Anglicized spelling of which was Cawnpore during the British rule). Others believe that the name is derived from Karnapur and is associated with Karna, one of the heroes of Mahabharata. Duryodhana made Karna a king, seeing him as a fitting match to Arjuna, and gifted him this area; hence the name Karnapur, which later became Kanpur. Historically, Jajmau on the eastern outskirts of present day Kanpur is regarded as one of the most archaic townships of Kanpur district.

File:Cawnpore.jpg
View of Cawnpore from the Ganges river. Painting by Rev. Henry Martyn.

Kanpur's growth until the thirteenth century is shrouded in the mists of time. It is interesting to note that while no reference to Kanpur is found in history, the history of two of its suburbs, Jajmau and Bithoor, can be traced back to legendary times. Bithoor is located about 20 km upstream of the river from the city and is approximately 10 km from the IIT Kanpur Campus. Jajmau is about 8 km east of Kanpur city and is nearly 20 km upstream of the river from the IIT Campus. According to Hindu mythology, just after creating the universe, Lord Brahma performed the Ashvamedh Yajna (where a horse is let of freely and armies march along with it anyone who stops it has to face a war it was thus a sign of supremacy latter the horse returned back from where it started) at Bithoor (also known as Brahmavart) and established a shivalingam there. Moving further to later times, another mythological site at Bithoor is the Valmiki Ashram, where the famous sage Valmiki is supposed to have written the Sanskrit epic Ramayana. According to this epic, queen Seeta, on being exiled by King Ramachandra of Ayodhya, spent her days in seclusion at the ashram bringing up her twin sons Lava and Kush.

At Jajmau there are remains of an ancient fort, now surviving as a huge mound. Some recent excavations on this mound tend to prove that the site is very ancient indeed, perhaps dating back to the Vedic age. Popular legends have it that the fort belonged to Yayati, a king of the ancient Chandravanshi race, the eighth in succession to Lord Brahma. The famous Siddhnath temple of Lord Shiva and Siddha Devi temple at Jajmau belong to the Buddhist period. The place for a while was known as Siddhpuri.

Another interesting historical place near Kanpur is Shivrajpur. It is located around 20kms from Kanpur Railway Station. At Shivrajpur, there is an ancient temple built by Chandel Raja Sati Prasad in memory of his queen. This temple got built in a day [citation needed] and is situated on the banks of river Ganga. This temple is famous for its beautiful architectural work and its unique carving designs.

In 1207 AD Raja Kanti Deo of Prayag who was attached to the throne of Kannauj established the village Kohna, which later came to be known as Kanpur. Kanpur continued its association with Kannauj during the reins of Harsha Vardhan, Bhoj, Mihir, Jai Chand and early Muslim rulers. Later it came under the Jaunpur rulers and the Sur Dynasty. The first mention of Kanpur was made in 1579 during Sher Shah's regime. Up to the 1st half of the 18th century Kanpur continued to survive as an insignificant village. Its fate, however, took a new turn soon after. In May 1765, Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab Wazir of Awadh, was defeated by the British near Jajmau. From 1773 to 1801, it was part of the Oudh kingdom and then came into the hands of the British. It was probably at this time that strategic importance of the site of Kanpur was realised by the British. European businessmen had by this time gradually started establishing themselves in Kanpur. In order to ensure protection to their lives and property the `Awadh local forces’ were shifted here in 1778. Kanpur passed into British hands under the treaty of 1801 with Nawab Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh. This forms a turning point in the history of Kanpur. Soon Kanpur became one of the most important military stations of British India. It was declared a district on 24 March 1803. South of Parmat were the British infantry lines and the parade grounds. Indian infantry occupied the space from the present Chunniganj to the Christ Church College. The Company Bagh was laid in 1847 and the construction of the Ganga canal was commenced in 1854.

Rebellion of 1857

Main article: Indian Rebellion of 1857

Also read: Siege of Cawnpore

Charge of the Highlanders led by General Havelock, to relieve the besieged British troops held by Indian fighters.

In the 19th century Cawnpore was an important British garrison with barracks for 7,000 soldiers. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, (also known as the First War of Independence) 900 British were besieged in the fortifications for 22 days by rebels under Nana Sahib. They surrendered on the agreement that they would get safe passage to the nearby Suttee Chaura Ghat whereupon they would board barges and be allowed to go by river to Allahabad. However as they boarded the boats there was a loud bugle sounded by one of the assembled onlookers, which resulted in chaos. Frightened boatmen jumped off and the British, coming straight from garrison carrying their arms and ammunition, fired upon them. Rebel Sepoys lost their patience and started firing indiscriminately. Many were killed and the remaining 200 British women and children were brought back to shore and sent to a building called the Bibighar (the ladies' home). After some time, when it was apparent that the British under General Henry Havelock were likely to retake Kanpur, it was suggested to execute their hostages. Four butchers from local market hacked them all after the rebel soldiers refused to carry out orders, three days before the British entered the city on July 18. The dismembered bodies were thrown into a deep well nearby. The British "Army of Retribution" under a General Neill retook the city and committed a series of atrocities against the rebel Sepoys and unfortunate civilians, including women, children and old men, caught in the immediate area. The Kanpur massacre, as well as similar events elsewhere, were seen by the British as an excuse for unrestrained vengeance (Dalrymple, W. 2007. The Last Mughal. The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857, Alfred Knopf, New York).

The Bibighar was dismantled by the British during the reoccupation of Kanpur, and a memorial railing and a cross were raised at the site of the well. The well is now bricked over. The remains of a circular ridge are still there, which can be seen at the Nana Rao Park. The Kanpur Memorial Church – `All Souls' Cathedral’ - was raised in memory of those killed at the north-east corner of Wheeler’s entrenchment in 1862 by the British. The marble gothic screen with the famous `mournful seraph’ was transferred to the churchyard of All Souls' Church after independence in 1947, and in its place a bust of Tantya Tope installed at NanaRao Park.

Development of industries

After 1857 it became an important center of the leather and textile industries. Government Harness and Saddler Factory was started for supplying leather material for army in 1860, followed by Cooper Allen & Co. in 1880. The first cotton textile mill, the Elgin Mills were started in 1862 and Moiré Mills in 1882. The British India Corporation (BIC) was headquartered here and led the development of many industries. The first Indian business house of Cawnpore was the firm NihalChand KishoriLal which set up a trading facility in 1857. This firm was a leader in Oil milling and had many oil mills spread across North India. The Juggilal Kamlapat Singhania family launched many industrial units between 1930 and 1970. The group is known as J K Group of Industries till date. The Jaipuria family contributed to the patriotic cause, by building the Swadeshi Cotton Mills in response to charges that the foreign rulers were raiding India of its cotton only to sell back textiles to the residents. Kanpur was known as the "Manchester of India" during the 20th Century. The NihalChand KishoriLal group (also knows as Kejriwal Group) over time diversified into flour milling, tea plantations and steel. They bought over in 1942 Cawnpore Flour Mills which had been established in 1886 by Edward Foy a Scotsman. New Cawnpore Flour Mills is at present one of the larger flour mills of North India and still managed by the same family. The steel industry was first brought to Kanpur by Singh Engineering and grew with JK Steel and the many ordanance factories which were set up. The Kejriwal's set up a ministeel mill on the outskirts of Kanpur which is now a leading long products manufacturer. Kanpur is also an important center for India's leather industry with numerous leading manufacturers, situated in the Jajmau Leather Industrial hub, which is exported worldwide. It is supposed to be the largest Sugar market in entire North India. As of now, the city also owns many leather tanneries, a 2-wheeler factory owned by LML India, under collaboration with Italy's Piaggio; and over a dozen Defence Ordnance Factories such as Small-Arms Factory, Ordnance Parachute Factory etc. It is also home to the pan masala and gutkha industry.

Many of the British contributed vigorously to charitable causes in the city by building the Ursula Horsemann Hospital, the "Hallet" Hospital, Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, by protecting the Allen Forest (now a Zoo) and many other efforts. Most of these are now renamed, though a lot of residents still call them by their old names. The distortion of names is most visible at the railway crossing bridge next to the Railway Station, where the now-closed Murray Company is conveniently called Mari (Dead) Company.

As every other city, Kanpur too has its problems. Due to the onset of leather industries, the pollution level, especially air pollution has gone to a dangerously high level. Due to lack of proper planning this most populated city of northern India after Delhi is a victim of congestion and overcrowding. Urban planning has yet to evolve. Agencies responsible for it have still a long way to go from selling plots of land to planning wholesome development. A recent article in the Time Asia magazine[1] says it all regarding the pollution in the city.

New industries like detergent, saddlary. food processing, pan masala, tea packaging, leather processing & goods have developed in the city.

Cultural history

Kanpur was a tinderbox in the independence and literary movements during the 1900-1950 period. The largest shopping centre is named Navin Market, after the poet Bal Krishna Sharma aka "Navin". Later poets included Gopal Das "Niraj" who also had a successful spell writing songs for "Bollywood" movies. Kanpur is also the birth place of Shyamlal Gupta `Parshad’, composer of the famous ditty Vijayee Vishwa Tiranga Pyara. The propagation and popularization of Hindi also owes much to this city, with great Hindu literatteurs like Acharya Mahavir Parasad Dwivedi, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Pratap Narain Mishra and Acharya Gaya Prasad Shukla `Sanehi’. The Agricultural University is named after the revolutionary Chandrashekhar Azad and the Medical College after Ganesh Shanker Vidyarthi; both men spent much time in Kanpur. While ChandraShekhar 'Azad' was born in a village in nearby district of Unnao and shot himself when surrounded by a huge posse of British soldiers at Alfred Park, Allahabad, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi was killed during the Hindu-Muslim riots of 1931 at Machli Bazar in Kanpur.

Shri RadhaKrishna Temple

About 25 km from Kanpur is Bithoor. Legend has it that the wife of Lord Rama came to live at the ashram of the sage Valmiki, after Rama expelled her from Ayodhya. It was here that Sita gave birth to the twins Lav and Kush, and disappeared back into the earth (from where she was born, according to mythology) when confronted by a repentant Rama. Bithoor is also the site of the fort to which Nana Sahib escaped following the British retaking of Kanpur. Today, Bithoor is a tourist spot on the banks of the Ganges. Now Kanpur is stretching very fast with new residential complexes sprouting up everywhere. Tatya Tope Nagar is one of them. Named after the famous rebellion Tatya Tope, it is a place full of greenery. The Pandu river is close by.

The beautifully constructed, Shri Radhakrishna Temple (J.K. Temple) is a boon to the devotees. Built by J.K. Trust this architectural delight is a unique blend of ancient architecture with the modern. The even-level roofs of the mandaps have been provided with adequate ventilation for sufficient light and air. Of the five shrines, the central one is consecrated to Shri Radhakrishna and the others have idols of Shri Laxminarayan, Shri. Ardhanarishwar, Shri Narmadeshwar and Shri Hanuman.

Geography

With the coordinates 26.4670° North and 80.3500° East, Kanpur is 80 km from Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh. It is surrounded by two main rivers of India, Ganges in the north-east and Pandu river (Yamuna )in the south. The districts surrounding Kanpur are Hamirpur in the south, Unnao in the north-east, Farrukkhabad in the north and Etawah in the west.

Flora and Fauna

Kanpur is home to many residential and migratory birds. Most of them can be spotted at Bithoor, IIT Kanpur campus and areas alongside the Ganga Canal.

Demography

Kanpur is situated on the banks of river Ganga and has a population of 4.13 million as per the 2001 census, with this it is most populated city of the state. Kanpur has an area of about 1600 km² and is 126 meters above sea level. Languages spoken in and around Kanpur include Hindi, English and Urdu. Also, there are some Bengali and Punjabi speakers as well. All major religions are practised in Kanpur.

Climate

Temperatures in cold weather drop to freezing sometimes reaching a minimum of -3°C with maximum at almost 12 to 14 °C if foggy and overcast,otherwise the average January temperature is around 14°C. Kanpur experiences severe fog in December and January, resulting in massive traffic and travel delays. In summer (April-June) maximum temperatures spiral up to 47`5 °C and are accompanied by dust storm-cum-heat-waves. The lowest since 1968: January 10, 2003 −1 °C, −3 °C in 2004.

Schools, colleges and universities

Colleges

Schools

  • Adharshila (a village school at Kohra - Kanpur city distt)
  • Air Force School Chakeri, Kanpur - 208010
  • BNSD Inter College Chunni Ganj, Kanpur
  • Kendriya Vidyalayas (about 3 dozen of them)
  • St.Joseph's Senior Secondary School, Kanpur
  • B.N.S.D.Shiksha Niketan Inter College, Benajhabar, Kanpur
  • Chacha Nehru Smarak Inter college, Govind Nagar, Kanpur
  • Dr. Brij Kishori Dubey Memorial School, Saket Nagar, Kanpur- 208 014
  • Dr. Chiranji Lal Rastriya Inter College, Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur - 208011
  • Dr. Soney lal patel senior secondary school, Juhi, Kanpur_208001
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Public School, Cantonment, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Avadhpuri, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Sharda Nagar, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Civil Lines, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Panki, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Education Centre, Shyam Nagar, Kanpur
  • Dr. Virendra Swaroop Balika Vidyapeeth, Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur
  • HAL Vidyalaya, Kanpur
  • Jai Narayan Vidya Mandir, Viaks Nagar, Kanpur
  • Jugal Devi Saraswati shishu Mandir, Deen Dayal Nagar, Kanpur-208002
  • Jugal Devi Saraswati Vidya Mandir ,Deen Dayal Nagar, Kanpur-208002
  • Kumari Udyan Vidyalaya, (Fatima Convent), Ashok Nagar, Kanpur
  • Little Angles School, Tilak Nagar, Kanpur-208002
  • Methodist High School (M.H.S), Cantt., Kanpur
  • Ram Krishna Mission Higher Secondary School, Ram Krishna Nagar, Kanpur
  • Poorna Devi Khanna Girls Inter College, Ashok Nagar, Kanpur
  • Pranveer Singh Institute of Technology, Kalpi Road, Bhauti, Kanpur 20 India
  • Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Sanatan Dharma Vidyalaya, Azad Nagar, Kanpur
  • Puranchandra Vidyaniketan, Barra-2,Kanpur
  • Saraswati Gyan Mandir, Inter College, Indira nager, kalyanpur, kanpur
  • Saraswati Vidya Mandir,Inter College, Defence Colony,Kanpur -208 010
  • Seth Anandram Jaipuria School, Cantt, Kanpur
  • Sheiling House School, Kanpur
  • Shivaji Inter College, Kashev Nagar Kanpur
  • Sir Padampat Singhania Education Centre, Kamla Nagar, Kanpur
  • St.Aloysius' High School Cantt., Kanpur
  • St. Francis Xaviers Higher Secondry School Ashok Nagar-208012
  • St Mary's Convent (S.M.C) ,Cantt , Kanpur
  • Subhash Smarak Inter College, Sahyogi Nagar, Kanpur - 208014
  • The Chintels School, RTN, KANPUR
  • U.P. Kirana Seva Samiti Vidyalaya, Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur
  • Virendra Swaroop Educaton Centre, Kanpur

Passenger transport

Local

Kanpur Mahanagar Bus Seva
The Kanpur City Bus Service is often criticised for rash drivers, overcrowding and lack of punctuality. Even so, due to being cheapest, it remains the most important means of mass transport. The most severe problem of pollution by the ill-maintained buses is being overcome by introducing gas (CNG) fuelled vehicles. Several routes are now operated by UP Roadways using government owned CNG buses painted in dull yellowish green. Recent reports suggest that these routes are profitable though reports of conductors not issuing proper tickets also keep appearing.
Tempos
Three wheeler tempos are the second most used means of mass transport. Though a bit uncomfortable, they are still faster in service than Kanpur Mahanagar Bus Seva. Their fare is fixed between two places and you cannot negotiate it. The tempo has capacity for 7 passengers (6 on two back seats and one on front seat beside the driver) and one driver but normally 11 people sit including the driver (8 on two back seats and 3 on front seat). To prevent increasing air pollution problem due to high number of tempos, recently CNG tempos are introduced in the city.
Cycle rickshaws
are a reliable transport medium, although a bit costlier and only meant for short distances.

Inter - City

Kanpur is well-connected with most other cities of India by Rail and Roads.

It lies as one of the most important railway stations on Delhi-Howrah Trunk Line of Indian Railways. The first Shatabdi Express and Rajdhani Express of India ran via this station. There are direct trains from this station to almost all important stations in India.

The city lies on important National Highways. NH No.2, the oldest road of India, Grand Trunk Road - between Amritsar (legend says - Kabul before partition) to Kolkata (legend again says - Dhaka before partition) - runs right through this city. NH No 25. connects the city to western Indian cities like Mumbai through Jhansi.

It gets connected off and on by Air also. Indian Airlines attempted to fly between Kanpur and New Delhi around late 80s and had to stop the flights owing to lack of passenger response. Archana Airways did a second try with a smaller plane around mid-90s; but closed down after one of its planes ran through the runway on to the outer fence of airport.[1] Recently (2006), Air Deccan started daily flights to and from New Delhi and Lucknow but they also failed to continue due to lack of passenger response. Air India (formerly Indian Airlines) has started a daily flight using a new 48-seater ATR42 Turboprop between Kanpur and Delhi domestic terminal, starting 20 September 2007, 6 times a week, Monday to Saturday. IC7801 departs Delhi at 0630 hrs and reaches Kanpur at 0755. Kanpur to Delhi IC7802 will be departing at 0815 and reaching Delhi at 0940 hrs.

An apparent reason for air travel not taking off from Kanpur despite so many prestigious installations and businesses being present, is the fact that most previous attempts have been on flights between Delhi and Kanpur. While flying between the two cities is only one and half hour; the entire time taken including airport formalities and travel to-from airport in Delhi takes about 4 hours without accounting for delays in flight operations. Fastest train on this route, New Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express takes only four and half hours and costs a quarter of the airfare on this sector with facilities better than a full-service airline. Possibly a flight between Mumbai and Kanpur or Ahmedabad and Kanpur (as it operated some 20 years back) would make more commercial sense. The time saved by air over train will be about 20 hours and fares would be almost same as upper class train fares. Traffic is also higher on this route with rare few connections available. In fact, direct flight between Bangalore & Kanpur will make more business sense. As, presently there is only one direct train and that takes over 45 hours and runs once in a week.

Notable locations

  • Green Park Stadium and its Modi Stadium, a cricket stadium
  • Radha-Krishna Mandir, or J.K. Mandir, a temple constructed of white marble
  • The Allen Forest, one of the largest preserved zoos in Northern India
  • Moti Jheel, a lake near the GSVM Medical College
  • Lav Kush Barrage, A barrage on the river Ganga, also known as Ganga Barrage.
  • Anandeshwar Temple, situated on the banks of Ganga at Parmat
  • Kanpur Sangrahlaya, a museum
  • Gandhi Hall
  • Bithoor, a center of Hindu pilgrimage
  • Boodha Bargad Banyan tree, a tree on which 144 Indian freedom fighters were hanged in the later part of the Indian Rebellion of 1857
  • Govind Nagar constituncy, the largest in Asia

Famous residents

  • Padma Shri Gopal Das Neeraj
  • Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi the medical college has been named to this genius
  • Padma Vibhushan Captain Lakshmi Sahgal one time presidential election candidate
  • Choudhary Narendra Singh Famous(kisan) Leader from north india(KanPur),was very close to Ch.CharanSingh,Smt.Indira Gandhi,Rajiv Gandhi,KasiRam and Smt.Sonia Gandhi,He was Three Times Rajya-Sabha M.P ,One Time M.L.C,Three Time M.L.A and Cabinet Minister in UP Government
  • Subhashini Ali, trade unionist and communist leader & Film actress(Ashoka Fame)
  • Shaad Ali, A famous Hindi movies director (Directed Bunty aur Babli, [[Saathiya],[Jhoom Barabar Jhoom]])
  • Raju Srivastava, Film Actor, Stand up Comedian
  • Bob Woolmer, born in Kanpur, went on to play Cricket for England and coached South Africa and Pakistan.
  • Altaf Raja, Bollywood Singer of Tum to thehre Pardesi fame.
  • Singer Abhijeet bhattacharya Famous bollywood singer
  • Sri Praksh Jiaswal, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs from central Govt.
  • Anant Kumar Asthana, Human Rights Lawyer,Political Analysist in Indo-Tibet Affairs and Prominent Anti-ragging Activist

References

  1. ^ Running Out of Breath. Time Asia, October 2, 2006

Arya Nagar


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