This article is about the municipality in Rajasthan, India. For its namesake district, see Ajmer district. For the historical region, see Ajmer region.
Ajmer (pronounced[ədʒmeːr]ⓘ) is the fifth largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and is the centre of the eponymous Ajmer District. According to the 2011 census, Ajmer has a population of around 551,360 in its urban agglomeration and 542,580 in the city. The city is located at a distance of 135 km from the state capital Jaipur and 391 km from the national capital New Delhi.
Ajmer is surrounded by the Aravalli Mountains. It is a pilgrimage centre for the shrine of the Sufi Saint KhwajaMoinuddin Chishti and is also the base for visiting Pushkar (11 km), an ancient Hindu pilgrimage city, famous for the temple of Brahma.
Prithviraj Chauhan (1149–1192 CE), of the Chauhan dynasty, ruled Ajmer along with Delhi during the latter half of the 12th century. He succeeded to the throne at the age of 13, and ruled from the twin capitals of Ajmer and Delhi, and was the last independent Hindu king to sit upon the throne of Delhi.
Jahangir receives Prince Khurram at Ajmer on his return from the Mewar campaign
According to Rajputana Gazetteer, Ajmer was held by Chechi Gurjars until about 700 years ago. Ajmer, earlier known as 'Ajayameru' (Sanskrit: अजयमेरु, lit. invincible mountain) was founded in the late 7th century A.D. by Ajayraj Singh Chauhan. Chauhan clan is a branch of Rajputs. The Chauhan dynasty ruled Ajmer in spite of repeated invasions by TurkicMuslim armies from Central Asia across the north of India. Ajmer was conquered by Muhammad of Ghor, founder of the Delhi Sultanate, in 1193. However, the Chauhan rulers were able to gain autonomy upon the payment of a heavy tribute to him. Ajmer regained independence under the ruler of Mewar in 1365. In 1509, control of Ajmer was disputed between the Maharajas of Mewar and Marwar until it was conquered by the Marwar in 1532. In 1553, the state was ruled by the Hindu Emperor Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, popularly known as Hemu, who was killed in 1556 in the Second Battle of Panipat. The city was conquered by the Mughal emperorAkbar in 1559. In the early 1700s century, control passed to the Marathas.
In 1818 the British forced the Marathas to cede the city for 50,000 rupees, whereupon it became part of the Province of Ajmer-Marwar in the colonial British Raj. It consisted of the districts of Ajmer and Merwara, and were physically separated by the territory of the Rajputana Agency. Ajmer-Marwar was directly administered by the British Raj, by a commissioner who was subordinate to the Governor-General's agent for Rajputana.
Ajmer-Marwar remained a province of India until 1950, when it became the Ajmer State. Ajmer state became part of Rajasthan state on 1 November 1956.
Geography
Ajmer is surrounded by the Aravalli Mountains. The city is sied on the lower slopes of the Taragarh Hill in the Aravalli Range. It is situated almost in the centre of Rajasthan. To the north of the city is a large artificial lake, called Anasagar with a marble structure known as Baradari. Ajmer is protected from the Thar desert by the massive rocks of Nagpathar range.
Ajmer is also antipodal to the Chilean remote island of Isla Sala y Gómez.
Ajmer has a hot semi-arid climate with over 55 centimetres (25.4 in) of rain every year, but most of the rain occurs in the Monsoon months, between June and September. Temperatures remain relatively high throughout the year, with the summer months of April to early July having an average daily temperature of about 30 °C (86 °F). During the monsoon there are frequent heavy rains and thunderstorms but flooding is not a common occurrence. The winter months of November to February are mild and temperate with average temperatures ranging from 15–18 °C (59–64 °F) with little or no humidity. There are, however, occasional cold weather fronts that cause temperatures to fall to near freezing levels.
Transportation
The Pushkar Ghati connecting Ajmer and PushkarA long shot of Pushkar ghati
Ajmer is well connected to the major cities of India by land and rail.
Ajmer is at an important railway junction on the Broad gaugeJaipur-Ahmedabad line. Presently, the rail lines are without overhead Electric wires i.e. only Diesel engines can be run on them. Electrification of the railway lines is under progress, starting with Ajmer-Jaipur line.
Road
The city is located on the Golden Quadrilateral National Highway 8 (NH 8) midway between Delhi and Mumbai, about 400 km from Delhi and 135 km from Jaipur. The Ajmer - Jaipur expressway is a 6 lane highway. There are air-conditioned bus services to Ajmer from Delhi, Jaipur and other cities.
Intra-city transport
Buses and taxis are available for travel within the city and to nearby towns such as Pushkar and Kishangarh. Rickshaws are also available within the city.
Tourist sites
Ajmer Sharif DargahBaradari on Lake Anasagar
The Ajmer Sharif Dargah: It is a shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti which is situated at the foot of the Taragarh hill, and consists of several white marble buildings arranged around two courtyards, including a massive gate donated by the Nizam of Hyderabad and the Akbari Mosque, built by the Mughal emperorShah Jahan. It contains the domed tomb of the saint. Akbar and his queen used to come here by foot on pilgrimage from Agra every year in observance of a vow when he prayed for a son. The large pillars called "Kose ('Mile') Minar", erected at intervals of two miles (3 km) along the entire way between Agra and Ajmer mark the places where the royal pilgrims halted every day. It has been estimated that around 125,000 pilgrims visit the site every day.
Taragarh Fort: The fort guarding Ajmer, was the seat of the Chauhan rulers and was originally believed to be built by Mughal ruler Akbar.[6] It is reputed to be one of the oldest hill forts in India and the world. It was built by King Ajaypal Chauhan on the summit of Taragarh Hill and overlooks Ajmer. The battlements run along the top of the hill. The walls are two miles (3 km) in circumference and the fort can only be approached by way of a very steep slope. When it fell to the British Raj, the fort was dismantled on the orders of Lord William Bentinck and was converted into a sanatorium for the British troops stationed at the garrison town of Nasirabad.
Adhai Din Ka Jhonpda: A 12th century Sanskrit college converted into a mosque by Qutubuddin Aibak in 1193, is situated on the lower slope of Taragarh hill. Aibak's successor, Shams al-Din Iltutmish added to the mosque. It is noted for its double-depth calligraphy inscriptions, in the Naskh and Kufic scripts. Apart from the mosque, called Jama Iltutmish (pronounced Altamash locally), nearly the whole of the ancient temple has fallen into ruins, but the relics are still unsurpassed as examples of Hindu architecture and sculpture. Forty columns support the roof, but no two are alike and the ornaments are exceptional in their decorations.[7]
Abkari Fort & Museum : The city's Museum, was once the residence of Prince Salīm, the son of the Emperor Akbar, and presently houses a collection of Mughal and Rajput armour and sculpture. This is a magnificent example of Mughal architecture, construction of which had been commissioned by Akbar in 1570. This is the location from where Salim, as the Emperor Jahangir read out the firman permitting the British East India Company to trade with India.[8]
Lake Foysagar at sunset
Maqbara Shaikh Husain: It houses the tomb of Khwaja Husain Chishty Rehamatullah Alaih (Shaikh Husain Ajmeri) who was the Peer of Ajmer Sharif Dargah in Emperor Akbar's Time, He was the great grandson of Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty Rehmatullah Alaih, his tomb was built in 1637–1638 by Khwaja Alauddin Chishty and Sajjadanashin Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin
Anasagar Lake: This iS a historic man-made lake was built by Maharaja Anaji (1135–1150 AD).[6] By the lake is the Daulat Bagh, a garden laid out by Emperor Jahangar. Emperor Shah Jahan later added five pavilions, known as the Baradari, between the garden and the lake.
On the way to Prithviraj Chauhan Statue, the famous Sai Baba temple is also an important tourist destination which is having same architecture as that of Sai Baba temple in Shirdi.
Lord Ram (at center)Soniji Ki Nasiyan: It is an architecturally rich DigambaraJain temple. It was built in the late nineteenth century. The main chamber, known as the Swarna Nagari "City of Gold", has several gold-plated wooden figures, depicting several figures in the Jain religion.[10] it has a gold model of the city of Ayodhya, the birthplace of Ram.[5]
Lake Foy Sagar: It is situated in the outskirts of the city, it is a picturesque artificial lake that was created as a famine relief project in 1892. It offers panoramic views of the neighbouring Aravalli mountains as well as of the evening flights of nearby birds.
Located about 11 kilometres from Ajmer Pushkar is also an important tourist destination. It is famous for Pushkar Lake and the 14th century Brahma Temple at Pushkar, dedicated to Brahmā, according to the Padma Purāņa, Pushkar is the only place where Brahmā may be worshipped.[12] There is a general belief amongst Hindus that no pilgrimage to the four principal pilgrim centres (Char Dham) namely, Badrinath, Jagannath, Rameshwaram and Dwarka, would be complete without a blessing that comes from bathing in the holy Pushkar Lake. Pushkar has 52 bathing ghats and many temples. Pushkar is also famous for its annual Pushkar Fair.
Shopping
Ajmer is home to antiques and silver jewelry. It is also popular for shopping items like bandhini sarees and dupattas, Jodhpuri juttis, ittar (perfume), Rajasthani crafts, etc. Some of the famous markets are Naya Bazaar, Madar Gate, Churi Bazaar, Ajaymeru Udyog Crafts Mela.[13]
Ajmer, a view from Taragarh Fort
Education
Sophia School and College
Mayo College was founded by the British Raj in 1875 to educate the children of India's royalty under mayo college general council two more schools were built in later half of 20th century Mayo college girls school(girls boarding) and Mayoor school(day school)both these schools are built on land given by Mayo college once part of its campus and hence located nearby . Ajmer is also home to Saint Anselms School (1904), St. Mary's Convent Girls' School, Sophia Girls' School (1918/1935) & College (1943, and the historic Ajmer Music College (1942), the first accredited institution in Rajasthan for teaching Hindustani classical music.
The headquarter of Board of Secondary Education Rajasthan (BSER) is in Ajmer.
According to the 2011 India census,[15]Ajmer district has a population of 2,584,913, which was made up of 1,325,911 males and 1,259,002 females. Ajmer district had an average literacy rate of 70.46 percent, male literacy being 83.93% and female literacy 56.42%. There was a total of 1,557,264 literates compared to 1,168,856 in the 2001 census. The population density in Ajmer district was 305 compared to 257 per km2 in 2001. The female to male ratio in Ajmer was 950/1000. This represents an increase of 2.04% from the 2001 census. Ajmer's population growth in the decade was 18.48%, this compares to a growth figure of 20.93% for the previous decade.
The population of Ajmer city according census 2011 is 542,580 positioning Ajmer in top 100 major cities of India and 5th in Rajasthan.
^ abGopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 173.
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