Morbi
Morbi | |
|---|---|
city | |
| Nickname: Paris of Saurashtra | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Gujarat |
| District | Morbi |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Total | 250,000 |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Gujarati, Hindi |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 363641/42 |
| Area code | 02822 |
| Vehicle registration | GJ-36 |
Morbi or Morvi is a city and a municipality in Morbi district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It was a Princely State ruled by the Jadeja clan of Rajputs until Indian independence in 1947. It is situated on the Kathiawar peninsula. In 2011[update], the city's population was determined to be 194,947.[1] Its chief products are cotton and grain. The town of Morbi is situated on the river Machhu, 22 miles (35 kilometers) from the sea and 60 kilometers from Rajkot.
The city-state of Morbi and much of the building heritage and town planning is attributed to the administration of Sir Lakhdhiraji Waghji,[2] who ruled from 1922 to 1948. Sir Waghji acted as a ruler, manager, patron and policeman of the state with great authority. Sir Waghji, like other contemporary rulers of Saurashtra, built roads and a railway network (of seventy miles), connecting Wadhwan with Morbi and the two small ports of Navlakhi and Vavania, for exporting the state's production of salt and cloth. The Morbi railway station combines Indian and European architectural elements. Today, Sir Waghji Thakor's grandson Shivam Thakor is still the Prince of the state and resides in the royal palace.
History
During the British Raj era, Morvi State was one of several princely states governed by the Jadeja dynasty of Rajputs. It was classified as an 11-gun salute state.[3]
Landmarks in the town
Darbargadh (Royal palace); Mani Mandir; Wagh Mahal, also known as Wllingdon Secretariat; Lakhdhir ji Engineering college in Nazarbag palace; Julto Pul Hanging bridge across river Machhu; Nehru Gate; Green tower; Art Deco Palace; heritage Railway station building and Sipoc ceramic.
Education
Morbi has many schools and colleges of commerce, arts, science, home science and different branches of engineering, e.g., Mahila College, St. Mary's Higher Secondary School, V. C. High School, New Era Public School, Om Shanti School, O. M. V. V. I. M. College, M. P. Sheth Girls' High School, and more.
Lukhdhirji Engineering College (L.E. College) is one of the oldest colleges in Gujarat, hosts over 3,000 engineering students and is a major source of local income. Maharaja Mahendrasinhji College and Smt. G. J. Sheth College are part of Saurashtra University.
Industry
Morbi produces 70% of India's gross ceramic production and 5% of the world's needs, [4] around 80% of the country's Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) production and is the largest producer of wall clocks in India.
There are around 600 ceramic factories with production worth Rs. 40 billion (Rs. 4,000 crores) annually. The main products are ceramic tiles, together with some sanitaryware production. Morbi's ceramic factories are mainly small and medium scale units which together comprise the largest ceramic production in India.V[5]
Another major industry in Morbi is clock manufacturing: Samay Clocks, Sonera Industries and Sonam Quartz are some of the manufacturers. The majority of these companies' workforce are females from neighbouring villages. Clocks are manufactured and sold both nationally and internationally, with major international shipments to the Middle-East and East Asia.
A paper mill produces a wide range of paper products and some paper craft.
Transportation
Morbi can be reached by road from Ahmedabad in approximately 4.5 hours via: 1. National Highway 8A via Limbadi and Chotila - approximately 232 km 2. State Highway 7 via Viramgam and Dhrangadhra - approximately 200 km Buses are run by the Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation and private travel companies.
The nearest railway station is in Wankaner Taluka of Morbi district, from which one can get trains to many major cities of Gujarat and other states. To reach Morbi by air, the nearest airports are about 62 km away in Rajkot and 247 km away in Ahmedabad. Air India and other airlines run regular flights from Mumbai to Rajkot and Mumbai to Ahmedabad.
There are various connecting flights to Ahmedabad from all Indian cities and frequent buses are available from Ahmedabad.
References
- ^ "Morvi City Census 2011 data". Population Census 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ^ "Morvi, The Jadeja Dynasty", Royal Ark
- ^ Morvi (Princely State)
- ^ Tale Of A City: How Morbi Lost The Plot
- ^ Some well-known international tiles and sanitaryware brands also outsource their productions to smaller factories in Morbi.