Ghaziabad


Ghaziabad is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and a part of the National Capital Region of Delhi. It is the administrative headquarters of Ghaziabad district and is the largest city in western Uttar Pradesh, with a population of 1,729,000. Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation is divided into 5 zones - City Zone, Kavi Nagar Zone, Vijay Nagar Zone, Mohan Nagar Zone and Vasundhara Zone. The Municipal Corporation comprises 100 wards. Well connected by roads and railways, it is a major rail junction for North India. It is sometimes referred to as the "Gateway of Uttar Pradesh" because it is close to New Delhi, on the main route into Uttar Pradesh. Recent construction works have led to the city being described by a City Mayors Foundation survey as the second fastest-growing in the world. Situated in the Upper Gangetic Plains, the city has two major divisions separated by the Hindon River, namely Trans-Hindon on the west and Cis-Hindon on the east.

History

The city of Ghaziabad was founded in 1740 A.D. by Ghazi-ud-Din, who served as a wazir in the court of Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah, and named it as "Ghaziuddinnagar" after his own name. The name "Ghaziuddinnagar" was shortened to its present form, i.e. "Ghaziabad" with the opening of the Railways in 1864. During the Mughal period, Ghaziabad and especially the banks of the Hindon in Ghaziabad, remained a picnic spot for the Mughal royal family.
Establishment of the Scientific Society here, during the same period is considered as a milestone of the educational movement launched by Syed Ahmad Khan. The Sind, Punjab and Delhi Railway, connecting Delhi and Lahore, up till Ambala through Ghaziabad was opened in the same year. With the completion of the Amritsar-Saharanpur-Ghaziabad line of the Sind, Punjab and Delhi Railway in 1870, Delhi was connected to Multan through Ghaziabad, and Ghaziabad became the junction of the East Indian Railway and Sind, Punjab and Delhi Railway.
Ghaziabad, along with Meerut and Bulandshahr, remained one of the three Munsifis of the District, under the Meerut Civil Judgeship during most periods of the British Raj.
Ghaziabad was associated with the Indian independence movement from the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Industrial growth

Although connected by railway since 1865, it was not until 1940 that the first modern industry appeared in Ghaziabad. However, it was in the post-independence period that industry really expanded, with a further 22 factories opening in the four years after 1947. This development can be attributed to the influx of people from the newly formed Pakistan and the relocation of businesses from what was now the Pakistani province of Punjab. John Oakey and Mohan Ltd., one of India's largest concerns manufacturing coated and bonded abrasives, and originally functioning under the name of 'National Abrasives' at Rawalpindi was shifted here under the proprietorship of 'Dyer Meakins' in 1947. Subsequently, the Mohan Meakin breweries were also set up in the year 1949. This period also saw the development of Ghaziabad as one of India's most famous centres of the Oil Engines industry.
In 1967, the municipal limits were extended up to the Delhi-UP border. Starting in the early 1970s, many steel-manufacturing units also came up in the city making it one of the primary industries of the city. This period also saw the emergence of the Electronics industry, with the setting up of Bharat Electronics Limited and Central Electronics Limited Over the years, planned Industrial development saw participation from major industrial houses of the country including Mohans, Tatas, Modis, Shri Rams, Jaipurias etc. and also significant participation through foreign capital in concerns such as Danfoss India Ltd. ; Indo- Bulgar Food Ltd. and International Tobacco Company.

Demographics

Population

The provisional data derived from the 2011 census shows that Ghaziabad urban agglomeration had a population of 2,358,525, of which males were 1,256,783 and females were 1,101,742. The literacy rate was 93.81%. Ghaziabad is a subcategory B1 district of category B i.e. having socioeconomic parameters below the national average. It is the second largest industrial city in Uttar Pradesh after Kanpur.

Religion

Hinduism is the most popular religion in Ghaziabad with 72.93% followers, followed by 25.35% Muslim followers, 0.41 Christian followers, and 0.49% Sikh followers who make up the smallest percentage of followers in the city. There are around 0.07 Buddhists, 0.35% Jain followers who are minorities. There are many religious sites in Ghaziabad such as the ISKCON Temple for Hindus, Jama Masjid for Muslims, Holy Trinity Church for Christians, and Shri Guru Singh Sabha Gurudwara for Sikhs.

Climate

As it is connected to the national capital, its temperature and rainfall are similar to Delhi. Rajasthan's dust storms and snowfall in the Himalayas, Kumaon and Garhwal hills name their impact in the weather regularly. The monsoon arrives in the district at the end of June or the first week of July and normally it rains until October.
As in other districts of northern India mainly three seasons - summer, winter and rainy - prevail here, but sometimes due to severe snowfall in the Himalayas and Kumaon Hills, adverse weather can also be seen.
Due to a number of Construction and Highway Projects causing cutting Down Hundreds of old Trees rapidly, The Pollution and rising Temperature problems have increased significantly.

Transport

Road

A proposal has been made to widen National Highway 24 from four to fourteen lanes on the stretch between the Ghaziabad-Delhi border and Dasna. Many residential and commercial projects are being built along the highway.

Delhi Metro

The Delhi Metro extends to New Bus Adda station which is situated at the Old Ghaziabad GT Road. This line has since been extended to New Bus Stand, Ghaziabad. Hindon River Station which serves Raj Nagar Extension and Mohan Nagar Station. Another station exists at Vaishali, which serves that area as well as Vasundhara and Indirapuram, and there is also a station at Kaushambi.

Air

is the airport serving Ghaziabad which will begin operation in October 2019. The closest international airport is the Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Sports

The Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium is a Cricket stadium in Ghaziabad.And Mahamaya Sports stadium is multi-purpose Sports Stadium in City.
International Cricket Stadium is under construction at Raj Nagar Extension and will complete by 2021.

Institutes

Arts, entertainment and television