Raebareli

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Rae Bareli
State - District(s)	Uttar Pradesh - Rae Bareli
Area
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Population (2001) - Density	169,285 -

Raebareli (also Rae Bareli or Rai Bareli) is a city and a municipal board in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Raebareli District.

The town is on the Sai River, 82 km (50 miles) southeast of Lucknow. It possesses many architectural features, chief of which is a strong and spacious fort erected in 1403, and constructed of bricks 2 ft long by 1 ft thick and 1.5 ft wide (60 cm by 30 cm by 45 cm). Among other ancient buildings are the magnificent palace and tomb of nawab Jahan Khan, governor in the time of Shah Jahan, and four fine mosques.

[edit] History

The city got its name from the fact that the British wanted to build a library here. Unfortunately, the locals could not pronounce it properly. Hence the name.

In the early 20th century, the town was an important centre of trade, and muslin and cotton cloth were woven. Its population was 15,880 in 1901.

This city is not just historically famous, but also politically famous. In 1980, Indira Gandhi was elected as Prime Minister of India from this city. She was the first woman to be Prime Minister of India. In 1999, Sonia Gandhi - the Italian-born daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi and widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi - won the parliamentary seat of Rae Bareilly. Sonia Gandhi was returned to the seat in May 2006 by a margin of over 400,000 votes.

[edit] Demographics

As of 2001 India census^GRIndia, Rae Bareli had a population of 169,285. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Rae Bareli has an average literacy rate of 69%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 74%, and female literacy is 63%. In Rae Bareli, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.